Sustainability Associate

~ Bright Green Strategies’ Mission: Green Building is a dynamic and rapidly evolving field. We strive to provide new ways of thinking about the built environment to our clients. ~

Through continual education about all aspects of Green Building, Building Science and the certification process, we create buildings that are healthy, durable, energy and water efficient for the generations to come.

Position Summary

Bright Green Strategies seeks to add a LEED & GreenPoint Rated Associate to its growing Green Construction consulting team. The team provides green building, energy-efficiency and construction solutions to multi-family housing developers in California.

The Sustainability Associate’s role is to assist the client’s construction team by providing expertise that helps to promote high-performance and green buildings. This is critical to achieving sustainability goals for Energy Star, GreenPoint Rated and LEED for Homes certification. The Associate also engages in on- site testing, research, data collection and analysis, and reporting on a variety of residential projects. We are looking for a self-starter with complex problem-solving skills and an eagerness to work as part of a team. The Sustainability Associate will need to work from our office in Berkeley, California.

Responsibilities

• Perform LEED for Homes, GreenPoint Rated and HERS consulting services.
• Engaging in collaborative problem solving with teams comprised of building developers, architects, engineers, and general contractors in order to achieve sustainability goals and to communicate and explain energy-efficiency design models and green building proposals.
• Communicating with the development team about potential construction issues as they relate to the Green building process.
• Making recommendations to the client on ways to reduce energy consumption by evaluating potential technologies for building applications and applying experience from previous projects.
• Making recommendations about ways to improve water efficiency, indoor air quality, and the materials and resources used in building projects.
• Working with energy modeling team and acting as liaison between modeling and design team.
• Assisting design team to optimize energy efficiency through energy modeling.
• Identifying the key elements that must be modified to achieve a goal with multiple priorities.
• Conducting in-field assessments, on-site diagnostics, field data collection and analysis of residential new construction projects.
• Determine and define sustainability goals, staffing, and tasks necessary for successful completion of projects.
• Manage the project budget and schedule to meet all deadlines and stay within budget.
• Understand the impact of the relative costs and benefits of the project. Keep an eye on the bottom line. Assess the percentage of project completion and provide that information to the bookkeeper for invoicing.
• Report to CEO on project status; coordinate and collaborate with CEO on short- and long-range issues that may affect project success.
• Continually communicate with the project team and clarify what is expected of each team member. Motivate and challenge team members.
• Maintain up-to-date project information in the project management tools. Writing field and technical reports, responding to and resolving client issues, concerns and needs. Reading and interpreting technical documents, laws, regulations, and data.
• Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships both within the company and with outside contacts o Support the development team by working with local jurisdictions to understand their green building requirements. o Gain cooperation from technical and non-technical staff, consultants and professionals from outside agencies to complete assigned tasks and projects. o Identify analyze and resolve problems with multiple priorities between internal departments and outside entities.
• Building and growing new and existing client relationships
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• B.A. or B.S. with a major in Engineering, Architecture, Energy Management, Environmental Sciences, or Construction Management with a demonstrated interest in building science
• Familiarity with LEED, GreenPoint Rated, Title-24 Energy Efficiency Standards, CALGreen
• Home Energy Rating Systems (HERS) rater certification a plus
• Building Performance Institute (BPI) certification a plus
• Knowledge of energy modeling software (Energy Pro) a plus
• A valid driver’s license is required.
• Employees may be required to lift or move items up to 25 pounds in weight.

Required Skills

Communication:

• Strong verbal communication and presentation skills.
• Ability to convey technical information to audiences of various backgrounds and technological knowledge.
• Strong written communication and editing skills.
• Written communication includes client reports, correspondence and meeting minutes.

Project Management:

• Strong skills establishing priorities, planning and scheduling work. Experience and skills in managing multiple projects and priorities at the same time.
• Ability to analyze construction situations in the field and suggest appropriate actions.
• Ability and knowledge to act independently and make decisions based on established procedures. Ability to discern which issues should be brought to CEO’s attention.
• Basic Photography skills for creating field reports

Analytical:

• Experience performing research and compiling information from a variety of sources.
• Skill in understanding and interpreting regulations and procedures. For example, performance testing procedures in the field can be interpreted in more than one way.
• Candidates must be able to navigate regulations and be flexible enough to represent the client needs.
• Ability to read and understand plans & specs including Architectural, Mechanical and Civil.
• Basic mathematical skills. Must know how to calculate averages, percentages, the area of a triangle, able to input numerical data into spreadsheets.

Computational/Software:

• Strong computer software, analytical, and computational skills to use a variety of Web-based and local software tools such as:
  • LEED Online, o HERS registry such as CHEERS or CALCerts
  • Commonly used Project Management software applications, such as Redbooth, ProCore
  • Intermediate proficiency using a variety of basic office tools, including Google Calendar, Dropbox, E-mail, PDF, word processing documents/reports, spreadsheets etc.

Compensation

• Projected Salary Range is competitive; commensurate with experience

Benefits:

• Health insurance
• Dental insurance
• Retirement plan
• Paid time off
• Flexible schedule
• Relocation assistance
• Professional development assistance

To Apply

Please click "Apply" below to email a resume and a cover letter that addresses the following questions:

1. How does your work experience align with the job description?
2. What do you think your main skills are?
3. What are your primary goals for the next 6 months, 1 year, and 5 years?
4. Why do you think you would be a good fit for this position?