Title: Senior Managing / Principal Landscape Architect

Reports to: Anna Spooner

Location: California - San Francisco/Other in CA

Job Type: Regular Full-Time

What's the Opportunity?

Anchor QEA is seeking a Senior Managing Landscape Architect to help lead and grow our landscape architecture practice in California. This is a senior leadership role for a California-licensed landscape architect who brings strong technical expertise, proven business development experience, and the ability to win and lead complex, multidisciplinary work.

This position offers the opportunity to join a growing firm with a strong foundation in restoration, resilience, and development. Working alongside Anchor QEA's multidisciplinary teams of landscape architects, engineers, planners, scientists, natural resource specialists, permitting professionals, and construction managers, the Senior Managing / Principal Landscape Architect will help expand our design leadership and market presence in California.

The successful candidate will be a strategic, client-facing leader who can identify opportunities, build relationships, develop competitive proposals, and help secure landscape architecture and integrated multidisciplinary work. This person will also provide senior leadership for projects involving public access design, shoreline resilience, habitat restoration, parks and recreation, climate adaptation, and multi-benefit infrastructure.

This is an opportunity to help build something: to shape the direction of landscape architecture at Anchor QEA, grow a practice area, mentor staff, strengthen client relationships, and deliver meaningful projects that improve ecological function, public access, community resilience, and environmental outcomes throughout California.

Responsibilities:

Practice Area Growth

• Support the growth and strategic direction of Anchor QEA's landscape architecture practice in California.
• Serve as a senior client-facing leader for landscape architecture, restoration, resilience, public access, parks, recreation, and climate adaptation work.
• Mentor and develop junior and mid-level staff and help identify future staffing needs for the growing practice.
• Collaborate with Anchor QEA leadership on market strategy, business planning, staffing, teaming, and long-term practice growth.

Business Development:

• Identify, pursue, and help win competitive landscape architecture and multidisciplinary consulting opportunities.
• Develop and lead client engagement strategies, pursuit planning, proposal development, interviews, scopes of work, fee estimates, and teaming approaches.
• Build and maintain relationships with public agencies, ports, municipalities, special districts, regulatory agencies, community organizations, and consultant teaming partners.
• Represent Anchor QEA externally with clients, agencies, professional organizations, strategic partners, and stakeholders.

Project Execution

• Serve as project director, senior technical lead, or project manager on complex projects.
• Lead multidisciplinary teams that include landscape architects, engineers, planners, scientists, permitting specialists, restoration practitioners, designers, and subconsultants.
• Provide senior design leadership and mentorship from early planning and visioning through design development, permitting support, construction documents, and implementation.
• Guide design strategy for shoreline resilience, habitat restoration, public access, recreation, planting, irrigation, grading coordination, materials, site furnishings, and constructability.
• Oversee the preparation of high-quality plans, graphics, reports, presentations, construction documents, specifications, cost estimates, and technical details.
• Facilitate and lead meetings with clients, agencies, Tribes, stakeholders, community members, and project teams.
• Provide senior review, quality assurance, and technical guidance for landscape architecture deliverables.
• Support construction administration and implementation of landscape architecture elements.

What Are We Looking For?

Ideal candidates will have the following:

• Master's or bachelor's degree in Landscape Architecture from an accredited institution.
• Licensed Landscape Architect in California.
• 15 or more years of relevant professional experience in landscape architecture focused on the integration of restoration, resiliency and human use, with substantial experience in California.
• Demonstrated success capturing new work, developing client relationships, leading proposals, and contributing to business growth, with a focus on federal, state and local clients.
• Strong understanding of California markets and project types, including waterfront, coastal, riverine, habitat restoration, public access, parks, recreation, resilience, and climate adaptation work.
• Experience serving in senior leadership roles such as principal-in-charge, project director, project manager, or senior technical lead.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams and coordinating closely with engineers, planners, scientists, permitting specialists, technical experts, and subconsultants.
• Demonstrated ability to lead ecological, restoration-based, and multi-benefit planning and design projects.
• Strong technical understanding of coastal, freshwater, estuarine, riparian, wetland, and shoreline systems. This includes experience with federal, California state, and local environmental regulations and permitting processes, particularly for projects involving aquatic resources, coastal resources, public access, habitat restoration, or shoreline development.
• Familiarity with AutoCAD, ArcGIS, Adobe Creative Suite, Lumion, SketchUp, and Microsoft Office Suite, with the ability to direct and review work produced using these tools.
• Entrepreneurial mindset and interest in helping grow a landscape architecture practice within a multidisciplinary environmental consulting firm.

What Can You Expect?

You can expect a collaborative work environment where we encourage everyone to bring their authentic self. You will work alongside a multidisciplinary to solve complex issues through technical understanding and creative solutions. We offer a competitive salary; bonus program; medical, dental and vision coverage; short- and long-term disability programs; flexible schedules; a retirement plan with company match; and paid time off.

How to Apply?

Apply online through Anchor QEA's Open Positions page at https://www.anchorqea.com/careers/careers-open-positions/. Veterans are encouraged to apply.

Salary and Other Compensation:

• Salary Range: $135,000- $145,000
• Annual Bonus
• Other potential bonus types: Billable Time Bonus, Spot Bonus, Milestone Anniversary Bonus, Receiving Professional License/Certification Bonus, Peer-reviewed Publication Bonus, Employee Referral Bonus.

Base Level Benefits for Regular Full-Time Positions:

• Healthcare: Medical, dental, vision, basic life and AD&D insurance, short- and long-term disability programs.
• Paid Company and Floating Holidays: 7 paid company and 2 floating holidays annually
• Vacation: Minimum 3 weeks accrued paid vacation based on length of service. Vacation may vary by level.
• Sick and Safe Time: 80 hours annually
• Retirement Plan: 401k plan with an employer match
• Further information on benefits: https://anchorqea.com/careers/benefits/