Chief Growth Officer

Environmental Science Associates (ESA) is a 100% employee-owned environmental consulting firm. We plan, design, permit, mitigate, and restore for projects across our communities, infrastructure systems, open spaces, and wildlands. We are 50 years strong in 21 offices across California, the Pacific Northwest, and the Southeastern United States.

ESA’s Chief Growth Officer (CGO) is a strategic executive leader responsible for shaping and executing firmwide strategies that drive sustainable growth, deepen client relationships, and elevate ESA’s brand across our six client markets and the environmental, planning, and nature-based engineering sectors. This role partners closely with the CEO, Board, and senior leadership to translate ESA’s mission and strategic priorities into actionable business development and marketing initiatives and results. The CGO drives initiatives aimed at increasing revenue and market share.

The CGO is a catalyst for innovation and cohesion—internally aligning teams around growth objectives and externally cultivating strategic partnerships that expand ESA’s impact. Internally, the CGO collaborates with leadership to translate strategic priorities into actionable and measurable plans and oversee plan execution. This role is instrumental in helping the company achieve its strategic priorities, market/client development, and financial objectives through developing targeted marketing strategies and improving client satisfaction and experience, supported by appropriate brand awareness and communications programs.

Externally, the CGO works with the ESA team to cultivate and leverage strategic partnerships with individuals, organizations, and clients within and outside of the AEC industry. The CGO’s influence uniquely positions and drives revenue growth across the organization to strengthen corporate image and reputation in the market.

This executive leads ESA’s Business Development function, which includes ESA Market Leaders and the Strategic Business Development Director, and ESA’s Marketing function, ensuring ESA’s voice is clear, compelling, and consistent across all channels.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Growth & Market Development

• Lead ESA’s growth strategy across ESA matrixed organization of regions, markets and practices.
• Collaborate with market leaders and practice leaders to develop tailored growth plans aligned with ESA’s values, capabilities and strategic plan objectives and to inform and reflect the annual business plan and budget priorities adopted by ESA’s Board of Directors.  
• Drive ESA’s market orientation by embedding industry intelligence, competitor benchmarking, and client insights into growth planning. Ensure market strategies are responsive to evolving sector dynamics, particularly in private sector and public-private partnerships.
• Partner with CEO, Chair of the M&A Committee and Board on identifying acquisition targets that align with strategic growth and revenue growth objectives.

Business Development & Client Engagement

• Oversee firmwide business development strategy and execution. Working with and through ESA’s Market Leaders:
• Track, anticipate, and advise on market trends affecting ESA’s clients and services using data-driven/evidence-based information, assess relevance and determine appropriate course of action to market driver shifts.
• Build a robust pipeline of opportunities that achieve ESA’s strategic growth objectives, including increasing revenue and strengthening ESA dominance in targeted service and market areas.
• Develop and execute strategies for expanding ESA’s private sector client base while maintaining strong public sector relationships. Create tailored approaches for corporate, developer, and infrastructure clients to diversify revenue streams.
• Collaborating with ESA’s Strategic Business/Client Development Director (J. Sullivan), strengthen client retention and satisfaction through data-driven insights and relationship management.
• Guide development of client segmentation, pursuit strategies, and pipeline forecasting.
• Support cross-functional teams in capturing new opportunities and enhancing client experience.
• Identify, track and report on business development and client satisfaction metrics and results.

Marketing and Branding

• Collaborating with ESA’s senior leadership team, articulate the vision for ESA’s brand identity and market presence.  
• Work with ESA’s Communications team (External Brand/Communications) to develop integrated marketing campaigns, thought leadership, and public relations efforts and ensure consistent messaging across digital platforms, proposals, and stakeholder communications.
• Champion ESA’s values and culture through storytelling and strategic outreach.

Revenue Strategy & Forecasting

• Partner with the COO and the CFO to evolve ESA’s revenue model, including increasing fixed-bid and value-based contracting approaches to improve predictability, competitiveness and profitability.
• Partner with the COO and the CFO, Regional Directors and Practice Leaders to develop revenue goals and forecasting models for key service areas and develop revenue strategies for each ESA practice and region/geography.
• Working with ESA Market Leaders and Strategic BD Director, shape ESA’s client and market portfolio toward higher-value, higher margin opportunities. Assess profitability and long-term strategic value of markets, clients and projects to guide pursuit prioritization and resource allocation.
• In partnership with the COO, implement systems and training that empower teams to exceed revenue targets.

Leadership & Team Development

• Inspire and mentor high-performing teams across growth-related functions.
• Foster collaboration and accountability across departments.
• Promote a culture of innovation, inclusivity, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of strategic leadership experience in growth strategy and business development within the AEC industry, including 5+ years in executive roles driving growth, profitability, and organizational transformation.
• Bachelor’s degree in business, engineering, environmental planning or related environmental or interdisciplinary field.
• Proven success as a Chief Growth Officer in mid-sized AEC organizations, with a track record of accelerating revenue growth, expanding market share, and aligning financial strategy with long-term business development goals.
• Proven executive leadership in growth strategy, business development, and marketing within AEC or consulting sectors.
• Deep understanding of ESA’s mission and multidisciplinary approach.
• Exceptional communication, analytical, and relationship-building skills.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and navigating complex organizational dynamics.
• Strategic thinker with a bias for action and results.

Who We Are 

We are a 100% employee-owned environmental consulting firm who values diversity and inclusion and celebrate the differences that make each of us unique. Our culture is built on mutual respect, recognizing that our variety of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives leads to better solutions, which fosters our continued success for our employee-owners and clients. 

In accordance with ESA’s duty and responsibility to provide and maintain a safe workplace that is free of known hazards and to minimize the exposure to potential hazards, any employee who works from an ESA office or conducts any other in-person ESA work-related activity is required to submit their proof of vaccination status or have received an approved exemption and accommodation in states which this applies. 

If you are an applicant with a disability that requires a reasonable accommodation to complete any part of the application process or are limited in the ability—or unable to use—the online application system and need an alternative method for applying, you may contact our Human Resources Department via email: humanresources@esassoc.com for assistance.

 Please include the following in your message so we can promptly address your request:

• Full name
• The best method to contact you (phone number and/or email address)
• Title of Job Position Applied
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ESA is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to a diverse and inclusive work environment. (EOE M/V/F/D)