Solar Development Lead

What you will do

The Solar Development Lead will manage the development of distributed generation (DG) solar and battery storage projects across the United States. 

Role Overview:

The position is responsible for leading the advancement of DG projects through critical development milestones, providing technical and strategic guidance, managing external partners, and advising team members. This role will be based out of our New York office and reporting to the Director of Development.  This role serves as a subject matter expert, drives execution, and contributes to team development and organizational performance. 

Main responsibilities:

Project Management 

• Lead and manage all aspects of solar project development: Manages regulatory, design, environmental, real estate, technical, and interconnection due diligence for various project types such as roof-mounted, ground-mounted, and battery storage projects. 
• Manage budgets, project milestones, and schedules: Ensure that projects stay on budget and on schedule is crucial for successful project completion. 
• Understand and manage the various applications and permit processes: Successfully navigate the necessary state and local permit approvals and authorization to bring a project to construction hand-off. 
• Conduct permitting and environmental studies: Understand and managing the permitting processes and identify the need for environmental studies required for solar DG and battery storage projects in the US. Ensuring compliance with local, state, and federal regulations is crucial for project approval and success. 

Stakeholder Coordination 

• Engage, onboard, and manage consultants: Working with a variety of external professional and technical consultants to ensure project success. Provide clear direction, feedback, and accountability to external parties 
• Engage and manage external stakeholders: Build and maintain relationships with external stakeholders including landowners, local officials and other key community stakeholders. 
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders: Work closely with teams from origination, engineering, construction, legal, and capital markets to ensure alignment and smooth project execution 

Risk Management and Compliance 

• Assess, analyze, and mitigate risks: Identify and address risks at all stages of the development cycle to ensure project stability and success. 
• Lead the land structuring, negotiating, and closing legal documentation: Manage the development of legal agreements to demonstrate site control and ensuring clean title for the projects. 

Continuous Improvement 

• Maintain advance knowledge and analyze policies governing renewables: Staying informed about renewable energy policies in multiple states to ensure compliance and strategic planning. 
• Key problem-solve and process improvement strategy: Identifying, capturing and implementing lessons learned to enhance project development processes. 
• Identify continuous improvement opportunities. Identify development bottlenecks and recommend solutions to leadership. Identify process efficiency, and innovation within DG development team. 

Employment type

Full Time

Work site

Hybrid in the New York office 

What are we looking for

Minimum Requirements:

• Minimum 6 years of experience in renewable energy development   
• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Economics, Engineering, Environmental Science or related field; 
• Demonstrated leadership in advancing complex projects through permitting, interconnection, and construction readiness 
• Strong understanding of contracts, regulatory frameworks, and stakeholder engagement 
• Strong command of development cycle including, but not limited to, utility interconnection, permitting, land matters (including title and title curatives), construction hand-off, and managing budgets and schedules 
• Financial planning, budgeting, organizational and resource management  
• Effectively manage and motivate a variety of project stakeholders 
• Problem solving and communication skills 
• Proficient knowledge of Microsoft Office software; other technical knowledge a plus 

Travel:

Travel 10%-25% as needed

Behavioral Requirements:

• Strong leadership and team-building skills 
• Independent problem-solving and strategic thinking 
• Excellent written, verbal and presentation skills 
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional, multi-departmental teams 
• Advanced stakeholder management and communication  
• Leadership through influence (without direct authority in all cases)  
• Deep subject matter expertise in at least one development discipline  
• Ability to manage complexity, risk, and competing priorities 
• Exemplary standards of integrity, honor, safety, management, ethics, quality, and productivity  

Physical demands & working conditions:

• Sitting/Standing/Flexibility: Ability to stand and sit for 8 or more hours when in an office environment
• Speech/Reading:  Ability to speak, read, and write English proficiently and deliver a variety of instructions furnished in written, verbal, diagram, or schedule form
• Lifting: Ability to lift items weighing up to 10 pounds
• Vision/Hearing: Ability to understand a variety of instructions furnished in written, verbal, diagram, or schedule form
• Safety: Ability to understand and communicate safety precautions when necessary