Specialist, Materials Jobs

The International Living Future Institute is a non-profit organization whose mission is to catalyze the transformation toward communities that are culturally rich, socially just and ecologically restorative. ILFI’s flagship program is the Living Building Challenge, the world’s most ambitious and holistic performance standard for resilient, healthy, and green buildings. ILFI offers other certifications, transparency labels, education, and events that enable organizations and individuals to communicate their commitment to a healthier world.

We believe that the building industry can shift dramatically far faster and more radically than many assume. We also believe that the industry can and should address ecological impact, social impact, health impact and cultural impact as intersecting issues. Living Buildings are beacons for change, data points for skeptics, inspirational stories for young people, and test beds for innovation. We seek to affect change in the building industry by envisioning a Living Future and showing it’s possible to embody that future in practice and policy.

STATUS: Full-time, exempt
REPORTS TO: Director, Materials
LOCATION: Remote, within the United States

The International Living Future Institute (ILFI) is seeking a Materials Specialist to serve as a key member of the Materials Team, which inspires, supports, and celebrates hundreds of manufacturers that are making a positive impact in the world through their pursuit of our programs, which currently include Declare and the Living Product Challenge.

Declare is an easy-to-read ‘nutrition label’ for products with online resources to promote, share, and find healthier building materials. This is ILFI’s material health transparency program, wherein manufacturers voluntarily disclose product ingredients and information on easy-to-read Declare labels. These labels are then accessible on a free database for designers, consumers, and end-users to choose products meeting their healthy materials requirements.

The Living Product Challenge is ILFI’s science-based certification for products that help to restore our planet and improve the quality of human life. As the world’s most advanced standard for healthy, sustainable products, LPC uses a holistic framework and third-party verification to push manufacturers to create products that are healthy and give back more than they take.

The Specialist works daily with our customers to provide technical support and guidance throughout their process to receive Declare labels. The Specialist is responsible for the careful review of submitted documentation to ensure adherence to the program requirements. The Specialist will also support and assist in sales and other efforts of the Materials Team to successfully grow and implement the programs. While the Specialist primarily focuses on Declare, they occasionally support other ILFI material programs. The successful applicant will have customer service experience, knowledge of the built environment and/or manufacturing industry, and a passion for sustainable design.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

CUSTOMER SUCCESS (50%)

• Understand the client’s current and future needs to identify how ILFI can address them through Declare and other Materials Programs.
• Work directly with manufacturers to walk them through the submission process and assist them to overcome limitations and challenges.
• Provide excellent customer service by maintaining expertise on Declare to answer customer questions by email, video, or phone. Questions may range from general to highly technical.
• Manage client feedback, working directly with the team leadership to build relationships, resolve customer concerns, and support program development.

LABEL INTEGRITY (30%)

• Draft and issue Declare labels.
• Flag and review areas of question with the Materials Director to determine a ruling.
• Carefully review Declare label submission materials to ensure adherence to program requirements.

IMPACT MEASUREMENT (10%)

• Collaborate with staff to bring customer support insights to our program development process.
• Track success stories, road blocks, and lessons learned shared by customers.

PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION (10%)

• Maintain the database of Declare labels.
• Utilize project and customer management tools (i.e. Asana and Salesforce) to manage applications and tasks.

We know that you may not have all the skills listed below and we encourage you to apply if you meet the majority of the requirements.

• Familiarity with Microsoft Office, Google Drive, Salesforce, and project management systems using Mac based software.
• At least one year experience with sales or outreach, preferably in the field of sustainability certifications, product sustainability, or in the sales of intangibles,
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a variety of stakeholders representing different organizations, backgrounds and perspectives,
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills (written, verbal, public speaking, social media, press relations).
• Ability to stay self-directed and motivated in a remote position,
• At least 2 years of experience and demonstrated success in customer service, and the ability to guide clients through complex data entry and calculations software,
• Knowledge of product sustainability issues, trends, and programs,
• Meticulous attention to detail, and critical review skills with an eye for spotting potential problems in data or reporting,
• Excellent time-management skills and a proven ability to prioritize high volume emails, inquiries, and data entry,
• Desire to learn about material sustainability and grow the impact of Declare, the Living Product Challenge, and other ILFI Materials programs,

DESIRABLE

• Living Future Accreditation. Candidates who are not already Living Future Accredited will be supported in achieving their LFA within one year.
• Undergraduate or graduate degree in a related field.
• Knowledge of the architectural, construction, or manufacturing industry.
• Experience working across virtual teams and with remote management.
• Basic understanding of materials specifications in the built environment.
• Experience with Salesforce or a similar CRM platform.

Our mission at Living Future is to build a future that is socially just, culturally rich, and ecologically restorative. We are committed to that vision within our organization and work to create a team that is equitable, inclusive, and diverse by hiring and supporting staff from a wide variety of backgrounds. We are committed as an organization to foster better cultural competency, equity and diversity within our culture and policies and work to support staff in every phase of their career.

The salary range for this position is $51,000 - $56,000 and is supplemented by ILFI’s generous benefits package that includes employer-paid health, dental and vision insurance for employees and dependents as well as employee life insurance, short-term disability, and a 403(b) retirement plan. Annual time off benefits include three weeks of paid annual leave, 12 days of sick leave, and paid volunteer time.

ILFI offers a collaborative, team-oriented and mission-driven remote-first workplace with staff distributed across the United States. We offer a $50/month stipend to offset home internet costs.

Please include a resume and cover letter with your application. The position will remain open until filled. We will begin reviewing applicants on June 2, 2023.