Director of Project Development

Blue Forest•Sacramento, CA

4d•$130,000 - $155,000•Remote

About The Position

The project development team at Blue Forest is responsible for developing and launching Forest Resilience Bonds (FRBs) and other ecosystem restoration conservation finance projects. The Director of Project Development plays a key leadership role on the project development team, developing and executing strategy for the project portfolio while advising on individual complex, non-traditional projects that require a management consulting mindset. This role therefore involves being detail-oriented during day-to-day operations and also focusing on overall long-term strategic planning, creative solutions, and relationship management. As Blue Forest looks beyond the traditional FRB, the director will play a central role in evaluating new conservation finance vehicles and conservation finance applicability in new ecosystems, which will require navigating ambiguity and creative thinking. Project development happens in close collaboration with external partners and the Blue Forest science, finance, Indigenous partnership, and communications teams; therefore an ability to learn and collaborate interdisciplinarily is essential to success.

Requirements

10+ years of experience in organizational leadership, business development, project management and execution, utility strategy, and/or management consulting. A passion for climate resilience and sustainability is required, and applications of these workstreams in an ecosystem restoration setting is a plus.
Strategic, results-driven mindset and comfortable prioritizing competing needs, bringing structure to ambiguous situations, proactively researching and identifying creative solutions, and taking projects from ideas to implementation.
Experience building new products, programs, and/or processes.
Strong relationship management and business development skills, with demonstrated experience working collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders and Native Nations to understand unique perspectives, work in partnership to design effective solutions, and foster long-standing relationships.
Strong professional written and oral communication skills, including distilling and communicating complex ideas into presentations and written memos, facilitating multi-stakeholder collaborative discussions, and creating effective storytelling products.
Experience in and desire to manage people/teams and strategically develop, support, and retain talent. Detail-oriented and collaborative to develop strong relationships with partners, with the ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines
Experience working with leadership or executive-level staff at utilities, corporations, and other beneficiary groups.
Committed to continuous learning, including: seeking opportunities to incorporate feedback and learn from others, actively listening and taking note of opportunities to improve project development processes, documenting best practices, and exploring ways to promote engagement approaches anchored in historical place-based context.

Responsibilities

Cultivate the conservation finance strategy in the Southern Rocky Mountain region, and manage the project pipeline in collaboration with the World Resources Institute and other key partners. This work will be focused initially on the Colorado River Basin.
Foster and deepen long-term relationships with peer organizations, land managers, government agencies, beneficiary payors, on-the-ground restoration implementors, Indigenous Partners, and funders.
Advise on Rocky Mountain project development strategy as it fits into the broader departmental and organizational goals, Blue Forest-WRI partnership, and growing field of conservation finance.
Serve as an advisor on 3-4 conservation finance projects, stewarding long-term relationships with project partners, guiding internal structure and culture, managing staff who lead project development, and providing strategy guidance to project teams. These projects will have a particular focus on complex, non-traditional projects that require evolutions to our existing model and processes.
Attend in-person meetings and events throughout the region to build partnerships and on-the-ground knowledge, please note the significant travel required for success in this role.
Lead Blue Forest’s consulting practice, developing strategies for consulting to public or private entities or new business models for revenue generation.
Design and maintain systems for consulting practices, establishing frameworks and standards, impact requirements, resource planning processes, and accountability structures.
In partnership with the Director of Natural Capital, help shape, advance, and implement beneficiary payor (water and electric utilities, corporates, local governments, etc.) engagement strategies across multiple projects and geographies.
Develop a strategy to expand the FRB to other sectors and ecosystems while also developing alternative financing mechanisms based on partner needs in collaboration with the finance team and senior leadership.
Collaborate with the science, finance, Indigenous partnerships, and conservation teams to identify and pursue new geographies, ecosystem restoration types, beneficiary funding streams, and other thematic opportunities for pipeline development and enhancement.
Continuously improve and progressively assume ownership of Blue Forest conservation finance practices, processes, systems, and documentation.
Support Blue Forest communications, fundraising, and other teams in developing written content about project development team priorities, project pipeline, and processes
Help refine the project development process and identify strategic areas of improvement (e.g. community engagement, beneficiary engagement). Propose new tools to accelerate and support the project development process.
Supervise 2-3 team members on the project development team.

Benefits

100% employer-paid health, dental, and vision coverage; subsidized coverage for dependents
Access to a 401(k) retirement plan with a 5% employer match
4 weeks paid vacation and 17 paid holidays; paid sick time and volunteer time
3 months of paid family leave
Employer-paid life and long-term disability insurance
Access to Dependent Care FSA and Health FSA
Public Lands Exploration stipend (reimbursements for visits to National Forests, county parks, etc.)
Monthly Home Office stipend or co-working space provided
Dependent care costs are subsidized for business travel
Additional stipends for health & wellness, home internet, and cell service
Financial support for professional development