Mid Level Planner

Sasaki Associates • Los Angeles, CA

1d • $88,000 - $100,000

About The Position

Sasaki is seeking an innovative, self-driven, and creative planner with 4–7 years of relevant experience to join its multidisciplinary planning and design firm. The role offers work across a wide range of planning projects and calls for strong analysis, research, and verbal, graphic, and written storytelling skills.

The planner will lead research and analysis, oversee junior planners, and help coordinate interdisciplinary project teams. The role also offers opportunities to develop client-facing and project management skills, contribute to marketing and business development, and support innovation in the planning discipline. The planner will create and lay out presentations and reports, develop graphic content, and communicate complex ideas to diverse stakeholder and client groups with cultural sensitivity.

Candidates should have a strong grasp of foundational planning concepts, be able to independently complete work on complex planning topics, and manage multiple projects and tasks. Sasaki welcomes applicants with typical or non-typical paths into planning.

Requirements

• 4–7 years of relevant experience.
• A strong grasp of foundational planning concepts and the ability to independently complete tasks related to complex planning topics and contexts.
• Ability to work on multiple projects and tasks simultaneously.
• Organizational and management skills, attention to detail, and ability to coordinate tasks on small projects or internal teams.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including planning reports, memoranda, and day-to-day communication.
• Strong quantitative and qualitative analysis skills and ability to structure and interpret data-informed physical planning processes.
• Cultural competency in engaging with planning concepts in a variety of contexts.
• Knowledge of and comfort with Adobe Suite workflow (INDD, AI) and Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
• A master’s degree in planning or a related field, or a bachelor’s degree in planning or a related field.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in a core market such as the civic sector, campus planning, or master planning, or technical expertise such as sustainability or transportation.
• Experience contributing to community engagement processes and public speaking.
• Familiarity with directing spatial analysis workflows and software such as ArcGIS or QGIS.
• Familiarity with project implementation processes such as zoning codes and design review.
• Proficiency in languages spoken in frequent project locations, including Spanish and Chinese.
• A degree in architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, or another design field.
• Experience working as part of an interdisciplinary design team in an office setting.
• Experience with emerging topics in planning and design.
• Exposure to scope development, budget management, and subconsultant management for planning projects.
• Familiarity with project pursuits, including proposal development, strategy, and interviews.
• Ability to coordinate multiple junior staff members and support project leadership.
• A distinctive strength or skill that could make an impact on projects and practice.

Responsibilities

• Lead research and analysis.
• Oversee junior planners.
• Coordinate internal interdisciplinary project teams.
• Develop client-facing and project management skills.
• Develop experience with marketing and business development and contribute to innovation in the planning discipline.
• Present clear graphic communication and storytelling, account for cultural sensitivities, and craft narratives for complex stakeholder and client groups.
• Lay out presentations and reports and lead the creation of graphic content.

What This Job Offers

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