Senior Project Manager

DNV • Arlington, VA

11d • Hybrid

About The Position

Are you ready to shape the future of energy by leading high-impact M&A transactions across multiple energy technologies and helping grow strategic customer accounts? Do you thrive at the intersection of technical expertise, commercial judgment, and strategic deal-making, helping investors make smarter decisions in a rapidly evolving energy market? DNV Energy Systems North America is seeking a Senior Project Manager with a strong technical background in energy technologies (e.g. wind, solar, storage, electric-vehicle infrastructure, decarbonization, midstream infrastructure, thermal generation, data centers, or other emerging energy infrastructure), and/or practical experience with project financing for our Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) Advisory Services team. The successful candidate will combine complex project delivery leadership with account growth, commercial ownership, and team capability development. Join us! Our M&A team operates at the cutting edge of the energy industry providing technical due diligence and advisory services to diverse customers in the North American market and beyond, primarily in support of M&A transactions such as purchases, sales, divestments, and capital raises of projects and platforms. Our technical work contributes to the efficient functioning of the equity markets which are increasingly driving energy transactions in North America. In this role, you will lead complex, high-value M&A engagements and serve as both a delivery leader and a senior relationship manager for selected strategic customers. You will provide senior-level project management and technical advisory services, exercise judgment across technical, commercial, and delivery trade-offs, grow key customer relationships, serve as Project Sponsor or senior reviewer for selected engagements, develop Project Managers (PMs) and Associate Project Managers (APMs), and translate experience into repeatable methods, tools, and best practices. Ideally, this position can be based out of any of our current advisory offices including Seattle, WA; Portland, OR; San Diego or Oakland, CA; Austin, Houston, or Dallas, TX; Medford, MA; Arlington, VA; New York, NY; presenting a dynamic hybrid schedule where employees will typically spend three (3) days per week working from either a DNV office or client location/site

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree from accredited four-year university in a relevant field to include engineering, science, thermal generation, renewable energy, finance, business or other related areas.
• Typically, 7+ years of applicable technical and project management experience in the thermal, solar, wind, storage, and/or energy infrastructure in North America.
• Knowledge of the energy project lifecycle and associated items which may include project contracts (EPC, equipment procurement, interconnection, PPA, etc.), technology and design, energy production assessments and performance, financial modeling and economics (CapEx and OpEx), operations and performance, transmission/curtailment considerations, and common technical risks.
• Demonstrated willingness to adopt, test, and improve digital and AI-enabled delivery tools, including using project experience to translate workflows into scalable methods, templates, and quality controls.
• Demonstrated ability to balance technical, commercial, schedule, and transaction priorities while maintaining a focus on issues most material to investment decisions.
• Demonstrated experience owning project financial performance, including budget, margin, invoicing, scope control, and change orders.
• Demonstrated experience leading proposals, shaping scopes for complex transactions, and contributing to account or pipeline growth.
• Experience mentoring project managers or technical professionals and providing quality or sponsor-level oversight across multiple engagements.
• Proficiency in MS Office Suite.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally to customer offices and sites, other office locations, and conferences, up to approximately 15% of the time.
• Excellent verbal and written communications skills in English.
• We conduct pre-employment drug and background screening
• Immigration-related employment benefits, for example visa sponsorship, are not available for this position
• Leadership skills, strong team mindset, and the ability to collaborate, motivate and lead by way of example.
• Commitment to customer centricity and demonstrated ability to build and maintain relationships with customers.
• Ability to work effectively and professionally with diverse customers and colleagues.
• Ability to distinguish material transaction issues from ordinary technical observations.
• Flexibility, resiliency and adaptability within a dynamic team environment.
• Continuous improvement mindset and enthusiasm for leveraging digital and AI-enabled tools to improve project delivery, quality, and efficiency.
• Drive to learn, and collaboratively identify opportunities for improvements to process, tools, and offerings.
• Strong technical and organizational skills.

Nice To Haves

• Battery energy storage systems (BESS) experience is preferred but not required.

Responsibilities

• Lead large, multi-discipline and multi-technology due diligence engagements, acting as the senior point of contact accountable for scope, schedule, budget, quality, customer confidence, and commercial outcomes.
• Identify technical risks and opportunities associated with potential investments, synthesize key findings, and clearly communicate their transaction implications to customers.
• Leverage experience, expertise, and creative thought to deliver customer-centric technical analysis for energy and infrastructure projects. Typical scopes include evaluation of project risks and upside potential through: Review of key project contracts describing interconnection, revenue, construction, and operations and maintenance; Validation of technical inputs in project financial models including estimation and review of construction and operating costs; Review of project designs and technologies; Operational evaluations including site inspections and interviews (both on-site and virtual), and review of operating history and asset management approach; and Industry benchmarking analyses and development stage project screening studies.
• Provide senior oversight for due diligence execution, prioritizing QHSE considerations and ensuring a safe, healthy work environment across project teams.
• Lead and coordinate technical reviews among internal specialists, including civil and electrical engineering, energy assessment, technology, transmission, permitting teams, and other DNV disciplines; establish clear accountabilities and resolve cross-discipline delivery issues.
• Perform and/or provide senior review of due diligence including contract and financial model review as well as other technical analysis (e.g., technology review, contract review, energy assessment), with emphasis on the issues most material to the transaction.
• Resolve technical issues in partnership with transaction stakeholders, including coordination of input on such issues from internal technical specialists, as necessary.
• Lead the reporting and quality assurance process, including writing, editing, reviewing, approving, and synthesizing inputs from technical disciplines into clear, technical due diligence reports aligned with customer’s commercial needs.
• Lead customer dialogues to understand their needs.
• Develop winning proposals for scopes of services related to due diligence work, including creative tailoring and sequencing of work to meet budget and timeline requirements.
• Identify opportunities for innovation and refinement to meet the needs of an evolving marketplace.
• Support customers through transaction execution, investment committee decisions, financing, and closing, as applicable
• Lead continuous improvement efforts for the M&A team, such as tool development, process refinement, training, and lessons learned activities.
• Adhere to the DNV system for quality management, including liaising with QHSE leadership on developing procedures, instructions, guidelines, and checklists in order to ensure quality of services produced by the M&A team.
• Mentor Project Managers and Associate Project Managers through project-based coaching, review, and knowledge sharing; provide input to Team Leads on development needs, project assignments, and readiness for increasingly complex responsibilities.

Benefits

• Generous paid time off (vacation, sick days, company holidays, personal days)
• Multiple Medical and Dental benefit plans to choose from, Vision benefits
• Spending accounts – FSA, Dependent Care, Commuter Benefits, company-seeded HSA
• Employer-paid, therapist-led, virtual care services through Talkspace
• 401(k) with company match
• Company provided life insurance, short-term, and long-term disability benefits
• Education reimbursement program
• Flexible work schedule with hybrid opportunities
• Charitable Matched Giving and Volunteer Rewards through our Impact Program
• Volunteer time off (VTO) paid by the company
• Career advancement opportunities
• Benefits vary based on position, tenure, location, and employee election
• For California, Washington, New York, Washington, D.C., Illinois, and Maryland: “DNV provides a reasonable range of compensation for this role. The actual compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors, including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and specific location. For the states of California, Washington, New York, Washington, D.C., Illinois, and Maryland only, the starting pay range for this role is $135,000.00 - $180,000.00.”
• DNV is a proud equal-opportunity employer committed to building an inclusive and diverse workforce. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, or business need, without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.
• DNV is committed to ensuring equal employment opportunity, including providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. US applicants with a physical or mental disability who require reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process may contact the North America Recruitment Department ([email protected]). Information received relating to accommodation will be addressed confidentially. For more information https://www.eeoc.gov/know-your-rights-workplace-discrimination-illegal

What This Job Offers

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