CEO – Maritime Charity – UK

Chief Executive Officer – Maritime Education & Training Charity

Location: UK – Remote / Flexible

We are working with a well-established organisation operating at the heart of UK maritime education, training and career development to appoint its first in-house Chief Executive Officer.

This is a unique opportunity to lead the organisation through an exciting period of change as it transitions to become a fully independent, self-governing charity with its own team, identity and ambitious plans for the future.

The Role

Reporting directly to the Board, the CEO will take overall responsibility for the strategic leadership and day-to-day management of the organisation, combining high-level stakeholder engagement and governance with the hands-on leadership required within a small organisation.

A major initial focus will be leading the organisation’s relaunch, including reviewing existing processes and governance, establishing an in-house function, overseeing a complete rebrand and developing a new communications strategy.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Providing strategic leadership and acting as a key advisor to the Board and Trustees
• Leading the organisation’s transition and relaunch as an independent charity
• Overseeing maritime cadet training and development programmes
• Providing strategic oversight of funding schemes and financial processes
• Maintaining strong governance, regulatory compliance and reporting
• Building relationships with government, maritime employers, training providers and wider industry stakeholders
• Acting as a visible ambassador and public representative for the organisation
• Developing and delivering communications, marketing and profile-raising strategies
• Identifying opportunities to expand the organisation’s activities and industry impact
• Establishing and leading a small in-house team
• Driving continuous improvement across the organisation

About You

We are looking for an experienced senior leader who can operate strategically while remaining comfortable with hands-on delivery.

You will ideally bring:

• Senior leadership experience at management, director or CEO level
• Experience leading organisational change, transformation, a relaunch or the establishment of a new function
• Strong governance and Board-level stakeholder management experience
• Experience overseeing funding, grants, budgets or financial processes
• The confidence to engage with senior stakeholders across government and industry
• Experience developing communications, marketing or profile-raising initiatives
• Strong commercial and financial awareness
• Excellent communication and presentation skills
• A proactive, self-sufficient approach and the ability to operate with significant autonomy

Experience within the maritime charity sector is preferable, with education, training, skills or charity sectors also being considered.
The Opportunity

This is much more than a traditional charity leadership position. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to shape the future direction, identity and growth of an organisation with an important role in developing the next generation of UK maritime professionals.

You will inherit an established purpose and industry network, while having significant freedom to modernise the organisation, raise its profile and build the infrastructure required for its next chapter.

If you are an experienced leader who enjoys combining strategy, transformation, stakeholder engagement and hands-on delivery, we would be interested to hear from you.
 
FULL RIGHT TO WORK IN THE UK IS ESSENTIAL.