Manager, Client Innovation, GISI Ignite

About GISI Ignite and Palladium:

GISI is a global, employee-owned family of companies focused on construction, infrastructure, earth and environment, and global development. GISI Ignite is GISI's newly launched centralized technology and innovation team, built to strengthen how our operating companies deliver projects and provide expert guidance on AI, data, and digital solutions. We develop scalable platforms, drive workflow modernization, and help operating companies apply cyber-physical solutions that strengthen the performance, resilience, and safety of major capital programs.

Palladium, a GISI company, works to design, develop and deliver positive impact on the lives and livelihoods of people around the globe; broaden access to health, water, power, and infrastructure; build enduring, sustainable, and transformative institutions and market systems to address global challenges; and conserve the natural world. We operate in over 90 countries and have a workforce of 2,000 talented, motivated, and diverse staff around the world. This role is hired through Palladium, the operational platform for Ignite.

This Opportunity:

The Manager, Client Innovation is a client-facing leader responsible for coordinating and delivering innovation initiatives across GISI’s priority sectors, including Critical Minerals & Energy, Education, Utilities, and Healthcare.

This role serves as the connective tissue between strategy and execution — translating client needs into structured work plans, guiding solution development, and ensuring multidisciplinary teams deliver high-quality outcomes. Managers apply systems thinking and a multi-disciplinary problem-solving approach to analyze client ecosystems, design solution concepts, and oversee pilot implementations.

Managers operate confidently across multiple projects, balancing client engagement, delivery leadership, and internal coordination. They play a key role in shaping the client experience and advancing GISI Ignite’s innovation capability across regions and operating companies.

Location and Compensation:

The is a hybrid position based out of GISI’s Newport Beach, CA office with potential client travel.

For our prospective employees in the United States, please note that the full-time equivalent annual base salary for this position is expected to range from $120,000 to $150,000, and successful candidates may also be eligible for additional, variable incentive compensation dependent on the role. For part-time employees, the salary will be prorated based on the actual number of hours worked.

Please be advised that a final salary offer will be based on various factors, including but not limited to your qualifications, education, experience, skills, seniority, performance, and GISI/Palladium’s business or organizational needs.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the compensation for this position, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We value your interest in our company and appreciate the opportunity to discuss this opportunity with you.

Reporting Lines:

The role reports to the Client Innovation Director – US/APAC/MENA-Europe

Primary Roles and Responsibilities:

Client Engagement & Advisory

• Build trusted relationships with mid- to senior-level client stakeholders across energy, utilities, education, and institutional environments
• Lead discovery activities—including interviews, workshops, and field assessments—to surface operational challenges and transformation needs
• Support Senior Managers in identifying cross-sector patterns, strategic themes, and high-impact innovation opportunities

Solution Design & Innovation Delivery

• Lead development of innovation concepts, transformation pathways, and solution requirements
• Apply systems thinking to diagnose pain points, map system interdependencies, and identify actionable leverage points
• Use a multi-disciplinary approach to evaluate people, process, technology, and governance components of potential solutions
• Develop prototypes or low-fidelity software concepts when needed to illustrate solution value

Program Management & Execution

• Oversee day-to-day delivery of innovation engagements, coordinating workstreams across GISI operating companies and technical teams
• Develop detailed project plans, manage dependencies, track milestones, and ensure alignment with client expectations
• Identify risks, issues, and mitigation strategies, escalating complex challenges appropriately
• Ensure quality and consistency in deliverables and client communications

Team Leadership & Collaboration

• Provide coaching, structure, and direction to Senior Consultants and Consultants
• Foster cross-functional collaboration, ensuring input from engineering, analytics, operations, safety, and technology experts
• Contribute to development of methodologies, frameworks, and playbooks that strengthen team capabilities and support scalable delivery

Analysis, Insights & Reporting

• Lead preparation of client-ready deliverables including assessments, business cases, process maps, and solution architectures
• Track engagement KPIs, client satisfaction, and pilot outcomes to inform future phases of work
• Generate insights on market trends, client needs, and technology developments that may influence GISI’s innovation priorities

Essential Criteria:

• 6–9 years of experience in consulting, innovation, digital transformation, or operations-focused roles
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, Technology, or related field; Master’s degree preferred
• Strong experience with multi-disciplinary problem solving, systems thinking, and structured analysis
• Demonstrated comfort working across asset-intensive or institutional sectors (energy, utilities, education, healthcare, safety)

Core Abilities Required:

• Operates fluidly between strategic framing and hands-on delivery, providing clarity, structure, and direction to teams and clients
• Thrives in multi-stakeholder environments, translating diverse inputs into coherent solutions and action plans
• Builds trust-based relationships through credible facilitation, thoughtful problem solving, and reliable execution
• Champions innovation as a system of continuous improvement, helping clients embed practices, capabilities, and cultural readiness

Skills:

• Design Thinking Practitioner / Agile Certified or Equivalent Experience
• Systems Mapping and Scenario Planning (proficient)
• Software Prototyping Tools (Figma, PowerApps, Cursor/Windsurf, Miro, or similar)
• Data Analytics & Visualization Tools (Power BI, Tableau, Excel)
• Proven ability to lead workstreams, manage client interactions, and deliver complex, cross-functional initiatives

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis. We encourage you to apply early as the position may close once a suitable candidate is found.

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

Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made due to a disability or you are a neurodivergent individual, or for any other circumstance, please email our team at accessibility@thepalladiumgroup.com and we will be in touch to discuss.

Safeguarding - We define Safeguarding as “the preventative action taken by Palladium to protect our people, clients and the communities we work with from harm”. We are committed to ensuring that all children and adults who come into contact with Palladium are treated with respect and are free from abuse. All successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced selection process including safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence process.

Apply here.