Resilience Planner

Dewberry is seeking a Resilience Planner to join our multi-disciplinary and action-oriented team (Fairfax office, other locations where a Dewberry office resides will be considered; hybrid-eligible). This position will support the Resilience Solutions Group at the intersection of planning, policy, and technical analysis in hazard mitigation, emergency management, and climate change adaptation. Related areas of technical focus for this position include but are not limited to community planning, policy analysis, vulnerability assessment, hazard mitigation, natural resource management, and research and planning related to Federal agencies (e.g., FEMA, USACE, and NOAA), state agencies, and local communities.

Dewberry is a leading, market-facing professional services firm with more than 50 locations and 2,000 professionals nationwide. What sets us apart from our competitors are our people. At Dewberry, we seek out exceptional talent and strive to deliver the highest quality of services to our clients. Whether you’re an experienced professional or a new graduate, you’ll have the chance to collaborate with the best and brightest and work on innovative and complex projects at the forefront of the industry. Our commitment to excellence stems from our personal integrity and from other defining attributes, which we call “Dewberry at Work,” that have inspired our employees to be successful for more than a half-century.

Dewberry’s Resilience Solutions team is an innovative organization that thrives on tackling the most intriguing resilience challenges across our nation. Our mission is to create safer and better communities for everyone to live in. We achieve this by embodying “Dewberry at Work” values and applying our expertise in engineering, planning, GIS, earth sciences, data analytics, and other technical disciplines. Our team assists federal, state, and local clients throughout the nation in comprehending their natural hazard risks. With our guidance, they can make informed decisions to reduce risk and increase resilience.

Responsibilities:

• Lead or support preparing plans, studies, reports, guides, and other technical documents pertaining to climate resilience, hazard mitigation, and floodplain management.
• Support the exploration and execution of programmatic improvements to increase climate resilience and hazard mitigation within federal, state, and local government agencies.
• Experience leading tasks or projects for natural hazard resilience work.
• Lead or support public outreach for community resilience projects, both virtual and in-person.
• Lead or support the facilitation of collaborative meetings as well as one-on-one discussions with partners, clients, and external stakeholders.
• Lead or support the execution of technical studies and analytical processes relating to resilience strategy and plan development.
• Employ a mix of written, visual, and verbal communication techniques to craft compelling narratives and explain complex technical topics to various audiences.
• Conceptualize and support the development of digital communication and decision-making tools, including data analytics dashboards, map viewers, StoryMaps, and custom web applications.
• Apply principles of social equity and environmental justice to technical and strategic work.
• Represent Dewberry in meetings with clients to resolve complex issues and to plan and coordinate work.
• Assist Project Managers with developing technical and business proposals for new projects.
• Work on a diverse array of related projects within the Resilience Solutions Group to acquire supplementary technical and programmatic knowledge/skills.

Required

• Experience developing plans for floodplain management, hazard mitigation, climate resilience, or other related natural hazard resilience work.
• Direct experience supporting floodplain management (planning, policy, grants, etc.)
• Knowledge of resilience-related governmental programs and policies such as FEMA NFIP, FEMA RiskMAP, grants, Community Rating System, state and local floodplain management programs.
• Strong interest and proficiency in writing public-facing reports and technical documents.
• Ability to effectively communicate, orally and in written and visual formats, technical information related to floodplain management, climate resilience, and natural hazards and in projects, presentations, and papers.
• Ability to translate technical information into plain language.
• Ability to facilitate community outreach and engagement meetings with diverse stakeholders.
• Experience synthesizing, analyzing, and organizing a large volume of complex information into a clear and coherent description.
• Experience managing tasks to develop high-quality public-facing deliverables.
• Ability to be self-motivated and function both independently and in a collaborative team environment.
• Well-developed time management skills, especially the ability to complete high-quality, detail-oriented deliverables on tight timelines amid competing deadlines within a diverse work group.
• Ability to exercise initiative, resourcefulness, and tact in obtaining and analyzing information related to resilience planning.
• Ability to get along with coworkers and superiors and work well as part of a team.
• 6+ years of experience in natural hazard resilience work.
• Bachelor’s in Planning, Policy Analysis, Environmental Science, Sustainability, or another related field. Master’s degree preferred.

Optional (Nice to Have)

• Experience with project management and business development.
• Comfort working with large geospatial datasets and performing or directing quantitative analyses.
• Knowledge and ability to use the following computer applications: Tableau, Power BI, ArcMap/ArcPro, ArcGIS Online, Adobe InDesign, and other data processing, visualization, and design tools.
• Experience supervising people or teams.
• Certified Floodplain Manager (CFM), American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), Project Management Professional (PMP), or other relevant credential.

Work Environment

• Work environment responsibilities may occasionally require an adjusted work schedule, overtime, and evening/weekend hours in order to meet deadlines.
• Occasionally, will be required to lift/carry up to 25 lbs.
• Computers, telephones, copiers, and printers are all used to perform tasks.
• Work is typically performed within an office, although field/site visits may be occasionally required.
• Works under the supervision of higher-level staff. Work is often reviewed for accuracy by senior staff.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Public Trust security clearance.

Must have a valid driver’s license, good driving record and ability to pass a driving record background check.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Dewberry we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace. So, if you’re excited about this role, but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every job qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

*At this time, Dewberry will not sponsor a new applicant for work authorization.

*Only recipients of an offer of employment from Dewberry, will be required to submit to a background screening which may include, but is not limited to, employment verification, educational and other credential verification, driving record check, criminal background check, and an investigative consumer report. These screenings will be conducted by Dewberry’s background vendor of choice and will be conducted in compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local law.

Notice to Third Party Recruiters:  Dewberry only compensates job placement recruiters that have a valid Dewberry-approved written agreement in place for recruiting services. Dewberry does not compensate third party recruiters for unsolicited job placement candidate information.

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