Chief Sustainability Officer

Position Summary

The Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) leads CAP Management’s sustainability function and serves as the primary resource for environmental regulations, building performance requirements, energy benchmarking, waste diversion, and practical sustainability initiatives affecting the condominium and homeowners associations we manage.

Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer and serving on the Senior Leadership Team, the CSO works with Boards of Directors, Community Managers, General Managers, government agencies, and qualified technical professionals. The role requires the ability to explain complicated requirements, identify risks and options, and help associations make informed decisions that account for both environmental outcomes and financial realities.

The CSO also helps strengthen and grow CAP’s sustainability services. This includes recognizing opportunities for paid advisory and coordination work, communicating the value of those services, and collaborating with CAP’s growth and project management efforts. Sustainability is an important part of how CAP differentiates itself in the mid-rise, high-rise, and condominium management market and supports its long-term growth.

Company

CAP Management is an HOA management company dedicated to triple bottom line sustainability – environmental, social, and financial. We deliver high-quality financials so that Board of Directors and communities feel empowered when reviewing their financial reports. We prioritize and light the way for communities to undertake capital improvement projects around sustainability, such as solar panel installation, waterwise landscaping, and electrification and energy reduction projects.

Duties and Responsibilities

Sustainability Strategy and Leadership

• Lead CAP’s sustainability priorities and translate the company’s long-term strategy into practical services, resources, and initiatives for managed communities.
• Serve as CAP’s internal subject-matter leader on sustainability and advise the CEO and Senior Leadership Team on emerging requirements, opportunities, and risks.
• Develop consistent tools, procedures, and educational resources that allow managers and on-site teams to identify issues and engage the CSO at the right time.
• Advance CAP’s environmental, social, and financial sustainability commitments while recognizing that each association has distinct priorities, resources, and decision-making authority.
• Set annual objectives for the sustainability function and report meaningful progress, service activity, and unresolved issues to leadership.

Regulatory Guidance, Compliance and Government Relations

• Monitor applicable municipal, state, and federal sustainability requirements, including Energize Denver, Colorado building performance programs, waste diversion rules, and relevant changes in policy.
• Identify affected properties; maintain reliable records of reporting obligations, deadlines, regulatory correspondence, and outstanding compliance questions.
• Explain requirements, potential compliance pathways, exemptions or adjustments, and likely operational or financial consequences to managers and Boards.
• Maintain constructive working relationships with City of Denver and State of Colorado representatives and participate in public meetings, stakeholder discussions, and feedback processes.
• Represent the practical concerns of condominium and homeowners associations, including governance, funding limitations, shared building systems, and the challenges of implementing capital improvements.
• Flag significant compliance concerns early and coordinate appropriate escalation, including review by legal counsel, engineers, or other qualified professionals when necessary.

Energy Benchmarking and Performance Reporting

• Coordinate annual benchmarking and required energy reporting for participating associations, using ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager and other applicable reporting platforms.
• Obtain and review utility, building, and equipment information with managers, on-site teams, providers, and outside consultants; resolve missing or inconsistent information where practical.
• Track submission and approval status, maintain supporting documentation, and provide Boards with understandable written summaries of performance, compliance status, and next steps.
• Identify unusual resource use and potential efficiency opportunities, referring technical evaluation and certification to appropriately qualified professionals.
• Coordinate with managers during budget preparation so anticipated reporting costs, compliance requirements, and energy-related capital needs are brought to Boards’ attention.

Financial Sustainability and Long-Term Planning

• Help Boards understand the relationship between sustainability requirements, operating budgets, reserve studies, capital planning, and the long-term cost of owning and maintaining their buildings.
• Frame recommendations in practical financial terms, including likely capital costs, ongoing operating impacts, potential savings, available incentives, and the consequences of delaying action.
• Work with Community Managers, General Managers, and technical advisers to identify projects that should be considered in annual budgets or long-term capital plans.
• Support evaluation of alternative compliance strategies and project timing, recognizing that many associations face competing infrastructure needs and limited financial resources.
• Provide information and options rather than making financial commitments on behalf of associations; Boards retain authority to approve spending and determine their compliance strategies.

Board Education, Communication and Public Speaking

• Create clear, relevant presentations and educational materials explaining how sustainability regulations and initiatives affect individual communities.
• Present at Board meetings, annual meetings, committee sessions, and homeowner forums, including situations involving substantial costs, disagreement, or heightened concern.
• Translate technical findings and complex regulatory language into accessible, accurate information without overstating certainty or promising outcomes.
• Communicate confidently and professionally under pressure, answer difficult questions, and identify when further research or specialist input is needed.
• Collaborate with managers so information is timely, consistent, and appropriately tailored to each association; assist with homeowner communications when requested.
• Provide practical internal training so CAP employees understand common requirements, emerging issues, and when to involve the sustainability function.

Sustainability Projects, Vendors and Technical Coordination

• Help associations explore feasible improvements such as energy efficiency, electrification, solar, waterwise landscaping, irrigation efficiency, waste diversion, and other resource conservation projects.
• Facilitate communication among Boards, Community Managers, General Managers, engineers, consultants, contractors, and service providers during early project evaluation and authorized coordination.
• Develop relationships with qualified technical specialists and vendors; arrange site visits and introductions as appropriate and help Boards understand the purpose and scope of proposed work.
• Assist with comparing potential approaches, estimated benefits, funding considerations, and implementation constraints while keeping engineering, legal, and other licensed judgments with qualified professionals.
• Coordinate with CAP’s project management and owner’s representative resources when approved initiatives move toward capital project delivery; maintain clear scope and responsibility boundaries.
• Develop sustainability guidance and energy-efficiency planning resources for high-rise operations in partnership with the VP responsible for those communities.

Waste Diversion, Conservation and Funding Resources

• Maintain practical guidance for recycling, composting, waste diversion, water conservation, and related operational requirements that apply to managed properties.
• Develop manager checklists, resident education resources, vendor information, and repeatable reporting practices; test and improve approaches through selected properties when useful.
• Research available utility incentives, rebates, grants, and other financial resources; explain eligibility, deadlines, restrictions, and uncertainty to Boards.
• Coordinate authorized applications or third-party grant-writing support, without guaranteeing funding or approval.

Business Development and Service Growth

• Identify appropriate opportunities to provide additional sustainability education, reporting, planning, and project coordination services within CAP’s existing client portfolio.
• Explain the value, scope, and potential costs of CAP’s sustainability services to Boards in coordination with the responsible manager and within approved service agreements.
• Partner with the Chief Growth Officer on sustainability-related capabilities for prospective associations, especially CAP’s target mid-rise, high-rise, and condominium market.
• Support appropriate referrals to CAP’s project management and owner’s representative offerings while respecting Board approval requirements and avoiding conflicts in scope or authority.
• Track service activity and coordinate accurate billing with internal teams; contribute to practical plans for a financially sustainable and scalable service line.

Collaboration, Authority and Reporting

The CSO reports directly to the CEO and works across CAP with both Vice Presidents of Property Management, the Chief Growth Officer, Community Managers, General Managers, Accounting, and other department leaders. The CSO provides specialist guidance, education, regulatory coordination, and strategic support; property managers and General Managers remain accountable for day-to-day community management and Board relationships.

Boards of Directors retain responsibility for selecting compliance approaches, approving expenditures, and authorizing projects. The CSO does not guarantee an association’s compliance, funding awards, or technical outcomes. The position must recognize the limits of its own expertise and involve appropriately licensed or qualified professionals when needed. Material legal, financial, reputational, or regulatory concerns are escalated to the CEO.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in sustainability, environmental science, energy management, engineering, public policy, business, or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant education and experience.
• Relevant professional experience in building sustainability, energy management, environmental programs, regulatory compliance, or a related field; experience with multifamily or commercial buildings is particularly valuable.
• Working knowledge of energy benchmarking, building performance requirements, and resource conservation; familiarity with ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager preferred.
• Excellent writing, presentation, and public speaking skills, including the ability to lead difficult discussions with Boards and homeowners.
• Sound financial judgment and ability to discuss project costs, reserve and capital planning considerations, and the practical limits of association budgets.
• Strong relationship-building, organizational, and follow-through skills; ability to coordinate many properties, deadlines, and outside parties.
• Ability to exercise independent judgment, recognize professional boundaries, and communicate clearly when facts or regulatory interpretations remain uncertain.

CEM, LEED, WELL, or comparable credentials are preferred, not required. Experience with Colorado building performance requirements and condominium or HOA governance is strongly preferred.

Work Environment

Full-time, in-person position based at CAP’s Denver office, with regular visits to managed properties and meetings with Boards, vendors, and government representatives. Occasional evening Board meetings and community presentations are required.

Position Impact

The Chief Sustainability Officer helps CAP deliver informed, financially realistic sustainability guidance while strengthening the company’s distinctive service offering and supporting its long-term direction. Success in this position means:

• Boards receive accurate, understandable information early enough to plan for regulatory obligations and related costs.
• Benchmarking, reporting, and regulatory deadlines for participating communities are organized, documented, and actively managed.
• Managers and General Managers have reliable resources and know when and how to involve the CSO.
• Sustainability considerations are reflected in budgets, reserve and capital discussions, and the evaluation of building improvements.
• CAP maintains productive relationships with public agencies and technical partners and can advocate effectively for the realities of association governance.
• Sustainability services demonstrate clear value to clients, support appropriate new revenue opportunities, and contribute to CAP’s long-term market focus.

Pay: $90,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Retirement plan
• Vision insurance

Work Location: In person