Community Engagement Strategist - Central

RWE Clean Energy, LLC

full time, permanent

Functional area: Regulation / Risk Management; Communications

Remuneration: Exempt

The Community Engagement Strategist – Central Region works with internal Development, Operations, Communications, and Government Relations teams to achieve a social license to operate for RWE’s onshore renewable energy projects in the Central Region. This position will be responsible for creating and implementing community engagement plans, educating local stakeholders, organizing public events and recruiting attendees, building relationships with renewable energy supporters, managing external vendors, and representing RWE in communities that host our projects. This position reports to the Community Engagement Manager- Central Region.

Role Responsibilities:

• Support community engagement and outreach activities across RWE Clean Energy’s portfolio of operating and development projects in the Central Region (primarily IN, IL,MI, KY, ND, SD, NE, IA, MN, WI).
• Collaborate with onshore wind, solar, storage, and hydrogen project development teams to integrate community engagement and public education into development plans in order to achieve a “social license to operate” for RWE’s renewable energy projects.
• Conduct Social Risk and Community Assessment research and stakeholder mapping exercises to analyze relative likelihood of organized opposition and identify strategies to ensure local approval of development projects.
• Create and implement community engagement plans for onshore development projects.
• Support development and operations teams with maintaining a contact or Customer Relationship Management (CRM) database for local stakeholders at each assigned RWE onshore renewable energy project in the Central Region.
• Plan and attend in-person community events, including wind farm tours, open houses, landowner dinners, school or community group presentations, and local fairs or festivals.
• Provide input to Communications on project-specific marketing, such as project websites, newsletters, fact sheets, and other communications materials.
• Manage community relations purchases, invoices, and external consultants supporting social media, digital marketing, media relations, project logos, or other community engagement campaign activities.
• Work with project development teams to set up local offices and, where requested, recruit local hires as community liaisons.
• Meet with project stakeholders, track community concerns, and report on organized opposition around development projects.
• Design social investment plans that help RWE achieve its corporate goals while meeting the particular needs of local communities.
• Enhances relationships and networks with senior internal/external partners who are not familiar with the subject matter, often requiring persuasion. Adapts style to differing audiences and often advises others on difficult matters.
• Works on problems of diverse scope where analysis of information requires evaluation of identifiable factors. Devises solutions based on limited information and precedent and adapts existing approaches to resolve issues. Uses evaluation, judgment, and interpretation to select right course of action. Work is done independently and is reviewed at critical points.
• Assesses unusual circumstances and uses sophisticated analytical and problem-solving techniques to identify cause. Resolves and assesses a wide range of issues in creative ways and suggests variations in approach.
  
  

Job Requirements and Experiences:

• High School Diploma or equivalent required, Bachelor’s degree strongly preferred
• Minimum 5 years’ experience working in community organizing, outreach, strategic communications, or political campaigns
• Knowledge of the structure and function of US, state, regional, and local government including experience with renewable energy permitting and regulatory issues is preferred.
• Experience working in renewable energy, rural communities, community development, environmental management, agriculture, or real estate development is a plus.
• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to manage customer relationships
• Demonstrated desire to learn about the Company and the renewables space
• Excellent proficiency with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook) and Teams
• Strong leadership and communication, and the ability to meet deadlines
• Strong organization skills and ability to coordinate multiple tasks and deliverables
• Ability to multi-task, while working independently and as part of a team
• Motivated self-starter, goal-oriented, and strong problem-solving abilities
• Proven ability to empathize, build relationships, and effectively communicate with people from a diverse set of backgrounds
• Responds well to direction, is easy to challenge and develop, and is coachable
• Is detail-oriented, has strong business acumen, and a sound understanding of business concepts
  
  

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States. RWE Clean Energy is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment visas at this time.

Pay range: The annual base salary range for this position in Illinois is $80,000-$100,000. The listed salary range represents our good faith estimate for this position and represents the range for new hire salaries across all U.S locations. Please note that the salary information is a general guideline only. RWE considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s education & work experience, training & certifications, and key skills as well as market and business considerations at the time of the offer.

Benefits offered: Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability, 401(k) match, Flexible Spending Accounts, EAP, Education Assistance, Parental Leave, Paid time off, and Holidays. Eligible employees also participate in short-term incentives, in addition to salary.

Apply with just a few clicks: ad code 91025. Any questions? Contact HR: rwece_recruiting@rwe.com

We look forward to meeting you. Of course, you can find us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Xing, too.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, disability, veteran status, or other legally protected status.

Through its subsidiary RWE Clean Energy, RWE is the third largest renewable energy company in the United States, with a presence in most U.S. states from coast to coast. RWE’s team of about 2,000 employees in the U.S. stands ready to help meet the nation’s growing energy needs. With its homegrown and fastest-to-market product, RWE supports the goal of American Energy dominance and independence. To that end, RWE Clean Energy is committed to increasing its already strong asset base of over 10 gigawatts of operating wind, solar and battery projects, focusing on providing high-quality jobs. RWE invests in local and rural communities while strengthening domestic manufacturing supporting the renaissance of American industry. This is complemented by RWE’s energy trading business. RWE is also a major offtaker of American liquified natural gas (LNG).

As an energy company with a successful history spanning more than 125 years, RWE has an extensive knowledge of the energy markets and an excellent expertise in all major power generation and storage technologies, from nuclear, coal and gas to hydro, batteries, wind and solar.

Every project brings constantly-evolving technical, practical and social challenges – and drives a culture where everybody thrives, has fun and feels excited by each day. As the third largest renewable energy company in the U.S., you’ll also have the freedom to act with conviction and courage as we pivot to new technologies – and continuously improve, together.