Southern California Water Treatment and Reuse Leader

HDR, Inc.; Rancho Cucamonga (CA); Hybrid; USD 163,000 - 243,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits package

Tuition reimbursement

Paid time off

Job summary

HDR is seeking a seasoned professional for a key role in their Southern California Water Business Group, focusing on strategies for water treatment and reuse. This position involves leading projects, cultivating client accounts, and mentoring teams in a hybrid work model across Southern California.

With a comprehensive benefits package, HDR champions employee ownership and offers an expected compensation range of $163,000 - $243,000. The role also emphasizes quality and improvement aligned with HDR values.

Qualifications

• 10 years experience in water treatment design.
• Proven industry leadership.
• California experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategy and delivery for drinking water and potable reuse projects.
• Build, mentor, and scale multidisciplinary teams.
• Support clients with funding strategy and regulatory readiness.

Skills

Water treatment design

Team leadership

Client development

Process optimization

Professional Engineer (PE)

Education

Bachelor’s degree in a Professional, Architecture, Engineering or related field

Job description

The Southern California Water Treatment and Reuse Leader

This key role within HDR’s growing Southern California Water Business Group will develop and implement strategies for increasing HDR’s share of the water treatment market in Southern California and supporting reuse market growth across California and the U.S. The role is senior, high‑visibility, and has hybrid flexibility with direct impact on marquee programs across the region.

In 2024 Engineering News Record ranked HDR sixth in size of business in the important Water category. The Water Business Group offers a comprehensive breadth of services enabling holistic approaches to One Water challenges.

What You’ll Do

• Lead strategy and delivery for drinking water and potable reuse (IPR/DPR) pursuits and projects across SoCal; grow client accounts and win work.
• Guide advanced treatment process selection and design (UF/MF, RO/NF, UV/AOP, GAC/IX), pilots, and commissioning; troubleshoot operations and optimize performance.
• Build, mentor, and scale multidisciplinary teams; partner with technical directors on QA/QC and design excellence.
• Shape market presence through speaking, publishing, and committee leadership (AWWA, WateReuse, CWEA/WEF).
• Coordinate programmatic delivery (design‑build/CMAR/progressive design‑build), asset management, and digital enablement (SCADA, data analytics, digital twins).
• Support clients with funding strategy (WIFIA/SRF/grants), regulatory readiness (e.g., LCRR, PFAS compliance), and capital planning.

The HDR Advantage

• Opportunity to grow water treatment and reuse capacity and capabilities in Southern California while shaping market strategy and a regional growth plan.
• Access to major local and national water treatment and reuse conferences with resources for abstracts, panels, and featured speaking.
• Leverage an expanding portfolio of national projects covering a wide range of facility capacities, treatment goals, and delivery mechanisms.
• Application of cutting‑edge research in advanced treatment residuals, PFAS destruction, and GAC reactivation.
• Support from the One Water Institute’s technical expertise, laboratories, and field‑ready tools.
• National PFAS and LCRR expertise to help utilities navigate new regulations.
• Local Southern California experience in large conveyance design (pipelines, pump stations, intakes).
• Access to a strategic communication team and asset management services.
• California‑based capital planning, funding, grant writing, and affordability expertise aligned with Prop 218.
• Data‑driven sector leadership focused on market trends.
• Broad suite of internal services to deliver integrated One Water solutions.

Work Model & Locations

• Hybrid flexibility (3 days per week in a Southern California office unless at a client site) with primary offices and clients across Los Angeles, Ventura, Long Beach, Claremont, Riverside, Irvine, and San Diego; periodic regional and national travel.
• Relocation available for the right candidate.

Preferred Qualifications

• 10 years experience in water treatment design
• Professional Engineer (PE)
• Proven industry leadership
• Team leadership experience
• California experience preferred; relocation accepted
• Active in industry associations
• Expertise in traditional and advanced water treatment, pilots/commissioning, process optimization
• Seller‑doer capability: client development, proposal leadership, strategic positioning

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a Professional, Architecture, Engineering or closely related field
• 10 years of experience
• Committed to quality, improvement and HDR values
• Maintains a professional or engineering registration and related technical experience
• Experienced in development and management of diverse teams
• Works cooperatively with other area business class leaders, operations managers, technical directors and marketing managers on business class efforts
• Active participation in employee‑owned culture is required

We provide a comprehensive benefits package that promotes employee ownership, health, performance, and success, which includes medical, dental, vision, short and long‑term disability, life insurance, employee assistance program, paid time away, parental leave, paid holidays, retirement savings plan with employer match, employee referral bonus and tuition reimbursement.

Expected compensation range: $163,000 - $243,000.

Pay Transparency Location1: $163,000 - $243,000

Primary Location: United States-California-Irvine

Other Locations: United States-California-Los Angeles, United States-California-Rancho Cucamonga, United States-California-San Diego, United States-California-Ventura, United States-California-Riverside

Industry: Water

Schedule: Full‑time

Employee Status: Regular

BusinessClass: Water Treatment

Job Posting: May 19, 2026

At HDR, we are committed to the principles of employment equity. We are an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants, regardless of criminal histories, arrest and conviction records.