Lead GIS Consultant

TRC Companies, Inc. • Ann Arbor, MI

8h

About The Position

TRC, Member of WSP, is seeking a Lead GIS Consultant to join its delivery team and lead the design and execution of geospatial and utility network solutions for large North American utility customers. The role works directly with clients, technical teams, and industry partners to translate business needs into solution architectures, provide technical direction, and support positioning, proposals, and delivery. Travel may be required up to 50%. The Lead GIS Consultant cultivates client relationships and acts as a senior technical authority for geospatial and utility network solutions. This includes leading architecture and delivery for complex GIS projects, guiding technical teams, advising clients and internal stakeholders on GIS technology, and translating business challenges and geospatial needs into implementable solutions. The position also supports project strategy, technical quality, mentoring, and long-term client partnerships.

Requirements

• Master’s degree in Computer Science from an accredited school or university.
• 10 or more years of progressive, related experience in the GIS industry.
• Esri ArcGIS Utility Network certification.
• Expert knowledge of GIS and related subject areas.
• Knowledge of gas, electric, or water utility operations and expertise designing and implementing Esri ArcGIS Utility Network solutions, including data models and migration from legacy GIS environments.
• Experience with automation tools such as SAFE FME for automating GIS tasks and workflows, and familiarity with Esri Model Builder for creating geoprocessing models.
• Extensive expertise in technical GIS applications, concepts, principles, and theories.
• Understanding of industry-specific subject areas, including regulatory requirements, business processes, and technical challenges.
• Ability to quickly comprehend new functions and capabilities of new technologies.
• Ability to define, estimate, and write detailed project scope documents and respond to requests for proposals.
• Ability to communicate technical information logically, coherently, and persuasively, both verbally and in writing.
• Ability to collaborate across teams and with client representatives.
• Strong knowledge of Agile and/or Waterfall project management, including work breakdown structure definition, scope, schedule, and risk management.
• Effective verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to present complex GIS concepts to non-technical audiences.
• Initiative in seeking out work, new responsibilities, and work challenges.
• Reliable work behaviors to complete assignments and meet deadlines.
• Ability to travel up to 50%.

Nice To Haves

• Experience as lead solution architect across multiple enterprise-scale utility GIS modernization and ArcGIS Utility Network implementations, from discovery and architecture through migration, production deployment, and operational transition.
• Experience defining enterprise geospatial architectures and technology roadmaps, including cloud or hybrid deployment, security, scalability, performance, high availability, and disaster recovery.
• Experience architecting integrations between GIS and utility enterprise systems, such as asset management, outage management, distribution management, customer information, and mobile workforce platforms, using APIs and enterprise integration patterns.
• Experience establishing architecture governance, reusable reference architectures, engineering standards, and design review practices across concurrent projects, including resolving complex cross-system technical risks and design trade-offs.
• Experience advising executive sponsors and enterprise architecture stakeholders on solution options, investment priorities, implementation sequencing, total cost of ownership, and measurable business outcomes.
• Experience leading technical strategy for complex pursuits, including solution differentiation, proof-of-concept demonstrations, delivery effort and technical risk estimation, and transition of proposed solutions to delivery teams.
• Experience building solution engineering capabilities through mentorship of senior engineers and technical leads, development of reusable delivery accelerators, and contributions to technical communities, industry presentations, or published guidance.
• Certificate in GIS or another geospatial-related certification.
• Experience with utility industry-specific subject areas, including data models, regulatory requirements, business processes, and technical challenges.

Responsibilities

• Cultivate and manage external client relationships to ensure satisfaction and long-term partnerships.
• Serve as a senior technical authority for GIS solution engineering and Esri ArcGIS Utility Network architecture and implementation.
• Provide strategic guidance on GIS technology utilization to clients and internal stakeholders.
• Lead solution design addressing client and industry-specific challenges, including utility network data modeling, migration, integration, and automation.
• Translate business and technical requirements into solution architectures, actionable scope, effort estimates, and technical proposal content.
• Mentor internal staff on specific technical or industry areas.
• Provide technical direction and design reviews throughout delivery, collaborating with project leads and project managers on requirements, interdependencies, technical risks, and solution quality.
• Reinforce recognition of TRC company values among team members on assigned projects.
• Lead strategy and delivery for assigned projects and internal initiatives, ensuring adherence to budgets and timelines.
• Delegate and manage tasks on assigned workstreams or projects, providing guidance to others.
• Collaborate with teams, workstreams, and client representatives to align tasks with project priorities and goals.
• Provide mentoring, training, and guidance on GIS technical processes to junior staff.
• Represent TRC effectively with client teams, including project sponsors and other stakeholders.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, and disability insurance.
• 401(k) package with traditional and Roth IRA options and company match.
• Paid time off of 15 to 25 days per year, contingent on full-time or part-time status and seniority.
• At least 8 paid holidays per year for full-time employees.
• Paid sick, family, and disability leave in accordance with the laws of the employee’s state of residence.
• Potential eligibility for the Company’s annual discretionary bonus program, contingent on Company, Business Segment, and individual performance against key performance indicators.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior