Head of Operations

Robert Walters is partnering with a rapidly growing international trading business in a pivotal Head of Operations role. Our client is a well-established player in the environmental commodities space, operating across renewable energy certificates, carbon credits, biofuels, and sustainability-related products, with a strong international footprint and an ambitious growth agenda. This is a high-impact leadership position offering genuine autonomy, significant ownership, and the chance to shape the operational infrastructure of a dynamic, entrepreneurial organisation from the inside.

What You'll Do

Reporting directly to senior leadership, your responsibilities will include:

• Leading and overseeing all operational processes across the business, ensuring efficiency, accuracy, and execution excellence
• Designing and implementing scalable operational frameworks to support continued international growth
• Managing and improving trade operations, settlements, client onboarding, and compliance-related processes
• Developing KPIs, reporting structures, and operational performance metrics
• Identifying operational risks and implementing effective mitigation strategies
• Driving automation and continuous process improvement initiatives
• Coordinating cross-functionally with Sales, Trading, Finance, Legal, HR, and senior leadership
• Managing, mentoring, and developing operational staff and team leads
• Supporting strategic projects and business expansion initiatives

What You'll Bring

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

• A minimum of 7 years' experience in Operations, Business Operations, or Operational Management
• Proven leadership experience with a track record of managing and developing high-performing teams
• Strong organisational and project management capabilities with excellent attention to detail
• An analytical mindset with sound commercial awareness and strong problem-solving skills
• Experience in fast-paced commercial environments — ideally within trading, brokerage, energy, financial services, or environmental markets
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence at all levels
• Knowledge of compliance, settlements, onboarding, or financial operations (preferred)
• Experience scaling operational processes within growing organisations (preferred)
• International business exposure (advantageous)
• Full professional fluency in English

Who You Are

Beyond technical experience, our client is looking for someone who brings:

• A proactive, hands-on approach — someone who leads from the front and isn't afraid to roll up their sleeves
• Strong leadership presence with the ability to inspire, develop, and hold teams accountable
• A solution-oriented mindset, with the resilience to perform under pressure
• An entrepreneurial spirit, comfortable with ambiguity and at ease in a scaling environment
• High levels of personal ownership, accountability, and integrity

What's on Offer

• A senior leadership position with real autonomy and meaningful impact from day one
• The opportunity to build and shape the operational function of a fast-growing international business
• A dynamic, entrepreneurial culture where high performance is recognised and rewarded
• Competitive compensation — €100,000
• Genuine career growth potential within an ambitious organisation

Robert Walters Netherlands is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy.