Executive Director, Clean Energy and Innovation

City of New York; New York (NY); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

The City of New York's DCAS Energy Management division seeks an Executive Director to lead strategy, budgeting, procurement, and asset management for city-wide solar and energy storage initiatives. You will drive energy efficiency programs and set governance across multiple agencies.

Expect to oversee a team delivering cost-benefit analyses, design reviews, and program governance while advancing battery energy storage deployments and clean energy adoption city-wide.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in energy, engineering, environmental science, planning or related field with relevant experience.
• Bachelor's degree with four years of related work experience in energy, environment or sustainability.
• Education and/or experience equivalent to above with supervisory experience.

Responsibilities

• Develop strategy and execution plan to meet city clean energy goals.
• Lead budgeting, planning and reporting for solar and energy storage projects.
• Guide procurement strategy and vendor evaluation aligned with contracts.
• Design asset management criteria for city-owned energy assets and third-party systems.
• Lead innovation pilots for energy tech demonstrations in city buildings.
• Oversee project teams including budgeting, procurement, and construction management.

Skills

Project Management

Communications

Budget

Contract Management

Data Analysis

Certifications

Public sector experience

Education

Master's degree in energy-related field or environmental policy

Bachelor's degree with 4+ years in related field

JD with environmental law or equivalent experience

Tools

Salesforce

Power BI

Solar design software

Job description

DCAS's mission is to make city government work for all New Yorkers. From managing New York City's most iconic courthouses and municipal buildings, to purchasing over $1 billion annually in goods and services for more than 80 City agencies. What we do ensures that all agencies can deliver on their mission. Our reach touches every facet of City government and is instrumental to the successful day-to-day operations of the City of New York. Our commitment to equity, effectiveness, and sustainability guides our work providing City agencies with the critical resources and support needed to succeed, including:

• Recruiting, hiring, and training City employees.
• Managing 56 public buildings.
• Acquiring, selling, and leasing City property.
• Purchasing over $1 billion in goods and services for City agencies.
• Overseeing the greenest municipal vehicle fleet in the country.
• Leading the City's efforts to reduce carbon emissions from government operations.

When you work at DCAS, you're not just working for one agency, but in service to all of them. It's an opportunity to provide meaningful support, quality customer service, and help protect the future of New York City for generations to come. Visit our website at NYC.GOV/DCAS to learn more about the work we do.

Energy Management serves as the hub for energy efficiency and emissions reduction throughout NYC government operations, supporting our agency partners progress towards the City's major emissions reduction and energy objectives. The Energy Management team concentrates their efforts in six areas: the City's energy supply, clean energy generation, demand response & load management, energy efficient operations & maintenance, energy efficiency retrofit projects, and energy training & innovation.

The responsibilities of the Executive Director include:

• Strategy Development: Develop the strategy and execution plan to achieve the City’s clean energy goals. The Executive Director will also develop a plan to significantly increase the installation of battery energy storage systems (BESS) at City government buildings.
• Budgeting Leadership: Oversee expense budget projections, planning, strategy and reporting regarding solar energy and demonstration projects.
• Procurement Expertise: Lead development and/or enhance an existing, strategic road map on procurement. The Executive Director will establish new contracting resources while reinforcing existing ones; setting direction on vendor selection processes; lead the evaluation process for vendor proposals to ensure alignment with contract objectives.
• Asset Management and Forward Planning: Create and/or enhance the criteria for the design and performance of a new and/or existing asset management program to maintain existing and new City-owned solar and energy storage systems, and performance of third‑party owned systems. Provide guidance for energy storage system options to be identified, and a plan for integrating their procurement and utilization.
• Innovation Piloting and Adoption: Spearhead programming for energy technology demonstrations in City buildings.
• Operations Oversight: Lead the team to accomplish projects, plans and goals. Provide supervisory technical, budgetary, and procedural standards, including assessing project feasibility and cost‑benefit analysis; review of design documents and technical specifications; technical review processes; procurement and contract development; work order development and authorization; construction management; and asset management. Directs the resolution of issues that arise in construction and project management.

Minimum Qualifications

1. A master’s degree from an accredited college or university in architecture or architectural technology, biology, building science, chemistry, climate and society, climate science, city or urban planning, construction management, earth science, economics, energy management, engineering or engineering technology, environmental law, science, or studies, facilities management, mathematics, physics, public administration, public policy, statistics, sustainability, urban studies, or a related field, or a juris doctorate degree from an accredited law school with a concentration in environmental law, and two (2) years of satisfactory, full‑time experience in energy, environmental, or sustainability‑related data analysis, program management, strategic planning, or a related field, at least one (1) year of which must have been in an administrative, managerial, executive, consultative, or supervisory capacity; or 2. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university and four (4) years of satisfactory, full‑time experience as described in “1” above, at least one (1) year of which must have been in an administrative, managerial, executive, consultative, or supervisory capacity; or 3. Education and/or experience equivalent to “1” or “2” above. However, all candidates must have at least one (1) year of experience in an administrative, managerial, executive, consultative, or supervisory capacity as described in “1” above.

Preferred Skills

• Project Management: Minimum 6 years of solar or related energy experience including project origination and development and program management. Experience developing and executing plans for installing clean energy in a large, complex metro area.
• Communications: Accomplished communicator, relationship and consensus builder with senior leadership and external stakeholders. Skillful in analyzing and synthesizing information concisely and clearly for a variety of audiences.
• Budget: Knowledge of the City of New York’s budget cycle and reporting process, or similar transferable skills. Highly skilled in budget preparation, financial management, and analysis.
• Contract Management: Experience with procurement and contracting processes, especially in government.
• Data Analysis: Experience with Salesforce or other platforms for project management and/or budgeting. Highly skilled with solar design software and data visualization software (e.g. Power BI).
• Certifications: Certification by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) or similar clean or renewable energy, energy management, sustainability, environmental management, or other certifications relevant to this role. OSHA certification also preferred but not required. Experience managing a team and interest in coaching and mentoring direct reports and staff.
• Experience in the public sector.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

Residency Requirement

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.