Program Manager

Program Manager For WIFA Long Term Water Augmentation Fund Program

ACCIONA is a global company, leading in the development of regenerative infrastructure that creates a positive impact on society. Our workforce consists of more than 65,000 professionals, present in more than 40 countries across the five continents, all contributing in our mission to design a better planet. Are you a passionate individual who wants to make a difference, promote sustainable development, and find solutions to the biggest global challenges including climate change, overpopulation, and water scarcity? Come and join us in building the infrastructure our planet needs to achieve a sustainable future.

Acciona offers a competitive salary, relocation assistance where relocation is required and approved, 401(k) retirement plan, medical, dental, vision, life, short and long-term disability benefits, tuition reimbursement, paid time off, and more.

The Program Manager supports the Project Director in leading the planning, coordination, execution, and delivery of project components within the initiatives for the WIFA Long Term Water Augmentation Fund Program. This role plays a critical leadership function in overseeing and delivering the project's design and construction activities, ensuring technical excellence, schedule performance, cost control, and contract/regulatory compliance. The position requires close collaboration with stakeholders, off-takers, regulatory and permitting agencies, construction managers, design teams, technical experts, subcontractors, operations and maintenance leads, permitting and environmental specialists, other key resources and client representatives.

Job Description

Developer Team Management

• Identify, initiate contact and work with relevant stakeholders, permitting agencies and regulatory entities.
• Identify, initiate contact and work with potential off takers and potential water suppliers in Arizona, California, Baja California, Sonora, Utah and other locations relevant to the projects.
• Identify, initiate contact and manage relevant individuals or companies that have had previous experience in Water Right Exchange processes, preferably related to Colorado River.
• Develop and maintain strong working relationships with client representatives (WIFA), subcontractors, design partners, and internal stakeholders.
• Support client reporting requirements, presentations, and progress documentation.
• Represent the segment in governance meetings and program level reviews.

Construction Oversight

• Provide technical guidance to design teams, construction consultant, reviewing drawings, specifications, work methods, and proposals.
• Support the resolution of technical issues through field engineering and coordination with design leads.
• Review and approve technical reports, RFIs, method statements, and engineering submittals.
• Oversee and manage construction activities for the WIFA project initiatives once into implementation phase, ensuring excellence and compliance with project requirements.
• Monitor daily progress, field execution, and milestone delivery.
• Validate adherence to technical specifications, quality standards, design documents, and regulatory obligations.
• Conduct regular site visits to assess construction conditions and contractor performance once into implementation phase.

Planning, Scheduling & Budget Control

• Develop feasibility, development, design, permitting and construction execution plans, segment schedules, and associated budgets.
• Support forecasting, schedule integration, and progress reporting in alignment with overall program objectives.
• Identify cost deviations and implement corrective actions to maintain budget discipline.
• Coordinate with scheduling, document control, and project controls teams to ensure accuracy and compliance.
• Develop project execution plans, segment schedules, and associated budgets.

Cross-Disciplinary Coordination & Integration

• Coordinate segment activities with design teams, engineering subject-matter experts, operations managers, environmental/permitting teams, and subcontractors to ensure seamless integration with the broader WIFA project plan.
• Maintain alignment with design intent, viability, operability, maintainability, and environmental constraints.
• Facilitate weekly and monthly progress meetings, ensuring clear communication and documentation both internally and with client stakeholders.

Technical Leadership & Support

• Provide technical guidance to construction teams, reviewing drawings, specifications, work methods, and proposals.
• Support the resolution of technical issues through field engineering and coordination with design leads and other support resources.
• Review and approve technical reports, RFIs, method statements, and engineering submittals.
• Ensure proper quality control and quality assurance is maintained through all activities.

Risk Identification & Mitigation

• Identify project risks related to schedule delays, constructability issues, regulatory constraints, environmental sensitivities, or contractor performance.
• Implement mitigation strategies in collaboration with the Project Director and project controls team.
• Develop, maintain and update risk registers and ensure the timely escalation of critical project risks.

Compliance, Health, Safety & Environment (HSE)

• Ensure all activities comply with HSE requirements, corporate standards, and applicable Arizona/state regulations.
• Promote a strong safety culture, conduct site inspections, and participate in safety audits.
• Enforce environmental compliance and support documentation required for permits.

Stakeholder & Client Management

• Develop and maintain strong working relationships with client representatives (WIFA), subcontractors, design partners, and internal stakeholders.
• Support client reporting requirements, presentations, and progress documentation.
• Represent the segment in governance meetings and program-level reviews.

Support to the Project Director & Leadership Duties

• Act as the Project Director's delegate when required.
• Provide leadership to segment teams, fostering collaboration, accountability, and high performance.
• Support staffing decisions, team coordination, and mentoring engineering/construction personnel.

Skills

• Strong leadership and communication abilities.
• Advanced problem-solving and decision-making skills.
• Ability to manage complex interfaces and maintain alignment across technical and construction disciplines.
• High attention to detail and strong commitment to safety and quality.
• Ability to build positive relationships with clients, teams, and partners.
• Proven experience leading multi-disciplinary infrastructure projects through feasibility and pre-construction phases.
• Strong understanding of project controls, including budget development, cost tracking, schedule oversight, and forecasting.
• Demonstrated ability to manage project risk registers, mitigation strategies, and executive-level reporting.
• Experience coordinating environmental, permitting, and regulatory processes, ideally across U.S. and Mexico jurisdictions.
• Ability to establish and maintain project governance structures, reporting cadence, and decision-making frameworks.
• Skilled in managing external consultants, technical advisors, and contractor interfaces.

Required Skills and Competencies

• Bachelor's Degree in Engineering, Construction Management, Project Management or a related field.
• Significant experience (typically 10+ years) in managing large-scale infrastructure or water/wastewater construction projects, preferably with involvement in early development stages.
• Demonstrated leadership experience overseeing multidisciplinary teams and subcontractors.
• Strong knowledge of project development, design and construction management, technical review, and regulatory compliance.
• Experience with long-distance conveyance, water treatment, or major civil infrastructure programs.
• Familiarity with Arizona regulatory frameworks and WIFA program requirements.
• Familiarity with Water Rights Exchange mechanisms.
• Experience in DB, DBFOM, EPC, or complex multi-stakeholder delivery models.
• Professional certifications (PMP, CM, PE, CCM) strongly preferred.
• Bilingual English–Spanish strongly preferred due to cross-border interfaces.
• Ability to relocate to Phoenix AZ once project office has been established.

ACCIONA has been given the Top Employer 2022, 2023, 2024 & 2025 certification in US, as well as the Top Employers North America 2022, 2023, 2024 & 2025 seal, which certifies the company's commitment to excellence in human resources management and those who focus on putting their people first through their exceptional HR policies. As a company that values diversity as a source of talent, we work to foster an inclusive environment that promotes respect,