Senior Archaeologist

Terracon; Phoenix (AZ); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Terracon’s Phoenix office seeks a seasoned Cultural Resources Lead to guide a multi-disciplinary environmental planning team. You will supervise projects, mentor staff, and drive growth in the Desert Southwest, including AZ, NV, and NM, with a strong emphasis on safety and quality.

The role requires an advanced degree in Anthropology/Archaeology and 15+ years of relevant experience, plus proven skills in proposals, budgeting, and client delivery.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree and 15+ years in cultural resources practice.
• Strong writing, budgeting, and project finances experience.
• Familiar with AZ Antiquities Act, 106/NEPA and related laws.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor the Environmental Planning & Permitting team in Phoenix.
• Manage Cultural Resource projects and ensure successful delivery.
• Support proposal development and market growth in Desert Southwest.
• Oversee safety culture and compliance across projects.
• Provide technical direction and training to staff.

Skills

Team leadership

Proposal development

Budget management

Mentoring staff

Safety leadership

Education

Advanced graduate degree in Anthropology/Archaeology

Tools

GIS capabilities

Job description

General Responsibilities:

Terracon’s Phoenix office is seeking an experienced, entrepreneurial, and collaborative professional to help lead our Cultural Resources practice. Cultural Resources is part of our Environmental Planning and Permitting group, which also includes NEPA Planning and full-service Natural Resources capabilities. Our team works collaboratively with these and other Environmental practice areas to support Terracon’s local, state, regional and national client base. We are seeking a candidate who understands and is committed to program growth; is a strong team builder, communicator, and mentor; and who brings technical expertise and depth to our program.

Our Phoenix office is a multi-disciplined team that works on wetlands delineation and permitting; NEPA documentation; threatened and endangered species (T&E) assessments; wildlife habitat assessments (WHA) and species surveys; archeological studies that include Class I and Class III surveys, site eligibility evaluations, and mitigation planning; environmental site assessments; and environmental compliance work. Our clients include Local Government Agencies (City, County and State), school districts, national and local retailers, private entities, commercial real property developers and managers, telecom companies, energy providers, law and architecture firms, financial institutions, and construction engineers.

Essential Roles and Responsibilities:

As a Cultural Resources Lead, you will work also collaborate with Desert Southwest Region leaders to supervise, mentor, and support the professional growth of our Environmental Planning & Permitting team. This team includes full- and part-time employees at all stages of career development. You will support our team’s continued growth through expanded market share and successful project delivery. You will be a leader in understanding and supporting Terracon’s safety culture and expectations.

You will work with your team to manage projects, prepare and review reports, and coach and mentor staff on quality data generation and reporting. You will play an important role in helping support proposal development and project delivery in our office with opportunities to work in the wider region of the Desert Southwest (which includes Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico). As a senior practitioner you will participate in business development activities with office and department leadership, and you will work with our regional office leadership as well as key sector leads to help grow our practice.

Essential Roles and Responsibilities May Include:

• Develop understanding and be aware of project-related risk. Be familiar with what could go wrong on a project and how to protect the Company.
• Lead safety efforts for team and ensure team follows safety rules and guidelines.
• Responsible for creating and modeling a safe work environment; demonstrates safety practices.
• Promote continuous quality monitoring and improvement on all projects. Monitor quality standards and practices.
• Principal Investigator responsible for leading complex projects requiring innovative investigation techniques, providing guidance and support to projects and people.
• Manage Cultural Resource projects within Arizona.Work with our regional and statewide teams more broadly to continue to develop Terracon’s Cultural Resources practice.
• Supervise the analysis and formation of recommendations in written reports and treatment plans.
• Perform site visits, field observations and field data collection in area of technical expertise.
• Assist in establishing and updating current policies/ procedures for technical projects in field of expertise, to ensure proper interpretation and implementation by junior staff.
• Provide technical direction and training to less experienced professional staff.
• Participate in the development of marketing strategies and presentations of qualifications to clients on projects.
• Mastery of local, state and federal Cultural Resource Management requirements to ensure requirements of each entity are met.
• Be capable of serving as an Authorized Project Reviewer.

Requirements:

Requirements:

• Advanced graduate degree in Anthropology, Archeology, or related discipline and more than 15 years of experience in the practice.
• Possess strong writing skills and previous experience preparing proposals, building budgets, understanding and managing project finances.
• Familiarity with the Arizona Antiquities Act, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, National Environmental Policy Act, and other pertinent legislation .
• Ability to mentor and supervise junior staff regarding data collection, preparation of figures and maps, and report production.
• Ability to work on a team and build networks across the division and company.
• Capability to drive full-sized pickup trucks.
• Ability to perform physically demanding tasks such as lifting and walking on uneven surfaces carrying at least 20 lbs.of equipment, and ability to work in extreme (hot/cold) weather conditions.
• This position comes with flexible work arrangements but carries an expectation of three (3) in-office days of a normal five (5) day work week. Ability to travel out of town between 10% and 25% of the normal work week.
• Flexible work schedule, to ensure project timelines are completed.
• Ability to pass a drug screen and background check.
• Eligibility to work in the United States without sponsorship.
• Valid driver’s license with acceptable violation history.

Preferred:

• Arizona Antiquities Act Archaeological Principal Investigator (PI).
• Membership in statewide professional associations and/or other evidence of professional engagement in the larger community
• GIS capabilities
• Demonstrable technical proficiency with at least one material culture category