Electric Transmission Line Siting Senior Lead

ERM; Rolling Meadows (IL); On-site; USD 110,000 - 161,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid time off

Medical/dental/vision insurance

401(k)

Job summary

ERM in the United States is seeking a Principal Consultant, Electric Transmission Line Siting Senior Lead to serve as a technical and strategic lead for greenfield and rebuild transmission projects. You will guide routing and siting strategies, manage project execution, and mentor teams while collaborating with clients, agencies, and stakeholders.

The role offers in-office, hybrid, or remote options depending on location.

Qualifications

• 6+ years in consulting or industry with power clients on complex infrastructure.
• Experience managing routing and siting for electric transmission lines.
• Strong understanding of wetlands, protected species, cultural resources, land use and community impacts.
• Exceptional technical writing, communication, and organizational skills.
• Willingness to travel up to 15%.
• Experience with state siting authority filings and expert witness testimony is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee routing and siting studies for transmission lines.
• Manage multiple projects to meet scope, budget, and schedule.
• Coordinate experts across environmental, land use, engineering, and stakeholder groups.
• Prepare routing analyses, siting applications, and regulatory filings.
• Represent ERM in agency meetings, briefings, and public open houses.
• Provide expert witness testimony or technical support as needed.
• Support business development through proposals and portfolio growth.
• Build relationships across ERM's global network.

Skills

Routing siting

Project leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Regulatory filings

Environmental writing

Power transmission

Team leadership

Travel up to 15%

Education

Environmental Science

Natural Resources

Land Use Planning

Geography

Job description

Ready to make an impact? Join ERM and help shape the future of energy infrastructure while advancing your career with a global leader in environmental consulting.

Why This Role Matters

As the demand for reliable, resilient, and sustainable electricity continues to grow, new high-voltage electric transmission infrastructure is essential.

This role is focused on leading and overseeing routing and siting efforts for electric transmission line projects making sure projects are planned, approved, and delivered efficiently and responsibly.

In this role, you will manage complex routing and siting studies for transmission projects across the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Appalachian regions.

You will guide multidisciplinary teams through development of routes, environmental and land-use constraints evaluation, stakeholder engagement, and regulatory documentation and state siting authority approvals—helping clients identify constructible, defensible, and permittable transmission lines.

Your leadership will directly influence how power is delivered while balancing environmental protection, community considerations, and regulatory requirements.

What Your Impact Is

As a Principal Consultant, Electric Transmission Line Siting Senior Lead, you will serve as a technical and strategic lead for both greenfield and rebuild electric transmission projects.

you will be responsible for overseeing routing and siting strategies, managing project execution, and serving as a trusted advisor to clients, agencies, and stakeholders.

Your work will help strengthen ERM’s power sector portfolio, expand long-term client relationships, and mentor emerging professionals in transmission siting and permitting.

ERM welcomes applicants from the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Appalachian regions and offers flexibility to work in-office, hybrid, or fully remote based on your location.

What You’ll Bring

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Environmental Science, Natural Resources, Land Use Planning, Geography, or related field (or equivalent experience).
• 6+ years of consulting or industry experience with power clients on complex infrastructure projects.
• Demonstrated experience managing and overseeing routing and siting for electric transmission lines, including development of route alternatives.
• Strong technical understanding of transmission line siting considerations and construction constraints, including wetlands, protected species, cultural resources, land use, and community impacts.
• Exceptional technical writing, communication, and organizational skills, with experience preparing routing studies, siting reports, and regulatory filings.
• Proven ability to lead multidisciplinary teams, influence stakeholders, manage budgets and schedules, and deliver high-quality work products.
• Willingness to travel up to 15%.
• Preferred: Experience supporting or leading business development efforts, including proposal preparation.
• Experience supporting state siting authority filings including providing expert witness testimony in evidentiary hearings.
• Familiarity with state siting authorities as well as environmental permitting processes for electric transmission projects.
• Collaborative leadership style and commitment to shaping the future of energy infrastructure.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee electric transmission routing and siting studies, including alternatives development, impact analysis, and development of state siting authority filings.
• Manage multiple electric transmission line projects simultaneously to meet client scope, budget, and schedule expectations while making sure quality deliverables.
• Coordinate and direct subject matter experts across environmental, land use, engineering, and stakeholder engagement disciplines.
• Review and guide preparation of technical reports, routing analyses, siting applications, and regulatory filings.
• Represent ERM and clients in agency meetings, stakeholder briefings, and public open houses.
• Prepare and deliver expert witness testimony or technical support for evidentiary hearings, as needed.
• Oversee and direct environmental field studies and environmental permitting applications, including agency consultations and coordination.
• Support business development efforts by contributing to proposals and helping expand ERM’s transmission and power sector portfolio.
• Build strong, collaborative relationships across ERM’s global network of experts.

For the Principal Consultant, Electric Transmission Line Siting Senior Lead position, we anticipate the annual base pay of $110,000 - $160,905 (USD). An employee’s pay position within this range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, performance, shift, travel requirements, sales or revenue-based metrics, and business or organizational needs. We also may have instances where employee’s fall outside of the range based on the factors noted above. This job may be eligible for bonus pay (casual and fixed term/flex force employees are NOT bonus eligible).

We offer comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, medical/dental/vision insurance, 401(k), and any other benefits to eligible employees.

(Casual employees and regular employees scheduled under 20 hours a week are not benefits eligible).

paid time off

medical/dental/vision insurance

401(k)

any other benefits to eligible employees

ERM is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.

We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.

At ERM, sustainability is our business. We are the world’s largest advisory firm focused solely on sustainability, offering unparalleled expertise across business and finance. ERM partners with clients to operationalize sustainability at pace and scale, through our unique combination of strategic transformation and technical delivery capabilities. Our diverse global team of experts works with the world’s leading organizations to help them set clear sustainability targets, measure progress and operationalize strategy through deep implementation and business transformation. With more than 50 years of experience, our ability to integrate sustainability solutions and our depth and breadth of technical knowledge are why organizations choose to partner with us as their trusted advisor. Every one of us firmly believes in the potential to create value for our clients through an integrated approach to sustainability (because we have personally seen it and professionally achieved it). Our team members are passionate about client service. We work closely with our clients to help them operationalize their sustainability goals and meet their environmental, health and safety objectives while advancing ERM’s purpose through delivering tangible progress in what the United Nations coined The Decade of Action. Organizing our people across globally integrated communities of technical and strategic talent positions ERM to be a “boots to boardroom” leader in bringing that value creation to our clients, partners, and the world. We recruit exceptional professionals with a personal and professional passion for sustainability and nurture them to even greater success as specialists. We prepare our consultants to bring integrated, innovative and sustainable solutions to our clients and provide opportunities for ongoing development across a variety...

At ERM, effort pays off and becomes career defining work that leaves a positive imprint on our planet.