Mid-Senior Level Biologist

Dudek; Hyde Park Township (IL); Hybrid; USD 60,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, and Vision Coverage

Discretionary Bonuses

Employee Stock Ownership Program

Generous Paid Time Off

Dog-Friendly Offices

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a mid- to senior-level Biologist to join their dedicated team. This role involves managing wildlife surveys, conducting aquatic resource delineations, and overseeing environmental permit applications. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in biological resource consulting and project management, with a commitment to collaboration and innovation. Join a company that values employee ownership and professional development, and be part of a culture that emphasizes well-being, teamwork, and respect. If you are passionate about making a positive impact in the environmental sector, this opportunity is perfect for you.

Qualifications

• 8-10 years of experience in biological resource consulting required.
• Strong written and oral communication skills are essential.

Responsibilities

• Manage and implement wildlife surveys and aquatic resource delineations.
• Lead field surveys for rare and endangered species.

Skills

Project Management

Wildlife Surveys

Aquatic Resource Delineations

Vegetation Surveys

Communication Skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Biology

Master's degree in Biology

Tools

SDAM

Job description

Who We Are

Dudek is a leading environmental, planning, and engineering firm that help public and private clients plan, design, and build projects that improve communities’ built and natural infrastructure. Founded in 1980, Dudek has grown steadily to more than 800 professionals across the U.S. and received the Top Workplace Award for 2024.

As a 100% employee-owned company, Dudek’s culture rewards smart, productive team members with ownership, professional development, and financial benefits. We seek creative, pragmatic problem-solvers working at the intersection of science, engineering, regulations, and multiple stakeholders’ interest to help clients achieve project goals.

We encourage collaboration, sustainability, and innovation.

At Dudek, we abide by shared values:

Trust: We trust each other to use good judgment.

Respect: We act professionally and treat each other fairly.

Teamwork: We come together, share openly, and apply diverse perspectives.

Fun: We take our work seriously…not ourselves.

Well-Being: We care about each other’s health, safety, and total wellness.

Our culture is the foundation of who we are and how we work. We empower our employee-owners to invest in our local communities and themselves through initiatives that make Dudek a great place to work! Our cultural programs include:

• DuGreen: Our sustainability initiative, which works to improve our environmental footprint
• DuGood: Our philanthropic initiative, which seeks to support the communities in which we live and work through fundraising challenges, office-based giving and opportunity to take a paid volunteer day each year
• eDUcate: Our educational outreach program where we aim to foster interest in our work and careers in the environmental and engineering field by participating in educational events in our communities
• DuWell: Our wellness initiative, aimed at providing education on wellness, benefit resources, and preventive care

At Dudek, we recognize that different perspectives, inclusivity, trust and belonging build a stronger culture and add value to our firm. Dudek's Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) operate as diversity champions within Dudek and create a safe space for underrepresented employees and their allies to support, collaborate, network, and brainstorm ways to make Dudek’s work community more inclusive. We proudly support our 4 Employee Resource Groups (ERGs):

• Women at Dudek
• Members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ+) community
• Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) employees
• Disabled employees (all disabilities, seen / unseen)

Learn more about our culture.

About The Job

Dudek is currently seeking a full-time mid- to senior-level Biologist to join our team that is focused on supporting projects in the Southwest. The position can be at our Chandler office in Arizona, hybrid or remote. Preference is the candidate will be in either Arizona, New Mexico or Nevada. The successful candidate will help support projects in the energy, transportation and water sectors. The candidate will be responsible for managing and implementing wildlife surveys, aquatic resources delineations and native plant inventories. The candidate will coordinate regularly with the client, regulatory staff and mentor field staff to ensure compliance with applicable regulations and project permitting milestones are achieved.

Who You Are

To thrive at Dudek, you should be comfortable with accountability, collaboration, flexibility while being a resourceful and independent thinker. We look for curious, solution-focused people who can adapt quickly to an ever-changing industry. There is no single way to solve a problem, so we encourage innovation.

Duties and Responsibilities (may include some or all of the below):

• Complete general habitat assessments for multiple environments throughout the southwest;
• Lead field surveys for rare, threatened, and endangered plants and wildlife;
• Have familiarity and ability to lead vegetation surveys including Native Plant Inventory, AIM protocol, and noxious weeds;
• Prepare and oversee preparation of reports summarizing methodology, field survey results and recommendations;
• Lead aquatic resource delineations and have familiarity with SDAM;
• Prepare and oversee preparation Aquatic Resources Delineation Reports;
• Prepare and oversee preparation of documents supporting environmental permit applications;
• Experience with federal and state agencies throughout the southwest including AZGFD, NDOW, NMDGF, USACE, and BLM;
• Lead or assist resource agency permitting with federal and state agencies;
• Prepare scopes of work and cost estimates for survey work;
• Manage projects from inception to completion, ensuring timely and efficient delivery;
• Lead, mentor, and support project teams with the goal of maximizing performance and efficiency;
• Mentor junior staff in collaboration with other senior staff;

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in biology, ecology, botany, environmental science or related natural resources field;
• A minimum of 8-10 years’ of experience in biological resource consulting (or equivalent experience in a regulatory agency setting) with increasing levels of responsibility, including a minimum of 4 years of project management and supervisory experience;
• Demonstrated experience with management of projects involving biological impact analyses, special-status species, and mitigation planning;
• Strong written and oral communication skills and being both comfortable and confident to work with clients and regulatory staff;
• Willingness to travel for work, including over-night stays in hotels;
• Must possess a valid driver’s license and have active personal automobile liability insurance by first day of employment;
• As a federal contractor, successful candidates are required to pass a pre-employment drug test and background check;

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in biology, ecology, botany, environmental science or related natural resources field;
• Expert-level knowledge and understanding of special-status plant species, vegetation communities, and sensitive vegetation resources that occur in the Southwest;
• Proficient in wildlife identification and impact evaluation skills;
• Leadership and strong ability to work in a collaborative environment;
• Strong customer service emphasis and solution-oriented project delivery approach;
• Conscientious and detail-oriented with demonstrated accuracy and attention to detail;
• Exercises good judgment and sound decision-making skills;

Physical Requirements

• This job operates in a remote or office-based environment and this role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, printers, etc.
• This job requires occasional project site visits-based outdoors which can include excessive noise, uneven walking surfaces, extreme weather, moving vehicles and equipment;

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Final agreed upon compensation will be based on a variety of factors including but not limited to an individual’s related experience, education, certifications, skills, and work location;

Perks of Being a Dudekian

At Dudek we will provide you with a competitive salary in an environment that promotes growth, career development, and a flexible work–life balance. Dudek offers an array of benefits, from medical, dental, and vision coverage, to the discretionary bonuses, based on firmwide, divisional, and individual performance.

We also offer a yearly merit review, an employee stock ownership program, and dog friendly offices! To honor our key value of well-being, Dudek provides generous Paid Time Off (PTO) packages for both salaried and hourly employees. If you’re tired of an overly bureaucratic decision-making process and want to be part of a work culture that puts its employees first, speak with your recruiter to learn more about the great perks of being a Dudekian.

Dudek is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or other characteristics protected by applicable law.

Dudek is a U.S.-based employer. All positions are based in the U.S. and require U.S. work authorization.