Position: Managing Consultant, Research and Evaluation
Status: Exempt, 40 hours per week
Location: Madison, WI; Tucson, AZ; Remote
- Remote candidates will be considered and will be required to travel to hub offices occasionally.
Job Summary
Join our team of consultants to lead ILLUME’s research and evaluation studies. ILLUME offers research, evaluation, and consulting services that assist clients in shaping successful and equitable clean energy transitions through informed policies and business decisions.
ILLUME is seeking an individual with experience in the energy industry with demonstrated project management skills, as well as a deep understanding of program evaluation (a minimum of four years of direct experience). The ideal candidate should be excited by the intricacies and challenges of leading projects end-to-end. This individual will be responsible for leading studies covering various areas, including energy efficiency impact and process evaluations, equity-focused advising and evaluation, adoption of new and emerging technologies, and customer and market research and analytics.
ILLUME is a fast-paced consulting environment. In this role, it will be important to be able to juggle multiple priorities to deliver exceptional work to our clients.
For our current opening, we are looking for candidates with demonstrated expertise in applied research and/or program evaluation within the energy industry. Candidates with advanced experience will be considered for a senior-level position.
The Managing Consultant (Research and Evaluation) Will:
Help clients understand their path and progress toward a clean energy future. Support utility clients in meeting their energy, decarbonization, and customer engagement goals. Apply evaluation expertise to design and manage utility energy efficiency and clean energy program evaluations. Confidently navigate the technical, policy, program design, and customer considerations and thoughtfully identify opportunities for utility clients to enhance program designs and impacts. ILLUME has diverse projects. Examples of projects include:
- Process or impact evaluation to help a utility assess the success of a residential or commercial energy efficiency program.
- Strategic advising to help an agency implement, track, and measure the success of a clean energy policy.
- Development of an equity metrics framework to help a state track how clean energy investments impact priority populations.
Demonstrate exceptional end-to-end project management and leadership. Lead project planning, budget management, client management, team management, and reporting for projects. Own the successful delivery of projects to our clients, including team and client guidance and communications.
Mentor project team members to grow the knowledge and expertise of the ILLUME team. Work with project teams to deliver exceptional work to our clients. Provide in-project training and clear feedback to ensure professional development for our multidisciplinary project teams. While delivering on client work, this role will help to train analysts and consultants around best practices and methods in applied research and evaluation.
Bring curiosity, critical thinking, and a love of problem-solving to work every day. Turn research and analysis into insight, analyzing why things happened and how our clients can learn from the research. Work with the analytical team to critically consider the data, and what it says, and through that analysis develop a cohesive story that informs and presents realistic paths forward.
Be energized by working across multiple projects where every day brings something new. Be responsible for the success of multiple projects; every day is different, and the ideal candidate will love the variety and fast-paced nature of research in a consulting environment and have a toolkit of project management strategies to juggle multiple clients’ needs and project priorities simultaneously.
Harness a growth mindset to expand knowledge and expertise within energy efficiency and clean energy. Keep up with new developments in the industry and bring new ideas to the ILLUME team. Support project teams with market research and evaluation that might be outside their typical experiences.
Cultivate client relationships with a service mindset. Seek to understand the motivations, needs, and challenges of our clients to provide exceptional service and to identify project expansion opportunities. Foster trust and provide exceptional service to ensure long-term relationships with clients.
Required Education
Bachelor’s degree or higher in relevant area of study such as sociology, economics, environmental science, public policy, psychology, or related field.
Required Qualifications
- Approximately four to eight years of project management experience, specifically managing projects that include qualitative and quantitative research methods and project teams.
- Industry experience with energy efficiency, clean energy policies, utilities, energy efficiency, market research, program evaluation, or energy program design and planning
- Demonstrated experience in project management with projects of various sizes and complexities, including project planning, contingency planning, client management, proactive communication, and budget tracking and management.
- Superior verbal and written communication skills, demonstrating clarity and conciseness and ability to explain complex topics to a non-technical audience.
- Demonstrated ability to prioritize effectively in the face of multiple and shifting priorities, with the ability to switch between complex analytical thinking and attending to routine tasks without compromising quality or losing one’s focus. Ideally, this includes experience in a consulting environment.
While not a requirement, the ideal candidate will also have experience within a consulting environment and be adept at managing client needs and priorities.
Collaboration
Collaboration is the minimum standard at ILLUME. Team members build trust through regular, open, and honest communication and by working together across the company to ensure the success of every project. By working together, we create the momentum to accomplish our company objectives and together attain exceptional results.
Salary and Benefits
The salary for this position will depend on the education, professional experience, industry experience, and subject matter expertise of the applicant. The Managing Consultant/Senior Managing Consultant position salary band is $90,000 to $145,000.
ILLUME offers competitive benefits packages including:
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance options
- 401k plan & company match of 3%
- 4 weeks of PTO & 10 Paid holidays
- Opportunities for professional development and growth
- Flexible work schedule
To Apply
Please upload a cover letter, resume, and writing samples/report samples from past work using this application link: CLICK HERE
In your cover letter, provide us with:
A sense of who you are by being honest, creative, and “yourself.”
Any experience with DEI in the workplace, and your own professional growth.
Please include your desired location (Madison, WI, Tucson, AZ ILLUME office) or indicate if you wish to work remotely, where you would work from, and how you will ensure collaboration and availability to your colleagues in a remote environment.
Expect that we will carefully review all materials including your cover letter. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
For any questions or concerns, please email hiring@illumeadvising.com.
ILLUME will accept applications until the position is filled.
Working Conditions
ILLUME employees work in a hybrid work environment and we continuously monitor public health guidelines to make any updates necessary to ensure the health and safety of all employees. This position requires sitting (or standing) for long periods at a computer; and communicating by telephone and email. The dress code at ILLUME is business casual (“pulled together”). This position requires some travel.
BACKGROUND SCREENING AND DRUG TESTING
Many clients of ILLUME Advising require individuals who will be working with confidential information, visiting client customer homes or businesses, or meeting another contractually required circumstance to pass a background screen and/or drug test. In the event you are assigned to work on a contract with client-ordered screening requirements, you will be required to complete the client’s required screening before working on the project with appropriate notice. The results of background screening and drug testing are used solely to meet client criteria for working on specific projects.
COVID-19
As a federal contractor, ILLUME requires staff to have been vaccinated against COVID-19 or must be willing to receive a vaccine against COVID-19 within 45 days of hire where permitted by applicable law. This is a mandatory requirement except for employees with documented medical reasons and/or exceptions in accordance with the Civil Rights Act.
Culture and Commitment at ILLUME
Our Vision: ILLUME is the premier consultancy for advancing, re-envisioning, and equitably transforming the energy industry. We align clean energy and social justice imperatives and give primacy to human dreams and aspirations so that all can thrive in a clean energy future.
Our Commitment to Team Values: At ILLUME, we value the diverse lived experiences of our team. We view diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as an ongoing commitment and investment in the growth of our employees, the growth of our company culture, and the growth of our industry. By centering environmental justice, climate change mitigation, and social justice in our work, we aim to transform the way the energy industry looks at its challenges. We believe that our collective well-being depends on how well we explore, elevate, and communicate the experiences of all people who use the electric grid. We quantify the impacts of our public investments to reduce energy demand and mitigate climate change.
ILLUME considers our investment in our team as a long-term and mutual investment. At ILLUME, we’re committed to building a valued business while ensuring rewarding careers for our employees. ILLUME does not discriminate in its employment practices regarding age, ancestry, arrest record, color, conviction record, creed, cultural background, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, marital status, military obligations, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation.
