Chief Operating Officer

Overview

Edinburgh College is one of Scotland’s largest colleges, offering over 700 courses to 30,000 students across four campuses. With expert teaching, strong industry partnerships, and flexible pathways from access to degree level, we ensure our students are equipped with the skills and opportunities to succeed — with 98% progressing to work or further study within eight months.

As Chief Operating Officer (Depute), you will be a key member of Edinburgh College’s Executive Team, providing strategic leadership across operational excellence, corporate services and organisational performance. You will oversee finance, HR and workforce planning, digital innovation and IT, estates and infrastructure, governance, risk, compliance and business continuity to ensure the College is sustainable, resilient and future-focused.

Acting as Depute to the Principal & CEO, you will hold delegated authority for staffing, finance, governance reporting and emergency decision-making as required. You will lead major transformation programmes including digital and estates development, service improvement, financial sustainability and people strategy. Working closely with the Board of Management and senior leaders, you will provide clear, robust governance, performance reporting and strategic insight, while fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, continuous improvement and excellence in student experience.

You are an inspiring, strategic leader with proven experience leading multi-disciplinary corporate functions in a complex organisation. You bring strong financial and operational expertise, including managing significant budgets, driving organisational change and delivering large-scale transformation. You have a solid understanding of finance, HR, estates, digital and IT, governance and risk, and are confident working with Boards and senior stakeholders.

You are an exceptional communicator and relationship-builder, able to articulate vision, influence at all levels and make sound decisions in complex or high-pressure environments. With a degree or relevant professional qualification (and ideally an accounting or leadership qualification), you demonstrate a commitment to continuous professional development, equality and inclusion, and creating high-performing, values-driven cultures.