National Planning Leader

This Opportunity

Position Summary

WSP is seeking an experienced and visionary National Planning Leader to direct and expand its planning practice across the United States. Within WSP’s Advisory & Planning Business Line, this role demands comprehensive leadership in transportation, urban, land-use, and environmental planning with full accountability for financial performance and strategic direction. The position focuses on driving innovation, client engagement, and talent development within the organization.

• Strategic and financial leadership: The National Planning Leader will provide strategic and financial leadership by defining and executing a national vision for planning, managing growth and performance, and holding full profit and loss (P&L) responsibility. This role requires alignment of planning’s goals with broader business operations to ensure cohesive advancement.

• Market growth and client engagement: The leader will represent WSP, participating in industry events and professional associations to promote the firm’s expertise. Responsibilities include expanding planning across multiple business lines, leading business development efforts, and fostering long-term client relationships through inclusive engagement that reflects community diversity. The role also involves leading high-impact project pursuits and managing contract negotiations to ensure alignment with business objectives.

• Talent and culture leadership: A critical aspect of the role is to mentor and inspire a high-performing, matrixed team of planning professionals. The leader will promote a collaborative, innovative culture emphasizing inclusion, belonging, transparency, and continuous improvement. This includes guiding staff development, succession planning, and building organizational capabilities to sustain growth.

Your Impact

Strategic & Financial Leadership

• Define and execute a compelling strategic vision for planning at WSP, integrating regional and discipline-specific goals.

• Lead the growth and development of planning, within the Advisory & Planning business line, managing annual performance targets and full P&L accountability.

• Partner with Business Development, Strategic Pursuits, Operations, and other key stakeholders to deliver integrated outcomes.

Market Growth & Business Development

• Represent WSP nationally through active participation in client engagements, industry events, professional associations, and policy forums.

• Gather market intelligence to anticipate trends and identify new opportunities.

• Expand the planning practice across multiple business lines, building strategic alliances and partnerships to secure new work.

• Lead high-impact project pursuits, bringing together cross-functional teams to deliver winning proposals.

Client & Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as a trusted advisor to strategic clients, offering future-ready solutions and thought leadership.

• Build and maintain long-term client relationships, understanding their evolving needs and translating them into actionable strategies.

• Foster engagement practices that reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and reinforce WSP’s strategic vision.

• Oversee the delivery of complex, multi-sector planning programs, ensuring quality, compliance, and client satisfaction.

• Lead contract negotiations, project scoping, pricing, and performance metrics to ensure alignment with business goals.

Talent & Culture Leadership

• Lead, mentor, and inspire a high-performing team of planning professionals across a matrixed organization.

• Foster a collaborative and innovative culture that values inclusion, belonging, transparency, and continuous improvement.

• Provide guidance for staff development, succession planning, and organizational capability building.

Who You Are

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Transportation Planning, Urban Planning, Environmental Planning, or related field.

• 15+ years of progressive leadership experience in planning, including full P&L ownership.

• AICP certification.

• Demonstrated success in leading large-scale planning programs and multidisciplinary teams.

• Strong business acumen, strategic thinking, and financial management capabilities.

• Exceptional communication,…