Vice President of Operations/Strategic Growth

WRA•California, CA

12d•$200,000 - $250,000•Hybrid

About The Position

We’re currently hiring for a Vice President of Operations / Strategic Growth to serve as a key member of WRA’s Executive Committee. This role is responsible for strengthening and scaling the firm’s operational systems while leading implementation of our strategic plan to support our next phase of growth. This position serves as the connective tissue between strategy and execution — ensuring the firm has the tools, systems, capacity, and alignment needed for responsible growth while preserving the culture, flexibility, and client focus that define WRA. The VP of Operations / Strategic Growth will partner closely with leaders across Finance, People and Internal Operations, Project Delivery, and Marketing, while directly supervising select client-facing Principals and the Marketing Director. This is a highly hands-on leadership role. As a 100-person firm, WRA operates with a lean team to execute on all initiatives, requiring every leader to engage both strategically and tactically. The VP of Operations / Strategic Growth will personally lead analysis, design solutions, and drive implementation of complex cross-firm initiatives, serving as a player-coach who builds systems while helping deliver them. Location is flexible within California, with a preference for candidates located within approximately one hour of a WRA office (San Francisco Bay Area or San Diego) to enable regular in-person collaboration. Why this role exists now WRA is entering a new phase of maturity and growth. As we scale, we are investing in dedicated operational leadership to ensure our ambitions are matched by our execution capability. This role reflects our commitment to implementing our strategic plan with discipline, strengthening internal operating systems, and supporting sustainable growth across the firm. At WRA, you will have 3 major areas of impact: Turning Strategy into Action — Implement the firm’s strategic plan through clear initiatives, milestones, and accountability. Building Scalable Operations — Strengthen systems, processes, and tools to support efficiency and quality as the firm grows. Aligning Teams Around Growth — Ensure strong coordination across project delivery, marketing, business development, and executive leadership. WRA’s an employee-owned environmental consultancy. We are a tenacious team of planners, engineers, and scientists, and we aim to leave the lands we love better than we found them. Our clients and partners hire us because we’re skilled at navigating through challenging projects involving wildlands, parks, community spaces, and infrastructure. We bring over four decades of expertise, long-standing relationships, and connections to our local communities to make sure that projects are pursued in responsible ways where both people and the environment thrive. As an organization, we believe that independence and interdependence are not mutually exclusive. We invest in systems, processes, and employee programs to support our staff’s collective engagement and success. At the same time, we encourage our employees to operate with an ownership mindset, taking responsibility for outcomes and being true to our commitments. WRA’s company vision is to cultivate a sustainable future where people and the environment thrive, and that effort starts first with our staff. We are committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment, and we have developed flexible policies, internal practices, and are investing in programs that prioritize learning and sustainability. We aim to create conditions that allow employees to prioritize their families, lead healthy and balanced lives, and to bring their authentic selves to work every day. We believe that by creating an exceptional workplace, our employees will be able to do their best work and be able to meaningfully contribute to the sustainability of the environment and the communities in which we live. WRA is an equal opportunity employer, and we are committed to creating a diverse environment. We recruit, employ, train, compensate and promote regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law. We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.

Requirements

Senior operational leadership experience in a professional services firm
Experience supporting growth in consulting, AEC, or similar billable-staff environments
Strong understanding of systems that enable project delivery and financial performance
Demonstrated ability to implement strategic initiatives across multiple teams
Credibility leading change with senior technical leaders
Decisive, systems-oriented operator
Able to translate strategy into clear execution
Collaborative and respectful of distinct executive roles
Comfortable working with senior client-facing leaders
Growth-minded, pragmatic, and adaptable
A positive, engaging personality — we work hard and enjoy working together