Project Assistant

Estolano Advisors • Portland, OR

12h • $70,000 - $75,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

Are you committed to advancing racial and gender equity to build a future where all communities can benefit from economic and climate investments? Are you a motivated and organized team player ready to apply your skills to help deliver impactful policies and strategies for our most vulnerable communities? Are you an early-career professional eager to gain a variety of experiences in the urban planning and policy field? If so, come collaborate with us! We are looking for a new team member to join either our Los Angeles or Portland, Oregon office. Estolano Advisors (EA) is an award-winning urban planning and public policy firm that provides clients with equity-focused solutions to create thriving, healthy, vibrant communities. We use an interdisciplinary approach to advising our clients in nonprofits, philanthropy, and government on policies, programs, and actions that benefit communities most affected by racial, economic, and environmental injustice. We are a Latina-owned small business headquartered in Downtown Los Angeles, with staff in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Pacific Northwest. This is a hybrid position (two days in office). EA is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or any other characteristic protected by law. With EA, you will help us grow our work with philanthropy, frontline communities and Tribal nations, and government to advance equitable outcomes. We work on programs and policies to transition to a climate-ready workforce, create care-based and just economies, shape large-scale mobility and climate projects, and advance engagement strategies that move decision-making power closer to communities. As a Project Assistant, you will work on a variety of projects across our areas of practice, and have a chance to work closely with team members across the firm. The Project Assistant will gain experiences integral to growth and professional development as an emerging planning and policy leader. You will build on your skills in critical research and analysis, multi-stakeholder coordination and communication, writing for a variety of audiences, and developing pragmatic and implementable strategies for our clients. The Project Assistant will work independently and as part of a team to demonstrate that a thoughtful and strategic interdisciplinary approach will create equitable, healthy, and sustainable communities. The Project Assistant will be guided by project managers and principals on and will be supervised by a senior-level team member. The right person for this position will be a reliable and effective day-to-day communicator and collaborator, possess strong attention to detail, have excellent organizational skills, apply creativity and critical thinking to research and analysis, and have a working knowledge of urban planning and policy subject matter. You must be an energetic, self-starter. Previous experience in customer service (e.g. retail) is a plus.

Requirements

• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Excellent organizational skills and comfort using project management software (e.g., Productive.io, Trello, Asana).
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), web-based research, and video teleconferencing software (Teams, Zoom).
• Candidates must have education and some work experience in one or more of the following: Urban Planning, Workforce Development, Climate Policy, Economic Development, Environmental Policy, Housing and Homelessness Policy, Public Policy, Transportation Planning, Real Estate Development
• A Bachelor’s Degree and at least one year of relevant work experience (including internships) is required.
• Fluency in Spanish and cultural competency with communities of color are strongly preferred.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with Adobe InDesign, Canva, Esri GIS, database analysis, social media platforms (LinkedIn, BlueSky), and web development software (e.g., Squarespace) are a plus.
• We encourage applicants to also include experience from non-office jobs on their resume (e.g., service industry, manual labor, care-based jobs, etc.).
• Previous experience in customer service (e.g. retail) is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Support project managers to coordinate and prepare for stakeholder interviews, client meetings, and other project engagement
• Provide support during in-person and virtual client meetings and stakeholder meetings
• Support the planning, coordination, and implementation of community and stakeholder engagement strategies
• Conduct web-based research and support primary research efforts
• Analyze qualitative data and some quantitative data
• Develop effective and engaging slide decks and presentation materials
• Prepare written summaries, original analyses, and other client-related work product
• Work closely with project managers to complete client requests
• Support business development efforts including proposal development and research
• Track local, state, and national policy issues; support the firm’s exploratory research efforts
• Administrative tasks, as needed

Benefits

• 401(k)
• Health insurance
• Parental leave
• Vision insurance
• Fully covered health, dental, and vision insurance for you and your qualified dependents
• Firm-sponsored 401(k) retirement plan with the firm automatically contributing 3% of your salary
• Paid Vacation and Sick Time
• 18 paid holidays each year
• Access to a Flexible Spending Account option (pretax benefits used for out-of-pocket medical expenses, out-of-pocket medicine and medical purchases, dependent care cost, etc.)
• Life Insurance
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Annual professional development budget
• Transit rider stipend
• New benefit Flexible Fridays schedule (similar to a reduced work week)

What This Job Offers

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