Data Project Manager

Job Type: Full-time, Exempt

Reports To: Deputy Director of the Conservation Innovation Center

Direct Reports: 1

Work Location: Annapolis, Maryland. The Chesapeake Conservancy office operates under a hybrid remote/in-person environment with one day in the office per week required.

ABOUT CHESAPEAKE CONSERVANCY

Chesapeake Conservancy is a non-profit organization based in Annapolis, Maryland. We are a team of conservation entrepreneurs. We believe that the Chesapeake is a national treasure that should be accessible for everyone and a place where wildlife can thrive. We use technology to enhance the pace and quality of conservation, and we help build parks, trails and public access sites.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY

The role of the Chesapeake Data Project Manager will be to execute and manage a 5-year geospatial land characterization project between Chesapeake Conservancy’s Conservation Innovation Center (CIC), EPA and Chesapeake Bay Program’s (CBP) geospatial data and science team. Through close professional and organizational contacts, the Chesapeake Data Project Manager ensures cooperation and collaboration among the CIC, partners and service providers to not only meet active grant requirements and financial obligations but to also improve CIC visibility, develop new collaborative partnerships and assess geospatial needs to identify and build business opportunities across the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Chesapeake Data Project Management

• Serve as the project manager for current and future bay-wide projects, leading a team of highly skilled analysts by providing guidance, instruction, troubleshooting support, feedback and evaluation.
• Manage the completion of the full life cycle of assigned portfolio of grants/contracts, including but not limited to developing work plans, official EPA Action Plans, workgroups, research, budget adherence, reporting, and related strategies.
• Monitor project progress, track milestones and ensure adherence to timelines and quality assurances.
• In close collaboration with the deputy director, serve as the key CIC staff representative to bay-wide data projects and partners.
• Manage project timelines and staff schedules, and ensure cost-effective resource utilization.
• Write and develop Quality Assurance Project Plans (QAPP), Quality Management Plans (QMP) and Data Management Plans (DMP).
• Ensure the CIC and Chesapeake Conservancy complies with federal grant reporting requirements, including submitting complete reports (QAPPs, QMPs and others) on time.
• Work with the operations manager to balance and monitor team workflows across active projects, identify and manage risks to projected timelines and motivate staff to deliver project outcomes on time and within budget.
• Work with grant administrator and the director to execute client contracts for future and current bay-wide grants.
• Coordinate a response to urgent and unplanned needs such as ad hoc maps, reports or presentations from Conservancy and CIC leadership and the business development team.

Administration

• Cultivate trust-based relationships with contractors and subawards.
• Oversee and manage contractor performance and deliverables—setting clear scopes, schedules, and quality standards; monitoring progress, budget, and compliance; coordinating communication and feedback; and ensuring timely, cost-effective delivery of project objectives.
• Maintain organized records of subaward or contractor agreements, invoices and progress reports. Work with grant administrators to collect information and documentation needed for federal audit records.
• Support the CIC management team by performing monthly reviews of personnel time allocations and making adjustments to project plans as needed.
• Assist with the preparation of budgets and narratives for new proposals and grants.
• Lead project reporting as required by EPA, CBP and stakeholders. Update internal grant deliverable tracking system and fulfill reporting requirements.

Partnership Development

• Cultivate and sustain strategic, trust-based relationships with CBP partners and stakeholders.
• Assist the deputy director in strategically aligning the Conservancy and CIC with the CBP partnership geospatial and data science needs and project planning.
• Articulate highly technical geospatial concepts and analysis to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Present projects to partners and the public in presentations and at networking events.
• Maintain excellent and active working relationships with the CBP partners, working groups and Goal Implementation Teams (GITs), and other appropriate partners.
• Identify and recommend funding and strategies to sustain the CBP-focused staff and administrative needs beyond core EPA grant funding.
• Establish, develop and expand relationships among bay-wide partners and service providers.
• Coordinate CIC team member presentations to partners.

REQUIRED SKILLS/ABILITIES

• A bachelor’s degree is required, ideally with a concentration in Environmental Science, Environmental Policy, or Geography.
• A minimum of three years of relevant and progressively responsible professional experience.
• Complex project management experience and the ability to multitask.
• Candidates must be familiar with methods and procedures for implementing advanced geospatial data analysis using GIS and data science tools and methods such as ArcGIS, AI, GRASS or QGIS.
• A desire to advance the mission and goals of Chesapeake Conservancy, the CIC, CBP and the EPA.
• Experience managing project team members to improve their skillset and to meet project timelines.
• A commitment to assisting direct reports to be successful and to meet their career goals.
• An ability to think strategically and creatively to advance the goals of the Conservancy and the CBP and to clearly and compellingly articulate a vision and strategies to partners.
• An ability to anticipate or ascertain the needs of all partners and stakeholders.
• Ability to communicate and present complex technical concepts and analysis to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills and an attention to detail.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to forge relationships across a spectrum of professionals and stakeholders.
• Organizational skills and proficiencies with Microsoft and Google Documents; experience using various platforms for remote meetings.

PREFERRED SKILLS/ABILITIES

• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification or the willingness and ability to complete training within the first six months of employment.
• Familiarity with the EPA Chesapeake Bay Program goals, committee and partnership structure and community.
• Knowledge of and experience working to advance conservation, environmental health and social justice in the Chesapeake Bay region.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Chesapeake Conservancy is an equal opportunity employer. Salary and benefits are commensurate with the candidate’s relevant professional experience and/or education with an expected salary range between $75,000 - $85,000.

The Conservancy offers a competitive employee benefits package that includes health and dental insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, paid vacation and sick leave, and participation in a retirement savings plan. Opportunities for advancement and professional development are available.

The Chesapeake Conservancy is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, color, age, sex, pregnancy, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, refusal to submit to a genetic test or to make available genetic test results, or any other legally protected characteristic.