Permitting & Entitlements Manager - DFW

Manna • Dallas, TX

9h • Onsite

About The Position

Manna is hiring a Dallas-based Permitting & Entitlements Manager to own permitting and entitlements across its U.S. markets, including Tulsa, Dallas–Fort Worth, and future markets. The role will develop and scale the approval process that enables Manna to build its drone-delivery network, assessing site and market viability and securing municipal approvals before construction.

The manager will work closely with Operations, Commercial, Corporate Affairs, and Site Delivery. They will confirm site viability before lease signature, support political and community engagement with planning and permitting expertise, and hand approved sites to the team responsible for construction. The role is based in Dallas and may require travel of up to 75% during active market entry.

Requirements

• Substantial experience securing land-use, ordinance-based, and construction approvals across multiple jurisdictions.
• A track record of scaling a permitting program rather than managing only individual applications.
• Credibility with planning staff and technical reviewers, with understanding of planning processes, decision-makers, and how to build an approval case.
• Ability to read site plans and construction drawings and work substantively with architects and engineers.
• Experience managing a large pipeline of concurrent approvals through structured project systems.
• Based in Dallas.
• Willingness to travel up to 75% during active market entry.

Nice To Haves

• Experience as a city planner or in an entitlements consultancy is directly relevant.

Responsibilities

• Secure land-use and zoning approvals, including zoning clearances, use determinations, variances, and special or conditional use approvals, through to decisions.
• Conduct pre-application meetings, negotiate technical matters with planning staff, and present Manna’s case at planning commission meetings and hearings alongside Corporate Affairs when engagement is political.
• Build and maintain working relationships with planning departments across current and prospective jurisdictions.
• Assess prospective cities and regions, including jurisdiction processes, zoning and land-use rules, approval routes, realistic timelines, and constraints that could affect operations.
• Work with architects and engineers to align submissions with local requirements and feed jurisdictional constraints into standard site design.
• Select and manage zoning consultants, entitlement specialists, and planning advisors in each market, maintaining a consistent standard.
• Own permitting and zoning criteria used to evaluate sites in Manna’s tools.
• Confirm site viability before lease signature and hand approved sites, with approvals in place, to Site Delivery.
• Manage a large pipeline of concurrent approvals through structured project systems.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: No Education Listed