Regional Skills Planning Lead - North East
If you require this advert in another format, please contact recruitment@sds.co.uk or call 0300 013 5119.
About Us
You’ll join the Skills Planning and Sector Development (SPSD) Directorate, within the Regions and Enabling Sectors portfolio. SPSD works with employers and partners across regions and sectors, providing expertise and leadership, gathering insight to identify priority skills demand, and influencing skills investment and provision across the system. SPSD activity also supports the development and implementation of SDS products and services, Scottish Government policy, and place-based initiatives so Scotland’s regions can grow with the skills they need.
This post is one of five Regional Skills Planning Leads and forms part of the wider SDS leadership team.
Be part of something bigger — build skills, change lives!
What You’ll Be Doing
You’ll lead regional skills planning activity in the North East of Scotland (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) partnering closely with the Highlands and Islands Regional Skills Planning Lead to drive and where needed, support activity in Moray and across the wider region. As a visible champion for SDS products and services, you’ll build strong relationships with colleagues and partners to deliver a joined-up, intelligence-led offer that makes a real difference.
You’ll ensure SDS is heard in the rooms that matter, selecting the right forums, shaping the agenda, and building senior relationships that unlock progress. Alongside partners, you’ll drive the skills workstream within the North East Regional Economic Strategy and help deliver the skills priorities within the Highlands and Islands REP Regional Delivery Plan.
You’ll help steer major regional programmes—spanning City and Growth Deals, the Investment Zone, the Energy Transition Zone, the Green Freeport and the Convention of the Highlands and Islands /spotting opportunities early and turning them into deliverable plans. You’ll coordinate SDS input across strategies and strengthen how we measure impact. You’ll also enhance the evidence base by supporting the development of the existing Regional and Sectoral Skills Assessments and the new Skills Needs Assessments.
From a management perspective, you’ll line-manage up to two Skills Planning and Sector Development Managers. Central to the role will be protecting SDS’s reputation through thoughtful engagement, risk mitigation, continuous improvement, and high-quality responses to Scottish Government information requests.
What We’re Looking For
You bring strong expertise in economics, skills or labour market policy (or a closely related field), with qualifications or equivalent experience at SCQF level 9. You can connect national direction with local delivery, understanding Scotland’s economic and skills agenda and translating strategy into practical, place-based action.
You’re at your best when working with strategic partners, confident at senior tables, building alignment across partners and influencing outcomes on shared priorities. You can navigate complexity and competing perspectives with sound judgement, keeping relationships strong and progress on track.
You lead with clarity and pace, creating the conditions for high performance, encouraging innovation, and communicating with impact. You can shape strategy, build compelling business cases, and put in place the governance and management disciplines that protect value for money and deliver results.
Whilst not essential, it’s a real advantage if you’ve helped lead a Regional Skills Plan/strategy, hold a recognised project management qualification, or have experience working with industry partners to shape skills and education provision.
About SDS
Skills Development Scotland (SDS) is Scotland’s national skills agency, focused on driving productivity and inclusive economic growth by investing in skills and supporting people and businesses to reach their full potential. Through deep partnership working, expert insights and innovative solutions, SDS helps address Scotland’s skills and labour‑market challenges, ensuring employers can access the talent they need while individuals gain opportunities to develop and thrive. SDS is guided by strong organisational values, placing customers at the heart of everything it does and fostering a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement and respect.
Our Values
Our organisational values are created by our colleagues and are the compass that guide our behaviours and actions with our customers and each other. We need our future colleagues to share these values and help us to continue to deliver our bold ambitions for the future;
- We put the needs of our customers at the heart of all we do
- We make use of our combined strengths and expertise to deliver the best outcomes
- We demonstrate self-motivation, personal responsibility, and respect
- We continually improve to achieve excellence
Why You’ll Love Working Here
SDS is an award-winning, equal opportunities and fair work employer where our culture is driven by our people. The values we share guide how we support our customers—the people of Scotland—and how we support one another. With progressive benefits, flexible ways of working, and a strong focus on wellbeing, engagement, and development, we’re proud to be a great place to work.
Click here to see the full range of our Benefits
Where You’ll be Working
This role is based in the North East of Scotland with a focus on Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray and will require travel across the relevant local authorities and beyond. To support face-to-face partner engagement, the role is required to work out of Aberdeen for up to 2 days per week. SDS operates a hybrid working model, so the successful applicant is expected to work from both home and an SDS workplace on a regular basis. Occasional travel to Glasgow offices will also be required.
How to Apply
The closing date to submit your application is Sunday 26th July 2026. Interviews will be on Thursday20th or Friday 21st August in Aberdeen. A second-round interview will be scheduled as soon as possible thereafter at SDS Headquarters in Glasgow, Montieth House, 11 George Square.
If this opportunity interests you and you would like to discuss the role in more detail to help you decide if it is right for you, please contact Andrea Glass, Head of Regions and Enabling Sectors andrea.glass@sds.co.uk or Chris Brodie, Director of Regional Skills Planning and Sector Development chris.brodie@sds.co.uk.
Using AI
AI can be a useful tool for drafting or polishing your application. Please remember to check that everything you submit is accurate and genuinely represents your skills, experience and voice. We value authenticity and want to hear your real story.
One Last (but very important) Thing
At SDS we are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. If you've got the right skills for the job, we want to hear from you. We encourage applications from the right candidates regardless of age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, belief or race. Therefore, while we want to know about your relevant skills and experience, please avoid disclosing any identifying characteristics.
To help you prepare and perform at your best, SDS shares interview questions with all candidates in advance. This removes unnecessary barriers, supports those who benefit from additional preparation time, and helps ensure a fair and transparent recruitment process. This approach is being trialled for 6 months from April 2026.
To find out more about working at SDS and our application process please visit us at https://www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk/work-with-us/
Internal applicants should discuss their application with their People Manager prior to applying for this post.