Senior Program Manager, Water Efficiency and Reuse

About the role

The Pacific Institute is seeking a strategic Senior Program Manager within our Water Efficiency and Reuse focus area. This role will be responsible for leading high-impact, multi-year projects directly, as well as overseeing a portfolio of related efforts.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development and execution of complex projects and multi-year initiatives.
• Oversee and coordinate a portfolio of related projects, ensuring alignment across workstreams, consistency in quality, and integration of outcomes.
• Develop, manage, and monitor complex project budgets, ensuring financial accountability and alignment with funder and organizational requirements.
• Translate strategic vision into actionable project plans, including defined scopes, milestones, and deliverables, to ensure effective execution of project and program objectives.
• Develop and manage project workflows and timelines to ensure delivery of high-quality outputs on schedule and on budget.
• Prepare and oversee high-quality project deliverables (reports, briefs, presentations), ensuring rigor and relevance for target audiences.
• Maintain project quality, cost, progress, and adjust scope, approach, or resourcing as needed to meet delivery on objectives.
• Identify and advance innovative approaches, new applications, and emerging opportunities in water efficiency and reuse.
• Lead the collection, analysis, interpretation, and synthesis of quantitative and qualitative data from primary and secondary sources.
• Design and oversee research methodologies, literature reviews, landscape scans, and stakeholder interviews to inform projects.
• Develop and implement quality assurance and quality control protocols and processes to manage data quality, documentation, and integrity, ensuring reliable outputs.
• Translate research findings into actionable insights and recommendations for utility, agency, nonprofit, philanthropic, and private-sector audiences.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with existing and prospective project partners, stakeholders, and external collaborators.
• Communicate project results and insights with internal and external audiences through publications, presentations, and other channels.
• Represent the organization at conferences, meetings, and public forums to elevate visibility and influence.
• Expand the organization’s network by identifying new partnership and collaboration opportunities, particularly across utility, public agencies, and large industrial water users.
• Secure sustainable program funding through opportunity identification, proposal development, relationship management, and strategic outreach.
• Lead the development of competitive proposals and grant applications for foundations, corporations, and government funding sources.
• Manage relationships with funders, ensuring timely, accurate reporting and stewardship.
• Provide strategic guidance and oversight to team members leading individual projects within a broader portfolio.
• Hire, train, and mentor team members, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and learning.
• Lead and manage project teams to deliver within the time and budget available, setting clear expectations and resolving issues early.
• Align complex initiatives and team efforts with organizational strategic thinking and planning.
• Model inclusive leadership practices that contribute to a healthy, productive team environment.
• Support professional development and capacity building across team members, including setting clear expectations and providing regular, constructive feedback.

Required experience

• Minimum 12 years of relevant professional experience advancing water efficiency, reuse, or closely related areas
• Or an advanced degree in environmental or sustainability sciences, civil or environmental engineering, water resources, environmental economics, hydrology, or a closely related field with at least 10 years of equivalent experience.
• Extensive expertise in water efficiency and reuse, with specialized knowledge in at least one of the following: water-energy interdependencies or applied water economics.
• Working knowledge of water and wastewater utility operations, including practical, regulatory, and financial realities that shape implementation and decision-making.
• Demonstrated ability to identify innovative solutions, emerging trends, or new applications in water efficiency, reuse, or related fields.
• Proven ability to lead complex, multi-stakeholder projects from design to delivery, meeting timelines and budgets.
• Proven ability to manage a portfolio of projects or programs, including coordinating across multiple workstreams and providing oversight to project leads.
• Proven success securing project funding from foundations, corporations, or government sources, including developing successful competitive proposals.
• Proven ability to build and maintain trust-based relationships with diverse partners, including utility leaders, nonprofits, and government agencies.
• Experience leading and managing teams to deliver high-quality results within scope, schedule, and budget.
• Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to interpret and synthesize research and data into strategic, actionable recommendations.
• Proficiency with relevant software tools for data analysis and visualization (e.g., Excel, R, Python, Power BI, Tableau).
• Excellent writing and editing skills for both technical and non-technical audiences.