A Facilities Director is accountable to the board for how an organisation's estate and workplace support the business, and for the risk when they do not. Maxwell Stephens runs Facilities Director searches for corporate groups, universities, the public sector and FM service providers.
We have specialised in Facilities Management recruitment since 2006, with more than 50,000 FM professionals in our network across the UK and Europe.
A board-level appointment with operational consequences
At director level, the cost of a wrong appointment is not a missed audit. It is a strategy that does not land, a supplier relationship that fails at scale, or a board that loses confidence in the function.
The role combines commercial leadership with operational accountability: property and workplace strategy, multi-million pound budgets and service contracts, compliance and building safety, sustainability targets and the leadership of senior managers across sites or regions.
Candidates who can do all of that, and earn the trust of a CFO and a board, are rarely on the open market.
Facilities Director roles we recruit
- Facilities Director and Group Facilities Director
- Director of Facilities Management
- Director of Estates and Facilities
- Director of Property Services
- Director of Workplace
- Managing Director and Operations Director for FM service providers
How a Facilities Director search runs
Most Facilities Director appointments are run as a retained executive search.
- We agree with you what the role must achieve, the risks it carries and the criteria the shortlist will be judged on.
- We map the leadership market across end users, corporate real estate and service providers, and approach people directly and confidentially.
- We interview and assess every candidate on judgement, commercial credibility and leadership, not just experience.
- We present a scored shortlist with full interview notes, and support you through final interviews, offer, resignation and start.
Learn more about Facilities Management Executive Search
Before you commit to a Director search
A Facilities Director appointment is often the answer to a wider question about how the function is structured and led. If that question is still open, our FM Talent Scan tests it first and sets out three options: fix internally, redesign the structure, or hire. Start with the free five-minute check.
If the role is clear but you are unsure the organisation will let a Director lead, try the FM Leadership Enablement check, or read how we assess senior FM leaders.
What Facilities Directors earn in 2026
As a broad UK guide, Facilities Directors earn £90,000 to £150,000 or more, with group and international roles above that. See our Facilities Management Salary Guide UK 2026.
Director-level appointments we have made
- Group Facilities Director for Penguin Random House UK
- Director of Facilities Management for King's College London
- Director of Property Services and Sustainability for Poundland and Dealz
- Group Property Director for Rank Group
- Director of Workplace Resources (Europe) for Synopsys
- Managing Director of a £180 million UK technical services and FM business for Cofely GDF Suez
Read more Facilities Management case studies
Related pages
Recruiting the role below? See Head of Facilities recruitment.
Talk to Maxwell Stephens
A Facilities Director search starts with a confidential conversation about what the business needs from the function. Tell us where you are, and we will tell you what the market can offer.
