Land Acquisitions, Advisor

About the Role

Join the Land Acquisition team within Southern California Edison’s Real Properties and Permitting Department. You will interface with cross-functional teams—including Major Projects Organization, Engineering, Law, Environmental Health and Safety, Telecommunication, GIS, Construction, and Finance—as well as external customers to execute SCE compliance and reliability programs involving existing transmission and distribution rights of way. As part of a small team, you will shape the real estate strategy and execute large-scale transmission right-of-way acquisitions, serving as the primary liaison for major developer and customer interconnection projects to deliver renewable energy resources to SCE’s electrical grid.

Responsibilities

• Lead the preparation of land agreements and manage the acquisition process for necessary land and land rights (easements, licenses, temporary permits) from private owners, local agencies, railroads, and federal/state entities for highly complex projects involving sensitive negotiations, condemnation avoidance, and significant community impact.
• Submit work requests and applications to federal and state agencies (adhering to NEPA/CEQA guidelines) and railroads; determine, negotiate, and finalize terms and conditions to secure required approvals for project execution.
• Collaborate with project teams to secure California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and government agency approvals; draft testimony, schedule field visits, secure survey approvals, and serve as the organization’s subject matter expert on land rights processes.
• Conduct comprehensive rights checks, consult with the Law Department, define required land rights, and initiate the acquisition process upon approval.
• Attend project team meetings, advise internal and external customers on acquisition requirements, manage costs and budgets, and develop detailed acquisition plans and schedules.
• Lead site visits and job walks, document project constraints, order surveys, and utilize advanced mapping tools (e.g., Tract Maps, Parcel Maps, SCEGeoView) for thorough property research.
• Provide expertise and support to various land acquisition disciplines including Transmission & Substation, Telecommunication, Environmental Mitigation, Land Sales, and Distribution Acquisition teams.
• Document current processes, suggest improvements, and support the development of Master Special Use Permits and Agreements.
• Ensure the protection of SCE’s physical, financial, and cybersecurity assets, and properly access and manage private customer data, proprietary information, and other highly sensitive data with the highest standards of conduct and integrity.

Requirements

• Seven or more years of experience performing right of way or real property transactions and real estate acquisitions.
• Valid Class C Driver's License.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Real Estate, Business Administration, GIS, Engineering, or related major.
• One or more of the following: Real Estate license, Project Management certification, or related license/certification.
• One or more years of experience with title review, appraisal review, condemnation support, and real estate negotiations.
• Five or more years of experience with easements, deeds, licenses, leases, permits, and fee acquisitions.
• Experience with CPUC, local agency, and permitting processes.
• Experience interpreting legal descriptions, tract and parcel maps, and engineering plans.
• Three or more years of experience handling complex land transactions and acquisition strategy development.
• Experience with Electric Utility Transmission and/or distribution projects.
• One or more of the following International Right of Way (IRWA) credentials/certifications: Industry Path, Specialist Path, Senior Right of Way Professional (SR/WA), Professional Program featuring (RWA), or equivalent.

Schedule

• Hybrid work mode: report to an SCE facility for a set number of days with the option to work remotely on remaining days.
• Primary work location: Pomona, CA (Pomona Innovation Village), with potential extended work throughout the SCE service territory.
• Up to 60% travel and fieldwork throughout the SCE service territory.

Benefits

Visit our Candidate Resource page for information on benefits, perks, resources, testing information, and the hiring process.