Senior Associate (Climate Solutions)

CEA’s Work

CEA supports environmental foundations, nonprofits, private‑sector businesses, government agencies, trade associations, and impact investors. We pride ourselves on being client‑oriented, insightful, and responsive. Our work encompasses a broad range of environmental topics ranging from conservation to climate solutions on land and in the water, with many of our projects having an international scope. The majority of our work serves the philanthropic and non‑profit sectors and relates to marine conservation and / or climate change. We also work regularly on climate resilience and adaptation, climate‑smart agriculture, land use and conservation, freshwater management, equity and justice in climate and conservation, transportation, wildlife protection, pollution, and urban sustainability. We often work at the intersection of these issues. Our primary offerings include :

Strategy , including grantmaking strategies, organizational‑ or initiative‑level program strategies, field‑ or sector‑level landscaping and analysis, and opportunity assessments.

Facilitation , including meeting and workshop design, insight generation, and synthesis; funder collaborative and NGO group facilitation.

Operational Support , including initiative incubation, grant sourcing and diligence, designing and launching funder collaboratives, and board development and management.

Analysis and Thought‑Leadership , including sector‑level climate mitigation analysis, roadmaps or frameworks for collective action, grant database creation and analysis, and field‑level state‑of‑play assessments.

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning , including design and implementation of multi‑year MEL programs, logic models and theory of change development, learning session facilitation, research to support learning agendas, third‑party evaluations.

Recruiting and Organizational Design , including executive search and transition planning, staff recruitment and hiring support, strategic talent acquisition partnership, board member recruitment, and executive compensation analysis.

About the Role

We are seeking a Senior Associate who will play a key role in supporting CEA’s existing climate‑related engagements that may include : supporting energy‑related strategy development and grantmaking, facilitating funder collaboratives focused on decarbonizing key sectors, and helping leading NGOs operationalize their programming, and helping to advance growth of CEA’s climate‑focused project portfolio.

This position interacts with leaders in the philanthropic field on work spanning a wide range of climate and environmental issues. Senior Associates manage day‑to‑day consulting engagements with environmental and climate‑focused foundations, family offices, NGOs, impact investors, and bilateral and multilateral agencies.

Our work environment is collaborative and intense. It requires intellectual rigor; excellent interpersonal and communication skills; strong research, analysis, and writing capacity; the ability to synthesize findings from a range of sources; superb project‑management skills; attention to detail; and a passion for climate solutions and environmental issues.

We are interested in candidates coming from a range of professional backgrounds, including consulting, nonprofits, academia, finance / impact investing, private sector or corporate ESG, government agencies, foundations, and think tanks. Given the requirements of the position, consulting experience and grantmaking experience is desired.

The Senior Associate cohort at CEA includes varied backgrounds and subject matter expertise. Senior Associates may range from professionals with five+ years of experience ready to lead projects, seasoned professionals with advanced credentials and 15+ years of experience who prefer not to assume further management responsibilities, or experienced professionals new to consulting who are preparing for Director‑level roles. Each of these profiles have succeeded as a Senior Associate at CEA.

About You

You are a self‑starter who finds fulfillment in a job well done. You have proven ability to manage complex projects on time and on budget, with a track record of leading teams toward climate impact. You are undaunted by ambiguity. You create structure and order to keep yourself and your team moving forward. You are adept at toggling each day between big‑picture thinking and problem solving, granular analysis, and management of complex project and logistical details. You believe individual and team success are fundamentally connected. You support your teammates and leadership in creating a collegial, inclusive, and healthy work environment. You enjoy helping colleagues grow through collaboration and sharing your expertise. You are intellectually curious, an adept problem solver, resilient when faced with unexpected challenges and passionate about addressing climate change.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

Serve as an engagement manager for projects, acting as the primary client contact, leading project design and execution, managing teams, ensuring quality deliverables, updating workplans, managing budgets, and facilitating meetings

Lead climate‑related projects with light support from senior team members, including climate policy analysis, grantmaking strategies, sourcing and diligence for philanthropic climate funders, GHG modeling, NGO strategy development, and operationalizing climate strategies

Manage teams in executing multiple assignments for different clients

Co‑design and execute projects, including :

Formulate and test hypotheses via research, modeling, expert interviews, and data analyses

Facilitate group problem‑solving and brainstorming to generate novel solutions

Synthesize disparate information (e.g., quantitative data, expert interviews, literature review) into findings and recommendations for clients

Deliver clear, compelling reports, presentations, and briefs

Ensure quality and rigor of all work products

Support Directors in business development : contribute to proposals, develop your professional network in the climate field, and source new project opportunities

Participate in CEA’s ongoing journey to become a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable organization.

Desired Content Knowledge and Experience

Deep knowledge of climate change and clean energy, especially “clean firm” technologies like geothermal and nuclear energy, in the U.S. and / or internationally. Content area expertise could include energy policy, renewable energy deployment (siting, transmission, grid modernization), energy access, and decarbonization of key sectors (e.g., industry, transportation, buildings), and natural climate solutions.

Robust understanding of the wider climate landscape, and nuanced appreciation of the interrelationships between sectors, communities, politics, economics, ecosystems, and earth systems; able to draw insight from the wider context to shed light on challenges and opportunities in clean energy and climate action.

Desired Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree and five+ years’ work experience; advanced degree (e.g., MBA, MS, Ph.D.) a plus

Consulting or grantmaking experience preferred, particularly in senior roles advising philanthropic entities or leading grantmakers

Experience developing and leading projects from start to finish, including scoping, budgeting, and deliverables

Ability to manage multiple workstreams, meet deadlines and adapt to evolving client needs

Exceptional writing skills across mediums and audiences

Excellent verbal and interpersonal communication, including effective internal and external communication and ability to deliver compelling presentations

Discretion in handling sensitive matters and diplomacy with stakeholders

Two+ years’ experience managing and coaching direct reports

Experience with philanthropy and grantmaking, including creating strategies and theories of change, pipeline development, due diligence, and writing grant memos

Proficiency in qualitative research methods (e.g., interviews, case studies) and analytical tools (e.g., qualitative data analysis software)

Proficiency in quantitative research methods and data analysis (e.g., Excel modeling, statistical analysis, data management, data visualization)

Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, especially Excel and PowerPoint; additional analytical tools (e.g., Tableau) a plus

Professional proficiency in Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Mandarin, or Korean language with demonstrated cultural competency a plus.

Work Location

CEA’s office is located in San Francisco, and about half of the team works remotely on a permanent basis. We strongly prefer that this position work from our San Francisco office, but remote candidates will be considered. This position requires some travel.

Compensation and Benefits

We offer competitive salaries, excellent health benefits, additional benefits for those working in the SF office (e.g., commuter benefits and weekly lunches), and a supportive working environment. Salary will be commensurate with skills and experience. The base salary range for Senior Associate’s at CEA is $100,000 - $140,000. Additionally, CEA offers an annual performance bonus, revenue sharing, and the opportunity to earn additional bonuses thrice a year when work exceeds billable hour targets. CEA also typically provides raises for all staff annually, usually above COLA. Therefore, altogether, the target total compensation for this role is in the mid‑to‑high $100,000s.

To Apply

Interested candidates must follow the link below to submit a resume and cover letter.

CEA is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to our legal and ethical obligations to protect job applicants and employees from employment discrimination, harassment, and unfair treatment due to race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation), age, disability, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military status, or veteran status.

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