Senior Climate Project Manager

About Us

We are an award-winning California-based environmental consulting firm with 600+ professionals and more than 30 years of diverse experience serving clients in transportation, energy, water, infrastructure, private development, and government sectors. Our mission is to deliver practical, science-based environmental and planning solutions that support communities, infrastructure, and natural systems.

As a people-centric organization, we value collaboration, fairness, and transparency, and are committed to fostering a workplace that supports both personal and professional growth while offering robust career opportunities. We are especially proud of our recent Great Place To Work® (https://www.greatplacetowork.com/certified-company/7038363) certification, which reflects an independent assessment of our culture and our team-member experiences.

About The Role

We are seeking a Senior Climate Project Manager who will support Rincon’s Sustainability, Climate, and Resilience (SCR+) Practice. The role will include engaging with clients to develop climate action plans, facilitating regional climate partnerships, managing complex projects, and working to implement decarbonization strategies. Rincon’s Sustainability Climate Resilience group works with cities, counties, special agencies, and businesses throughout California on a wide range of climate areas including carbon neutrality, electrification, water and waste issues, urban planning, carbon intensity analysis and low carbon fuel and greenhouse gas verification. This position will require an entrepreneurial spirit, ability to manage multi-task and multi-year workplans and budgets, technical analysis and data management skills, strong communication and writing skills, and a good working knowledge of the climate planning process and climate legislation in California. The ideal candidate would also possess a facilitative skillset, be capable of thinking and working at the strategic level with the “big-picture” in mind and possess a sensitivity for the role that human and social dimensions play in climate policy development. The position will often require the successful candidate to support a mix of city staff, county staff, and regional partners with different priorities and technical backgrounds move from discussion to shared priorities and coordinated action.

Rincon’s SCR+ practice emphasizes working with our clients to develop innovative and ambitious climate strategies and working with those same clients to implement the strategies we create to generate real change. We have operated our SCR+ practice with the simple idea that we want our work to result in tangible, positive change in the community. We operate in this capacity because we truly love what we do, and we know that there’s an opportunity to make positive change. We want to build a resilient and thriving future by regularly applying our knowledge and experiences in achieving the highest levels of sustainability in our business operations, as well as our daily lives in the most equitable way. We are looking to grow our team with people that are interested in collaborating to build sustainable and equitable communities.

How We Collaborate

This role may offer a hybrid work setup, blending time in the office with remote work as business needs evolve. We enjoy coming together in person to collaborate, connect with teammates, and partner with clients, and may prioritize candidates who live within 50 miles of a Rincon office.

Eligible office locations for this role include Carlsbad, Fresno, Los Angeles, Monterey, Oakland, Palm Springs, Riverside, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo, San Diego, San Jose, Santa Barbara, and Ventura.

What You’ll Do

- ​​Serve as our clients main day-to-day contact, with regular check-ins, monthly progress reports, and clear communication on scope, schedule, and budget. 
- Scope, assign, and oversee work across Rincon staff and subconsultants, set expectations, review deliverables for quality, and keep their budgets and schedules on track. 
- Manage multi-task, multi-year workplans, budgets, invoicing, and contract compliance. 
- Guide technical work with the leads for GHG inventories, adaptation and vulnerability analysis, electrification, transportation, and fleet resilience.  
- Develop work scopes, ask good questions, and review deliverables. 
- Research and develop strategies to help communities mitigate greenhouse gas emissions through renewable energy and storage, building electrification, transportation electrification, vehicle miles traveled reduction, organic waste diversion, and other strategies.   
- Group facilitation and the development of engagement strategies across multiple partners including non-profits, municipal governments, and other agencies. 
- Prepare drafts of technical memoranda, reports, presentations, and other written materials   
- Assist with the preparation and design of climate action plans, building decarbonization plans, sustainability plans, and other documents  
- Communicate complicated scientific and climate-related topics to diverse communities and stakeholders   
- Integrate climate mitigation, resilience, and environmental justice policies through policy development   
- Work independently and as a team to develop solutions for quantitative and qualitative problems   
- Interact with various members of public agency and private client staff on matters of sustainability and climate action 
- Collaborate with public agency staff and other key community members to design and implement regional climate programs   
- Promote a culture of ownership, teamwork, engagement, quality service, and customer satisfaction to our  clients.  
- Enhance Rincon’s professional reputation and demonstrate the ability to be creative and innovative with these tasks while representing Rincon in a professional manner  
- Work closely with Rincon Principal(s) and Managers to promote our business interests in adherence with the company’s mission, vision, and values 
- Perform other duties as assigned by supervisor(s)  
- Engage with diverse communities and stakeholders and communicate complex scientific and climate related topics.

What You’ll Bring
- Bachelor’s degree in, Environmental Science, Environmental Policy, Climate Change,  Engineering or related discipline   
- Demonstrated experience leading multidisciplinary teams and managing complex, multi-year projects, including scope, budget, schedule, and quality. 
- 6+ years of professional experience in climate action and resilience 
- Data management and analysis experience preferred  
- Advanced skills in Microsoft Excel or equivalent preferred  
- Strong facilitation and meeting leadership skills, with comfort working with groups that hold diverse perspectives. 
- Strong interest in climate science, problem solving, thinking and strategizing across topic areas 
- Excellent communication, planning, budgeting, and organizational skills  
- Strong writing skills  
- Enjoy fast-paced and varied work  
- Positive attitude and eager to streamline and improve process and workflows  
- Highly motivated with strong interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to work independently or as part of a team  
- Organized, detail-oriented, resourceful, strong time management skills, and innovative  
- Demonstrated experience in energy, climate, or related field preferred 
- Familiarity with GHG calculations or modeling desired 
- Familiarity with climate hazards and related adaptation strategies  
- Strong interest in the evolving science and strategies related to decarbonization and climate resilience

Investing in You

The base salary range for this full-time position is $110,000-$140,000 , plus a generous benefits program. Salary ranges are based on the market median of similar jobs, according to third-party salary benchmark surveys. Base pay is determined based on internal equity and a candidate’s job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards Package designed to support employee well-being, growth, and financial security. Our benefits are designed to offer flexibility and choice, including health coverage options, employer-sponsored insurance, retirement benefits, generous time off, and programs that support learning, growth, and community engagement.

Explore more about our culture, benefits, and life at Rincon on our Culture and Benefits page .

Additional Employment Information

Individuals offered employment must successfully complete a pre-employment drug screening as a condition of employment. Additionally, those hired who may be assigned to federal projects will be subject to further drug testing, including screening for cannabinoids (THC/marijuana), in compliance with the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and other applicable federal regulations, which take precedence over California state and local laws.

Rincon Consultants does not accept unsolicited applicant/candidate resumes from search firm recruiters and/or temporary agencies that do not have a signed contract and specified work order with Rincon Consultants. Further, such resumes received will be deemed the sole property of Rincon Consultants and no fees will be paid in the event Rincon Consultants subsequently hires such individual. Rincon Consultants is an equal opportunity employer. All aspects of employment will be based on merit, competence, performance, and business needs. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.