HSE & Facility Lead (100%)

You will lead Climeworks’ global Health, Safety, Security and Environmental (HSSE) function, ensuring a consistent and high-performing safety culture across our production facilities, testing sites and corporate environments. At the same time, you will oversee corporate facilities and workplace operations, ensuring our headquarters operate safely, efficiently and to the highest standards.

This is a critical leadership role at the heart of our scaling journey, combining enterprise risk ownership with hands-on operational execution.

• HSSE Strategy & Policies: You define and implement Climeworks’ global HSSE (health, safety, security & environment) strategy, standards and policies across all locations, ensuring a consistent and forward-looking approach to HSSE standards.

• Safety Program Ownership: You own and continuously improve the safety program across production facilities, testing sites, construction sites, and corporate workplaces, embedding a strong safety culture throughout the organization.

• Regulatory Engagement: You liaise with regulatory bodies across all jurisdictions where Climeworks operates, ensuring full compliance and maintaining strong, collaborative relationships with authorities.

• Executive Reporting: You act as the accountable owner of safety performance (e.g. LTIR/TRIR), including executive reporting and driving improvement actions.

• Corporate Facility Management Leadership: You provide strategic hands-on leadership in Facility Management at the Climeworks HQ in Opfikon, while sharing good practices with other Climeworks locations. Note: Direct site management of production and testing facilities is outside your remit.

• Stakeholder Management: You act as the primary point of contact for all internal and external facility- and site-related matters, collaborating closely with subsidiaries and external stakeholders.

• Financial & Contract Management: You oversee the financial and commercial management of HSE and facilities-related contracts, ensuring cost efficiency and strong contractual performance.

• Safety and corporate workplace integration: You ensure full alignment between HSSE standard and corporate workplace execution.

• Leadership & Organizational Development: You lead and coach HSSE and Facilities Management teams, fostering a strong culture of quality, accountability, safety, and customer service across the organization. Act as the single point of accountability for safety and workplace operations across the company.

• Education & Qualifications: You hold a Bachelor’s degree in Occupational Health and Safety or in a related field, providing a solid academic foundation for this role.

• Professional Experience: You bring over 10 years of industry experience in HSSE leadership within industrial, energy or process environments.

• HSE & Technical Expertise: You have strong expertise in corporate workplace safety, construction safety, and production safety, combined with a focus on health and well-being. You are familiar with COHS standards and bring solid financial acumen, including budgeting and cost control.

• Strategic & Operational Mindset: You are a strategic thinker with the ability to translate strategy into effective operational execution, navigating both high-level planning and hands-on implementation.

• Leadership & People Development: You bring strong leadership skills with the ability to develop and grow teams, fostering collaboration and performance across diverse stakeholders.

• Communication & Stakeholder Management: You communicate clearly and confidently, with excellent internal & external stakeholder management skills and the ability to influence across different levels of the organization. You have experience managing contractors, vendors, and facility operations.

• Ownership & Adaptability: You demonstrate a high level of ownership, accountability, and decision-making capability, and are comfortable managing complexity, shifting priorities, and change in dynamic environments.

• Languages & Mobility: You are fluent in German and English and are open to travel (approximately 10%), including site visits to Iceland and testing facilities.

Our promise: At Climeworks, you are accepted for who you are, and we are committed to building an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply – regardless of background, identity, or experience. Studies show that women and individuals from minority backgrounds often only apply for jobs when they meet 100% of the listed criteria. If this sounds like you, don’t hold back. If you think you’d make a great fit for this role, we’d love to hear from you, even if you don’t check every single box. Let’s tackle one of humankind’s greatest challenges together.

What we offer:

• Time Off: Enjoy 25 paid vacation days every year, plus public holidays.

• Ownership: Fair base pay paired with an equity package – because your contributions matter.

• Family Support: Inclusive parental leave.

• Continuous Learning: Dedicated budget to invest in your professional growth.

• Referral Rewards: Help us grow our team and earn bonuses for your successful referrals.

Salary: At Climeworks, salary ranges are assigned to a job based on the level of seniority and the location specific market median of similar jobs according to external benchmark surveys. Individual compensation depends on your skills, experience, and the value you bring to the team.

Formalities: 

• This position is based in Opfikon, Zurich, and we ask that you work onsite at least four days per week.

• We do not accept candidate profiles through recruitment agencies.