Utility Scale Development Director

Kintec Global Recruitment; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Kintec Global Recruitment is seeking a senior project leader to develop and oversee utility-scale solar, wind, and storage initiatives from greenfield to construction kickoff. You will guide cross-functional teams, balance budget constraints, and address permitting, interconnection, and regulatory challenges.

You will define strategy, drive critical-path priorities, and partner with landowners, utilities, regulators, and financiers to optimize project value and risk-adjusted returns.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, business/economics, environmental science, planning, public policy, or a related field.
• Minimum of 11 years of relevant work experience, including at least 4 years in utility-scale wind, solar, or battery storage development in the United States.
• Demonstrated success independently leading complex, capital-intensive energy or infrastructure projects through multiple development stages.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary project teams and managing external consultants, advisors, contractors, or strategic partners.
• Expert knowledge of utility-scale project development, including land acquisition, permitting, interconnection, engineering, preconstruction, stakeholder engagement, commercial structuring, budgeting, forecasting, and risk management.
• Excellent executive communication skills and the ability to translate detailed project information into concise recommendations for senior leadership.

Responsibilities

• Develop and oversee utility-scale solar, wind, and energy storage projects from greenfielding through start of construction.
• Serve as project lead for complex or high-priority projects with cross-functional teams and external consultants.
• Manage full project lifecycle including site due diligence, land control, environmental review, permitting, interconnection, and readiness for construction.
• Define project strategy and critical-path priorities by integrating market, permitting, land, technical, commercial, financial, and stakeholder considerations.
• Establish and manage budgets, schedules, forecasts, decision points, and deliverables; prioritize development spending by economics and risk.

Skills

Project management

Stakeholder engagement

Negotiation

Executive communication

Financial acumen

Analytical skills

Problem-solving

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering, business/economics, environmental science, planning, public policy, or a related field

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

Microsoft Office

Excel

PowerPoint

Word

Outlook

Teams

Job description

• Develop and oversee utility-scale solar, wind, and energy storage projects from greenfielding through start of construction, with accountability for schedule, budget, risk, and project value.
• Serve as project lead for complex or high-priority projects, directing large cross-functional teams of internal subject-matter experts and external consultants without direct people-management authority.
• Manage the full project lifecycle, including site due diligence, land control, environmental review and permitting, interconnection, engineering and preconstruction, energy yield, tax abatements, power marketing, financing support, and readiness for construction.
• Define project strategy and critical-path priorities by integrating market, transmission, permitting, land, technical, commercial, financial, and stakeholder considerations.
• Establish and manage project budgets, objectives, schedules, forecasts, decision points, and deliverables; prioritize development spending based on project economics, risk, and market attributes.
• Lead cost-estimating and EPC-bidding activities in collaboration with Preconstruction, Procurement, Engineering, and Finance to improve cost certainty and support investment decisions.
• Drive optimization of engineering design, constructability, commercial structure, and other technical and financial levers to strengthen project competitiveness and risk-adjusted returns.
• Identify, analyze, and resolve high-complexity issues involving land, grid access, permitting, community opposition, project design, commercial terms, or competing priorities, escalating material risks with recommended actions.
• Lead critical negotiations with landowners, utilities, transmission providers, regulators, governmental entities, consultants, contractors, and strategic partners.
• Understand the key drivers of project financial attractiveness and identify strong project locations in collaboration with commercial, transmission, and technical teams.
• Lead due diligence for project acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, and other transactions in collaboration with M&A and functional teams.
• Prepare executive-level presentations and investment recommendations and drive internal review and approval processes with clear articulation of project value, risks, tradeoffs, and required decisions.
• Support power marketing, financing, tax-equity, and transaction processes by providing project inputs, coordinating due diligence, and ensuring that development assumptions are accurate and supportable.
• Provide strategic and technical mentorship to Development Managers, Associates, and other colleagues; guide project work and share expertise without formal supervisory or performance-management responsibility.
• Actively shape Central Region development strategy and lead internal initiatives that improve development processes, tools, governance, standardization, and portfolio execution.
• Provide support during construction to resolve development-related issues and help ensure successful commercial operation.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, business/economics, environmental science, planning, public policy, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
• Minimum of 11 years of relevant work experience, including at least 4 years of utility-scale wind, solar, or battery storage development experience in the United States.
• Demonstrated success independently leading complex, capital-intensive energy or infrastructure projects through multiple development stages.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary project teams and managing external consultants, advisors, contractors, or strategic partners.
• Expert knowledge of utility-scale project development, including land acquisition, permitting, interconnection, engineering, preconstruction, stakeholder engagement, commercial structuring, budgeting, forecasting, and risk management.
• Exceptional project and portfolio management skills, including the ability to establish priorities, drive accountability, and deliver results across multiple complex workstreams.
• Proven ability to lead through influence, align diverse cross-functional stakeholders, and resolve disagreements without relying on direct reporting authority.
• Strong financial and commercial acumen, including the ability to assess project economics, development tradeoffs, capital requirements, and risk-adjusted value.
• Excellent analytical, negotiation, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, with the ability to develop practical solutions to ambiguous or high-impact issues.
• Excellent executive communication skills and the ability to translate detailed project information into concise recommendations for senior leadership.
• Strong interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to build trusted relationships with landowners, communities, government officials, regulators, utilities, partners, and internal stakeholders from diverse backgrounds.
• Motivated self-starter who is goal-oriented, detail-oriented, adaptable, and capable of managing multiple priorities independently while contributing effectively as part of a team.
• Excellent proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams.
• Ability to travel up to 50%.
• This position is an office-based role with travel to other offices, project sites, public meetings, and field locations.
• Must be able to sit, walk, or stand for extended periods of time.