Associate Director or Director, Demonstration Projects

As a leader in advancing New York's energy transition, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has remained a credible, objective and trusted partner in our State's energy planning as well as deploying new and innovative technologies to expand New York's economy. NYSERDA has worked for the past 50 years to protect the environment and help New Yorkers increase energy efficiency, lower energy costs and reduce reliance on fossil fuels. NYSERDA engages with stakeholders including residents, business owners, developers, community leaders, local government officials, universities, utilities, investors, entrepreneurs, and more, to develop, invest, and foster conditions that: 

• Attract the private sector capital investment needed to expand New York's clean energy economy. 
• Overcome barriers to using clean energy at a large-scale in New York. 
• Enable New York's communities and residents to benefit equitably in the clean energy transition. 

Job Overview

NYSERDA seeks an individual at an Associate Director or Director level who is enthusiastic about advancing building and facility decarbonization to lead our Demonstration Projects team. This interdisciplinary team is part of the Clean and Resilient Buildings unit that engages with both private and public market sectors to increase the adoption of building energy efficiency and electrification across all sectors of the built environment in New York State. This team currently supports demonstration programs including Commercial and Industrial Carbon Challenge, Clean Green Schools, Empire Building Challenge provides services for existing buildings, gut rehab, adaptive change of use, and thermal energy networks across single owner, multi-owner and municipal networks. 

The individual will support Clean and Resilient Buildings leadership and associated teams in translating NYS climate policy goals regarding the build environment and NYSERDA funding objectives, particularly those associated with Purposeful Demonstrations under the EE/Be Order into a set of actionable interventions.  The individual will work in close coordination with the team to ensure synergy. The individual will supervise Program Managers, Senior Project Managers and others that are responsible for project management, reporting, budgeting, contract management, required analysis, stakeholder relationships associated with the teams' programs and other interventions introduced into the market, as applicable.

 The ideal candidate needs to be comfortable working in a fast-paced and constantly changing environment. They will need to enjoy interacting with and seeking feedback from stakeholders, policy makers and sister agencies of NYS, have a high attention to detail and an internal drive to set and achieve personal and team goals. Preferably, this candidate also has experience with multiple customer sectors and an understanding of how they make capital investment decisions and operational improvements. Exposure to carbon neutral program creation and execution is a plus. 

Primary Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership and Development

• Lead the Demonstration Projects team in developing, driving and implementing a portfolio of solutions and interventions to identify, demonstrate and broadly promote successful decarbonization approaches in hard to decarbonize segments of the NYS built environment. Demonstration efforts should also strive to overcome barriers to scale and accelerate the adoption of energy efficiency and clean energy across New York.
• Proactively stay up-to-date, be aware of and be strategically responsive to all external factors that inform and shape program and policy opportunities in this space, and leverage this insight to guide team and staff planning, program development, stakeholder management and communications
• Develop and deliver strategic messaging and presentation materials with political acumen and which conveys technical information to a lay audience 
• Proactively engage with Directors and Team Leads across NYSERDA to understand and collaborate on programs 
• Manage staff, resources, and associated business unit initiatives to achieve unit goals. 
• Influence policy, regulations and codes to support the business unit and in compliance with NYSEDRA policies.
• Maintain and leverage a network of stakeholders, market participants, peer program administrators, policy experts and other sources of insight to develop a useful collaboration, inform design, and enable improvement of NYSERDA's solutions.
• Lead the Technical Services team in developing, driving and implementing solutions and interventions that allow customers to understand their energy usage and begin to make infirmed investment decisions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• Solutions and strategies should be focused on providing services that result in measure adoption and work in synergy with Utility offered incentives.

Execution and Ongoing Improvement

• Establish productive working relationships with related management and staff at the New York State Department of Public Service, Utilities, sector specific industry experts and stakeholders to advance the demonstration offerings and strategy.
• Represent NYSERDA in collaborative initiatives with other NYS agencies and public and private entities and in technical conferences, public meetings, and other forums.
• Deliver results consistent with forecasts across multiple programs and teams, develop reliable forecasting methods and provide guidance to program management.
• Develop strategies and plans achievable within and supported by budgets and resources consistent with funding requirements and test proposals for programs developed by your teams for these attributes.
• Evolve offerings to optimize impact and efficiency based on stakeholder feedback and insights, critical program and market data, and timely evaluation.
• Ensure programs are built such that they: have effective go-to market strategies; achieve intended outcomes; are easy-to-use and responsive to customers and partners; maintain operational flexibility needed to evolve; and minimize administrative cost and unnecessary burdens.
• Direct market analyses to inform effective program delivery.
• Manage financial, staff and contractor resources for efficiency and effectiveness. 

People Leadership and Development

• Lead and manage a team or several related teams.
• Develop and build a high-performing, highly collaborative organization. 
• Foster a culture of excellence grounded in people development, learning, problem solving, and teamwork.
• Develop staff and colleagues to meet NYSERDA's goals and their own professional goals; serve as a mentor and a role model.
• Build multidisciplinary networks within NYSERDA, and at the NY Green Bank, Department of Public Service, other agencies, and the Governor's office to advance the State's success. 

Core Competencies

• Cultivating Teamwork and Trusting Partnerships
• Contributing to the Workplace Environment
• Policy and Procedure Knowledge and Application 

Minimum Qualifications

• For Director (Salary: $156,757-$197,170)
  • Bachelor's degree and 10 years of relevant experience, including 5 years in a supervisory role 
• For Associate Director (Salary: $141,581-$178,874)
  • Bachelor's degree and 10 years of relevant experience, including 4 years in a supervisory role
• A demonstrated record of success in driving improvements and successfully delivering services within complex business or government operating environments.
• Genuine passion for matters relating to workforce training, the environment, and an interest in developing and supporting a dynamic and talented team.
• Project management and leadership skills including the ability to work as a team leader and team member, maintain project timelines, budgets, and deliver on commitments.
• Highest level of communication and interpersonal skills involving the ability to work cross-functionally to understand requirements, present alternatives, and recommendations.
• Self-starter who acts independently, directs one's own work and can handle diverse tasks quickly and accurately within a high-performance environment.
• Exceptional manager, coach, mentor, and developer of talent; an ability to lead and develop a team to achieve their potential, innovate and uncover new possibilities, and deliver impactful outcomes.
• Perform all managerial and supervisory responsibilities with respect, fairness, consistency, and inclusion across the workforce. 
• Demonstrated problem-solving ability, resourcefulness, adaptability, and an instinct for surfacing value and pragmatic solutions.
• Top-notch presentation and interpersonal skills that resonate with audiences of diverse backgrounds.
• Relentless work ethic and resolute integrity
• Strong organizational and analytical skills; ability to quickly aggregate and analyze information

Preferred Qualifications

• For Director (Salary: $156,757-$197,170)
  • Master's degree and 8 years' experience, with 5 years in a supervisory role
• For Associate Director (Salary: $141,581-$178,874)
  • Master's degree and 8 years' experience with 4 years in a supervisory role

Travel Requirements: 15% travel to meetings and conferences, primarily in NYS

Please submit two files, one for your cover letter and another for a resume.

NYSERDA is exclusively working with a recruitment partner who will be responsible for the initial screening of the resumes for this position.

For further information on our hiring policies, employment opportunities for people with disabilities and EEO please click here Policies.

Please note that during the application process, you may be prompted to opt-in to Artificial Intelligence ("AI") scoring. This is an automatic request in the ADP system but is not a feature that is used by NYSERDA in its recruiting and hiring process. Your response will have no impact on your application to NYSERDA.

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