Principal Specialist Environmental

At Mott MacDonald, we trust our brilliant people to do brilliant things in engineering, management, and development services, supporting multisector project work in over 150 countries. As one of the largest employee-owned companies in the world, we pride ourselves on our ability to deliver exceptional outcomes through our network of 20,000+ talented consultants. With sustainability and innovation at the heart of all our sectors in North America, including, Buildings, Energy, Transportation, and Water.

We believe in empowering our people to excel, learn, and grow, offering diverse opportunities to contribute to career-defining work. Join us and be part of a collaborative environment where your ambitions are united with ours, and you can truly shape your story.

If you share that vision, even if you don’t meet every requirement listed, we’d still love to hear from you. We value potential and diverse perspectives as much as experience. Let’s explore how we can support your growth and help you take the next step in your career, while contributing to an exciting new chapter for Mott MacDonald in North America.

Mott MacDonald is an employee-owned, international engineering, management, and development consultancy, with a dedicated and rapidly expanding environmental division. Our environmental team supports a diverse range of clients across various sectors and regions. Our Environmental team is rapidly expanding and is seeking a talented and experienced Principal Specialist. The successful candidate will report to Mott MacDonald’s environmental lead in Los Angeles, CA.

Responsibilities include:

• Environmental and construction project experience on a range of projects in both metropolitan and rural areas.
• Team management and oversight of contractors and junior staff on a range of tasks such as environmental site assessments, CEQA/NEPA documentation, environmental report/feasibility development, constraint mapping, permitting, and public involvement support.
• Field assignments, surveys, monitoring as necessary.
• Provide technical and project management support for projects, including but not limited to budgeting, forecasting, scheduling, QA/QC review of deliverables, etc.
• Work collaboratively as part of integrated project teams.
• Build relationships with internal and external stakeholders, agencies, partners and clients.
• Preparing proposals, cost estimates, and staffing resource plans for environmental projects and services.
• Overseeing and preparing environmental approvals, planning assessments, feasibility studies, permitting and licensing documentation, technical assessments, and management plans, ensuring all deliverables meet high standards.

Preparing and reviewing CEQA/NEPA documents and permit applications; conducting routing studies, impact analyses, and field surveys/monitoring to support project compliance and environmental review. We invite applications from candidates with the following experience and capabilities:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant environmental science, engineering, planning, or a related discipline; a master’s degree is a plus.
• Minimum of 15 years of experience, 2 of which shall include environmental consulting and project management and/or a group leadership role.
• The successful candidate must demonstrate the ability to work independently and effectively manage multiple tasks. They should possess strong scientific writing skills and have experience in environmental policy (e.g., CEQA, NEPA, permitting, and/or a specialized resource area such as air quality, wetland science, biology, archaeology, paleontology, geology, soils, or hydrology).
• Experience managing or permitting small to large-scale transportation, construction, utility, remediation, renewable, restoration, water, infrastructure, and/or energy projects and conducting field surveys/monitoring.
• Strong interpersonal, presentation, and communication skills (both oral and written) are essential, along with proficiency in technical documentation, and analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to prepare and interpret complex reports, diagnose issues, and develop and evaluate effective solutions is required.
• Demonstrate an ability to work on diverse projects simultaneously, possess a high level of self-motivation, and demonstrate ability to successfully execute field tasks.
• Be enthusiastic about being part of a growing team and providing excellent outcomes for clients!

Benefits & Reward

At Mott MacDonald, our employees have a stake and a voice in our business, providing them with a direct connection to our success through our personal and group performance bonuses. We provide a comprehensive benefit package that includes 401k, medical, dental and vision insurance, short-term/long-term disability, paid holidays, PTO, parental leave, and company paid life insurance.

Individual pay is determined based on several factors such as work location, education, experience, and unique skills.

The expected salary for this position is $150,000 - $184,000.

Collaboration at Our Core
At Mott MacDonald, we believe great ideas happen when we’re together. Our hybrid approach centers on an in-office culture, with most of your time spent collaborating face-to-face and a minimum of three days per week in the office. We balance flexibility with connection, so you and your manager can choose how to meet client, team, and personal commitments.

Equal opportunity is the law. 

We seek to promote fair employment procedures and practices to ensure equal opportunities for all. We encourage individual expression in our workplace and are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels they have the opportunity to contribute.

• English version
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• Chinese version

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, protected veteran status, creed, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship status or disability status.