Associate Director Capital Projects, Project Management

Associate Director Capital Projects, Project Management

Boulder, CO

About Alta

Alta Resource Technologies (Alta) is a next generation mining company that uses synthetic biology to separate critical minerals from conventional and unconventional resources, including e-waste. Founded in 2023, the company is expanding its team in Boulder, CO. The exponential growth of new tech industries, as well as the information technology sector, are driving historic growth in mineral demand and stressing existing supply streams.

Meeting new demand, diversifying the supply chain, and producing minerals in a more sustainable manner requires the rapid development, deployment and scaling of new technologies. This mineral challenge represents a historic opportunity for technology development and value creation. Alta is proud to be at the vanguard of this mega trend.

About the Role

Alta is seeking an Associate Director, Capital Projects to lead the delivery of our first commercial-scale facilities and subsequent capital programs. This role owns end-to-end execution of capital projects that will establish Alta’s pre-processing and protein-based separation capabilities at commercial scale.

You will be responsible for projects totaling roughly $100M in capital, spanning both brownfield and greenfield sites. The work will be weighted toward the core protein-based separation process with supporting pre-processing infrastructure. You will partner closely with Alta’s R&D, engineering, and operations teams while driving schedule, cost, risk, and contractor performance. As the company scales, the role will expand to a broader portfolio of capital projects and the opportunity to build a small team.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the full project lifecycle for capital programs from early planning and FEED through detailed engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, and handover with clear responsibility for delivering operational readiness and a successful transition to sustained plant performance.
• Develop and maintain integrated master schedules and project budgets; track progress, forecast costs, and drive accountability across internal teams and external contractors.
• Lead day-to-day interface management with EPC firms, specialty contractors, equipment vendors, and Alta technical teams.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate project risks related to schedule, cost, technical integration, permitting, and constructability; elevate issues with clear recommendations.
• Ensure strong coordination between pre-processing systems and the core protein-based separation process so that the overall facility meets performance, safety, and operability targets.
• Drive rigorous project controls, change management, and documentation practices appropriate for a first-of-a-kind commercial facility.
• Provide clear, structured status reporting to the Executive Leadership.
• Contribute to the maturation of Alta’s capital project delivery processes as the portfolio grows.
• Over time, help build and lead a small capital projects team as additional facilities come online.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemical, Mechanical, Metallurgical, Process, or related engineering discipline.
• 7-12 years of progressive experience delivering capital projects in industrial processing, mining/mineral processing, metals recycling, chemical manufacturing, oil & gas, or related heavy process industries.
• Demonstrated experience leading or co-leading capital projects in the $50–100M+ range through full lifecycle (engineering, procurement, construction, and commissioning).
• Experience with both brownfield and greenfield process facilities.
• Strong project controls skills: scheduling, cost management, risk management, and contractor oversight.
• Ability to partner effectively with process and discipline engineers; baseline understanding of process plant design and operations is required.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills in a fast-moving environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in industrial recycling, e-waste processing, rare earth or critical minerals processing, or hydrometallurgical facilities.
• PMP, PE, or equivalent project/construction management…