Program Manager, Retrofit Finance

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Remote

Full time

Expires soon

Join us!

We’re passionate about making progress on climate action and committed to making a positive difference in communities. Keen to join a caring, capable, and committed team doing great work on the path to net zero?

Please apply with a COVER LETTER and RESUME, combined in a single file, via the Indeed platform. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered.

About the Zero Emissions Innovation Centre

Seeded by a $21.7 million federal endowment, the Zero Emission Innovation Centre (ZEIC) is a purpose-built charitable organization dedicated to market transformation and enabling zero carbon communities and economies across the region and province. ZEIC is part of the Low Carbon Cities Canada (LC3) Network established by the Government of Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

ZEIC’s vision is that, together, we enable a new era of climate action and innovation for an inclusive, prosperous, and healthy zero carbon future in our region by 2050. We advance urban climate solutions in the building, transportation, and renewable energy sectors through (1) partnerships and collaborations, (2) impact investment, (3) granting, and (4) education, training, and capacity-building.

Working with governments, Indigenous partners, industry, and others, we support ambitious climate policy, address barriers, and catalyze, accelerate, and scale innovation to strengthen equitable and resilient communities for current and future generations. To deliver impact, we:

Connect and activate partners, investors and action-takers;
Demonstrate and showcase viable solutions; and
Invest in capacity building and readiness to scale climate actions.

ZEIC’s strategic directions align with provincial, regional, and local climate action plans. Our programs help communities make progress towards their 2030 emissions reduction targets. Equity, long-term affordability, community health and well-being, environmental protection, and economic development are integral to how we develop and deliver our climate action initiatives.

Position and Function

Working with ZEIC’s Economic Development and Market Transformation

(EDMT) and BC Retrofit Accelerator (BCRA) teams, the Program Manager will lead work

related to retrofit finance, while supporting other organizational initiatives

related to sustainable finance. The role will contribute project finance and

urban land economics topics (e.g., pro formas, business cases, cashflow models)

expertise and experience to an interdisciplinary team focused on enabling building

decarbonization retrofits, particularly for strata buildings.

The role will lead initiatives involving cross-functional project

teams that may include other ZEIC staff and/or external partners and

contributors. The position may include supervisory responsibilities and will

manage external consultants and/or contractors.

This is a temporary full-time position for a 2-year term ending

Mar 31, 2027, with possibility for extension subject to funding availability.

The position requires a hybrid work arrangement involving both work from home

and office. Occasional evening and/or weekend work may be required as part of

program-related events.

Key contacts and reporting relationships:

The position reports to ZEIC’s Senior Manager of Economic Development and Market Transformation and will also work closely with the Director of Business Strategy and Impact Investing. Working in close collaboration with other ZEIC staff, the role supports diverse activities and will engage with a range of organizations across sectors, including financial

institutions and entities, different levels of government, utilities, industry, non-profits, academia, community associations and various other agencies and

collaborators.

Duties and Responsibilities

General:

Stay abreast of current issues and opportunities

related to climate action, with a particular focus on building decarbonization retrofits, sustainable finance, building electrification, and broader

trends in sustainable economic development.

Advance a holistic view of climate action that seeks

innovative and pragmatic approaches to greenhouse gas emissions reductions and

integrates multiple objectives in key areas such as climate adaptation and

resilience, equity, public health, biodiversity, ecosystems health and

protection, stewardship, transportation, land use planning and urban design,

economic development, green jobs, and social enterprise, community-building,

and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples;

Develop collaborations, partnerships and work

cross-functionally with other ZEIC staff, external agencies, industry, academia and communities to

develop and align planning, programs, research, policy development and other

actions to support ZEIC in fulfilling its mandate;

Represent ZEIC at public events and in programs and

initiatives with partners and collaborators;

Support the development and management of consultant

contracts (including scopes of work, requests for proposals and contract

execution), as needed, and develop and track progress and budgets;

Other duties, as required.

Key focus areas for position:

(1) Lead the BC Retrofit Accelerator Retrofit Finance Initiatives and Engagement

Serve as ZEIC’s internal lead on retrofit finance, and its

external voice on retrofit finance issues in the broader ecosystem. In

particular, this role will:

Host the BCRA’s Retrofit Finance

Committee, and related working groups or other project teams, with the support and oversight from the Senior Manager of Economic Development and Market

Transformation;

Facilitate and support development and implementation of an annual committee work-plan, making linkages to ZEIC’s broader retrofit finance and sustainable finance activities;
Report-out on findings, insights, outcomes and impacts related to the work of the committee, as well as ZEIC’s direct, programmatic and other efforts, to partners, funders, and other relevant audiences; and
Engage regularly with the financial sector in BC and beyond on their latest retrofit-related practices, products, key needs, barriers, opportunities and possible points of collaboration.

(2) Deliver Internal Capacity Building and Resources on Retrofit Finance

Work with both the EDMT and BCRA teams to develop and deliver

internal information, training, resources, and other forms of support on

retrofit finance. In particular, this will include:

Creating and/or sharing of strategic information to ZEIC Senior

Leadership Team and Senior Managers on pressing issues

and considerations that could inform planning and program design and delivery and liaising with retrofit finance leads from other

retrofit accelerator initiatives across Canada’s urban areas.

Creating and/or sharing of research, guides, tools, and other information for relevant ZEIC staff on issues, practices, and considerations, and relevant offerings in the market (e.g,, banks’ retrofit finance programs) that can help them support building owners.

(3) Deliver Special Initiatives Related to Retrofit Finance

Work with both the EDMT and BCRA team to conceive and deliver pilots

and/or other initiatives that remove financial barriers to retrofits for BCRA

program participants and/or relevant partners. In addition, explore

potential ecosystem-level solutions or initiatives that could help unlock

retrofitting opportunities at scale. Projects could include research,

events, training, partnerships, among other possibilities. Key priorities include:

Exploring, via the Retrofit Finance Committee, research, and potential

consultancies, tools or pilot financing initiatives that could be used to address financial barriers

and/or hardships that may be preventing some actors from drawing on existing retrofit

finance products;

Creating an annual insights report on retrofit financing, based on committee proceedings, research, conversations with the private sector, and other insights, to help ZEIC and partners stay aware of key trends and needs in the market;
Creating and maintaining a catalogue of available retrofit financing “offerings” in the BC marketplace that a building or unit owner could potentially draw on;
Helping create financial and business case archetypes that can be used in business planning within banks and other institutions.

(4) Support ZEIC’s Broader Sustainable Finance Work

Work on an ad hoc basis with the Director of Impact Investing and

Business Strategy and the Senior Manager of Economic Development and Market

Transformation to support other, broader activities within ZEIC related to

sustainable finance, including committees, research projects, and other

opportunities.

Position requirements:

Education and experience

Post-secondary education, preferably in urban land economics, finance, business,

economics, and/or engineering, or other relevant field.

Minimum 5 years, preferably 8 to 10 years, of experience in real estate and/or development-related finance, program management, or energy efficiency, with a focus on sustainable or impact-driven initiatives.
Strong understanding of real estate asset management, planning and business case development, retrofit financing models and deal structures, energy efficiency economics, and funding mechanisms (e.g., grants, loans, tax credits), and/or more general topics in sustainable finance
Proficiency in business case development and financial modeling and analysis related to buildings and/or portfolios.
Familiarity with BC’s climate and energy policies, building codes, and market trends would be an asset.
Experience leading initiatives, projects and/or teams
Experience building relationships with servicing and reporting to c-level suite stakeholders, peers, senior government officials and the local industry community.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

The Program Manager should have the following knowledge, skills, and

abilities:

Climate and the Economy: Demonstrate an understanding of how Climate Change impacts the economy and the implications for future economic

growth.

Project Finance: Demonstrated understanding of and work on project finance, development finance, and/or urban land economics.
Leadership and Facilitation: Demonstrated leadership skills, with the ability to bring together and sustain teams made up of diverse members, to lead, inspire and motivate, to bring out the best in others, and to manage and coach others, including direct reports, in adapting to change. Be able to convene and motivate others to ask interesting questions and generate creative solutions to complex problems, challenges, and opportunities.
Resource and project management: Ability to support the committees and their projects efficiently and effectively. Good experience in contract management, stakeholder negotiations and partner management.
Presentation skills: Comfortable acting as sector expert; representing the ZEIC in meetings, workshops, events, and trade missions.
Technical skills: Strong computer competency in office productivity tools that can be leveraged to support business analytics and decision-making, including MS Office 365, webinar and virtual meeting platforms, and project management platforms.
Organization and efficiency: Excellent organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple tasks and competing priorities in a fast-paced, dynamic environment with the ability to foresee economic and business challenges, troubleshoot and problem solve.
Communication skills: Good attention to detail alongside organizational, interpersonal, and verbal/written skills
Curiosity/quick learner: An aptitude for and interest in learning about a wide variety of topics.
Professionalism: Ability to appropriately represent ZEIC to all levels of government, academia, and industry contacts as needed. Ability to respect relevant protocols and confidentiality, to inspire trust and credibility, and to generally conduct oneself with tact and diplomacy.
Optimism and Attitude: Commitment to optimism for

the future and a demonstrated willingness to engage in relationships/activities

with respect and a positive outlook.

Compensation: Range $ 96,774 to $ 118,280 + vacation + generous health, wellness and RRSP benefits

Candidates must have current eligibility to work in Canada. ZEIC is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applicants from diverse backgrounds and with non-traditional qualifications. We care about and have policies to support equity, diversity and inclusion and a respectful workplace. We have a hybrid workplace and can accommodate in-person and work-from-home. Flexible and part-time arrangement will be considered. While we thank all applicants for their interest, only those shortlisted will be contacted for an interview.

Job Types: Full-time, Fixed term contract

Contract length: 24 months

Pay: $96,774.00-$118,280.00 per year

Benefits: