Southwest Cultural Resources PI & Project Leader

Burns & McDonnell; Tucson (AZ); On-site; USD 100,000 - 155,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)

401(k) retirement program

Job summary

Burns & McDonnell’s Southwest Region seeks an archaeological Principal Investigator to lead a growing Cultural Resources team across Arizona and the Southwest. This role combines technical oversight, project management, staff development, and client interaction while maintaining PI authority over work under permits.

Working with the existing PI and project managers, the successful candidate will oversee scoping, proposals, schedules, budgets, and technical reviews, while mentoring field

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in archaeology, anthropology, or a related field is required.
• Graduate degree is required for PI responsibilities under professional standards.
• Meet professional standards for archaeology; Arizona Museum/permit approvals may apply.
• RPA status is preferred but not required; travel across Arizona is expected.
• Ability to qualify for/state permits and agency coordination is needed.

Responsibilities

• Serve as PI and technical lead for cultural resources projects with project-management duties as assigned.
• Identify opportunities, prepare scopes and fee estimates, support pursuit decisions.
• Coordinate proposals, track hours and budget, forecast workload, ensure capacity.
• Direct research designs, surveys, monitoring, testing, and data recovery; perform quality reviews.
• Mentor field directors and staff toward expanded supervisory responsibilities and PI qualifications.
• Apply permit conditions, agency reporting requirements, and safety procedures; train staff through reviews.

Skills

PI leadership

Staff mentoring

Client communication

Project management

Quality & safety procedures

Education

Bachelor’s degree in archaeology, anthropology, or closely related field

Graduate degree required for PI responsibilities

RPA status preferred

Tools

GPS/GIS workflows

Microsoft Office

Job description

Burns & McDonnell’s Southwest Region seeks an archaeological Principal Investigator to lead a growing Cultural Resources team across Arizona and the Southwest. This role combines technical oversight, project management, staff development, and client interaction while maintaining PI authority over work under permits.

Working with the existing PI and project managers, the successful candidate will oversee scoping, proposals, schedules, budgets, and technical reviews, while mentoring field