Associate Studio Lead - PLA

Title: Associate Studio Lead – Placemaking Resilience

Division: Land Development – Planning Landscape Architecture

Summary:

LJA is an employee-owned company where our people take pride in their projects, their teams, and their workplaces. With over 70 office locations and more than 2,400 employee-owners nationwide, we are growing quickly and looking for exceptional individuals to help shape the future. We offer competitive benefits and are 100% employee-owned.

We currently have an exciting opportunity for an Associate Studio Lead within our Placemaking Resilience Team. This leadership role is essential for guiding technical and support staff across planning and design projects, helping to unlock workflow, manage tasks, and ensure high-quality deliverables. We are seeking an experienced AICP-certified planner who brings a great attitude, a sense of humor, and a flexible, adaptable, detail-oriented, proactive approach to leadership. While landscape architecture experience is not required, a strong background in city planning, placemaking, or related fields is essential.

The ideal candidate will lead, or assist in leading (depending on project size and type), planning projects from concept to completion, ensuring deadlines, budgets, and client expectations are consistently met while mentoring team members and streamlining processes. Close collaboration with internal departments and the integration of data-driven approaches and emerging technologies will be key to keeping projects innovative and impactful. If you’re ready to help shape resilient communities and grow with a dynamic, forward-thinking team, we invite you to join us.

Project Responsibilities:
• Manage small-medium projects while meeting the needs of the Studio Lead and other department leaders.
• Maintain project design styles, aesthetics, and quality to ensure high-quality required for clients’ needs in decision-making and marketing. Work with the Studio Lead, Principals, Directors, and others to ensure projects are delivered that meet client needs and budgets, while coordinating internal capacities.
• Understand workloads needed to meet projects timelines and work with Senior Leadership on scheduling.
• Lead and assist project planners and staff to produce written documents and plan reviews based on project needs and requirements.
• Responsible for keeping project information well-coordinated between project team members.
• Promptly and regularly communicate with clients, other consultants, and team members to both successfully deliver high-quality, built projects and to develop long-term relationships.
• Continue development of skills in written and graphic communication, efficiency, and knowledge in areas of design including, but not limited to, planning, design, and public sector-related factors.

General Responsibilities and Expectations:
• Actively work with senior staff to implement new and improve existing techniques, tools, and processes in both the delivery and administration of projects
• Work with Studio Lead to develop and maintain libraries of specific styles of graphics to expand capacity for additional team members to assist in graphic creation
• Mentor junior staff on planning processes and professional development
• Actively work towards a positive environment and motivate team members to improve.
• Participate in relevant professional and community organizations to grow professional network and skills and to increase exposure to the team
• Continue to develop strong communication skills: verbal, written, and graphic
• Attendance of relevant regional/state conferences/workshops to keep up on current trends & techniques and to increase professional network and business development exposure
• Maintain a working knowledge of relevant and appropriate regulations at local, regional, and federal levels
• Assist in the creation of materials in response to RFQ’s and RFP’s as part of team project pursuits
• Prepares designs and develops systems, prepares advanced cost and analysis, reviews drafted plans and can identify missing content or content in need of refinement.
• Prepares specifications, research investigations, concepts/illustrations, reports, and other activities requiring knowledge of design goals, standard principals, and techniques.
• Increasing responsibility for project phases as Task Lead.
• Familiar with QA/QC procedures and understands basic business practice and laws related to area of practice.
• Selects appropriate procedures and specifications for basic issues and project-related tasks.
• Performs quality control reviews and assist with quality assurance procedures within areas of expertise.

Team Leadership Expectations:
• Actively work with senior staff to implement new and improve existing techniques, tools, and processes in both delivery and administration of projects
• Develop an understanding of the billing process and support PMs and Principals in keeping projects within budget
• Participate in meetings, conversations, and initiatives with Senior Staff as need/assigned
• Emerging leadership skills.
• Comprehensive understanding of practice area.
• Continued involvement in related professional organizations, professional development programs, or other training to grow knowledge in practice area.

Required Education/Licenses and Experience:
• Bachelor’s degree and minimum 4 years of experience or master’s degree and at least 3 years of experience and demonstrated task management experience.
• Registration/certification preferred in state of current office and/or must be actively demonstrating progress toward registration/certification.