Program Manager, Building Energy & Climate

Earth Advantage; Portland, Northern (OR, KY); Hybrid; USD 78,000 - 103,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

PTO 5 weeks

Medical and dental insurance

HRA deductible reimbursement

FSAs

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

401k plan with match

Paid family leave

Sabbatical opportunity

Job summary

Earth Advantage, based in Oregon, is seeking a Program Manager, Building Energy & Climate, to lead a portfolio of decarbonization and energy policy projects spanning federal grants, utility programs, and technical research.

The role emphasizes strong project management, budgets, and cross-functional collaboration to advance building performance and policy outcomes for a sustainable future.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of project or program management experience with budgeting and resource allocation.
• General knowledge of building systems and energy efficiency principles.
• Deep commitment to Earth Advantage's mission and demonstrated engagement with environmental or sustainability initiatives.
• Excellent written and verbal communication across diverse stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Project Oversight: lead day-to-day execution across multiple funded projects, manage timelines, budgets, deliverables, and reporting.
• Partner Engagement: coordinate with local, state, and community organizations to support building performance and decarbonization research.
• Project Delivery: coordinate delivery of technical assistance, guidance materials, and project findings reports.
• Contract Administration: manage contracts and grants, tracking spend and ensuring timely, high-quality outputs.
• Expertise Sharing: help build strategic partnerships and promote advanced practices in emissions control within buildings.

Skills

Project management

Budgeting

Resource allocation

Communication

Building energy systems

Education

Advanced degree in sustainability/energy related field

Job description

Program Manager, Building Energy & Climate

Reports to: Associate Director, Innovations and Organizational Sustainability | Hybrid; Oregon-based | Classification: Full-time, Exempt | Applications received by 9/18/2026 will be prioritized. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

About Earth Advantage

Earth Advantage is a non-profit organization helping to advance a more informed and humane housing market. We work to ensure the US housing market recognizes the elements of homes that create climate risk and values the characteristics of homes that provide climate solutions. Our teams partner with entities across the country to develop tangible, systemic solutions for climate-friendly housing. Earth Advantage is an equal-opportunity employer that values diversity at all levels. We are committed to providing an inclusive, non-discriminatory, and welcoming environment for all staff members, partners, subcontractors, and vendors. We are actively engaged in an ongoing process to identify and address inequities in our programming, organizational culture, community, and industry. We enthusiastically encourage individuals from Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, and LGBTQ+ backgrounds to apply. We're proud of the culture we're building at Earth Advantage, and we believe in walking the talk when it comes to sustainability. We're currently ranked in the top 10 of both Oregon Business Magazine's 100 Greenest Companies and 100 Best Nonprofits to Work For in Oregon. If you’re interested in joining an organization with incredible benefits and staffed with intelligent and dedicated people, this is the place for you. Learn more about our mission .

Who we’re looking for

You are a forward-thinking professional with a background in building decarbonization initiatives, demand-side management programs, and/or building energy policy. You are comfortable leading day-to-day execution across a portfolio of building decarbonization and energy policy projects, spanning federal grants, utility-funded initiatives, and technical research programs. Each project brings its own partners, deliverables, and reporting requirement - and you will be the connective tissue holding them together.

You have demonstrated strength in managing timelines, deliverables, and budgets. You are adept at information analysis, identifying key opportunities for impact, and facilitating multi-disciplinary teams towards shared goals. At the same time, you understand that in policy and research-adjacent work, it is useful to know when to push, when to wait, and when to elevate - and you bring a clear-eyed read on the situation rather than just the problem.

This is an opportunity to do meaningful, lasting work at the intersection of policy, technical expertise, and real-world implementation, helping shape how Oregon's buildings perform for decades to come.

What you'll do

As the Program Manager, Building Energy & Climate, you will play a crucial role within a dynamic team dedicated to advancing research and policy development in sustainable building practices. You are someone with strong project management skills, foundational experience with demand side energy management initiatives, and interest in engaging on building energy policies that spur market action.

You are adept at facilitating collective efforts and are motivated by producing policy outcomes and research findings that support building decarbonization. Your contributions will help shape industry standards and influence policy decisions at multiple levels.

Core Responsibilities

• Project Oversight: Lead day-to-day execution across multiple concurrently funded projects (federal grants, utility contracts, and technical research programs), managing timelines, budgets, deliverables, and reporting requirements for each.
• Partner Engagement: Coordinate with a diverse network of stakeholders — including local, state, and community-based organizations— to support the delivery of building performance, energy code, and decarbonization research projects and initiatives.
• Project Delivery: Coordinate Earth Advantage's direct delivery of technical assistance and services, including policy compliance support, development of technical or procedural guidance materials, and project findings reports.
• Contract Administration: Manage project contracts and grants by developing regular reports, tracking budget to actual spend, and ensuring high-quality products are delivered on schedule.
• Expertise Sharing: Help build strategic partnerships, sharing knowledge and driving the adoption of advanced practices in emissions control within the building sector.

Required qualifications

• 5+ years of project or program management experience, including a background in project planning, budgeting, and resource allocation.
• General knowledge of building systems and energy efficiency principles.
• Deep commitment to Earth Advantage's mission and demonstrated engagement with environmental or sustainability initiatives.
• Excellent communication skills. Proficient in written and verbal communication, including the ability to convey complex technical information to diverse stakeholders.

Preferred Qualification

• Prior work experience in energy-related program delivery, energy efficiency consulting, building sciences, and/or residential or commercial construction projects.
• Experience managing large, multi-partner projects, ideally with a focus on sustainability and decarbonization.
• Experience working with or alongside government agencies, utilities, or community-based organizations.
• Experience administering or coordinating federally funded grants or cooperative agreements.
• Experience managing sub-recipients, subcontractors, or multi-partner project relationships
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams and navigate complex stakeholder relationships.
• Understanding of energy efficiency and building energy technologies, comfortable learning new technical domains quickly, and awareness when to seek additional technical input.
• Advanced degree in sustainability, environmental management, energy management, public policy, urban planning, engineering (with a sustainability or energy concentration) or business administration.

Compensation

$78,000 - $103,000 annual compensation, dependent on expertise.

Note: This range represents the compensation opportunity within this specific Earth Advantage job class. Compensation for this position is expected to start above the mid point of the pay range.

Benefits

Earth Advantage offers an excellent benefit package including:

• 5 weeks Paid Time off
• 80% employer paid medical and dental premiums for staff and dependents (eligible 1st of the month after hire date)
• Deductible reimbursement program through our HRA
• Flexible Spending Account for medical, transit, parking, and dependent care
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• 401k plan with match
• Life insurance, short term and long-term disability insurance
• Fully paid family leave
• 6 week sabbatical opportunity after 5 years

At Earth Advantage we believe that climate change is a challenge that crosses boundaries of income, race, ethnicity, religion, age, abilities, geography, gender identities, sexual orientation, and disproportionately affects disadvantaged populations. We actively support and value diversity in company culture, the recruitment of staff and board members, and in our partnerships with organizations and individuals in order to propel the building industry toward a socially, economically, and environmentally just future.