Technical Strategy & Process Economics Lead

Job Description

Our mission is to return the atmosphere to 280 ppm CO???. We convert excess inedible biomass into carbon-rich bio-oil and inject it into underground storage for permanent carbon removal. At scale, we can use bio-oil to make fossil-free iron.

Our carbon removal efforts began in 2020 with initial purchases from customers like Stripe, Shopify, and Microsoft. Since then, we've scaled to thousands of tons of carbon removal, grown to over a hundred employees, and established three locations in San Francisco, Colorado, and Louisiana.

We're expanding our team of ambitious, creative, and hands-on problem solvers. We value psychological safety, collaboration, and continuous learning. We take calculated risks and treat mistakes as opportunities to improve. If you're excited about tackling big challenges, we encourage you to explore our company values.

Come help us reverse climate change. Gigatons or bust!

About the role

The voluntary carbon removal market is nascent, ever-changing, and complex. At Charm, we're supplying that market with permanent and trustworthy credits at scaled volumes. We've already proven end-to-end carbon removal, so our next phase is centered around productivity and efficiency. How can Charm maximize its operational rollout in the most cost and carbon efficient manner while still being a good steward of our environment? It's a question that concerns all of our departments, requiring us to collectively be on the same page, speak the same language, and agree about how we go forward together.

As Charm's Technical Strategy & Process Economics Lead, you will be at the center of these efforts. You will support Company-wide strategic decision making and capital allocation planning through analyses that consider the standalone and shared costs and benefits of various initiatives. Your analyses will take the form of rigorous technoeconomic models that will provide significant scientific, engineering, and financial conviction for senior leadership. You will be a key conduit between departments, helping to effectively ideate and iterate on what the future Charm looks like.

The role will report directly into the Senior Corporate Finance & Strategy Manager and work hand-in-hand with our Engineering, Research, Operations and Carbon Accounting teams.

What You'll Own

• Own and improve Charm's technoeconomic and life cycle models, incorporating new analyses that reflect evolving company strategy and emerging product pathways
• Develop technoeconomic perspectives to inform roadmaps for new capital projects, technology deployment, and long-term strategic decisions
• Translate technical roadmaps into financial models, including cost projections and implications for budgeting and long-range planning
• Partner closely with Engineering to evaluate high-leverage process modifications - engaging directly with technical teams, challenging assumptions, and staying grounded in operational reality
• Integrate carbon accounting and emissions data into the core business model, ensuring operational realities are accurately reflected in technoeconomic outcomes
• Present technoeconomic insights and recommendations to internal stakeholders, including leadership, investors, and partners
• Work closely with Engineering, Finance, Operations, and Carbon Accounting to build cross-functional uniformity in technical and economic assumptions

What You Bring

• Bachelor's degree in Chemical, Mechanical, or Industrial Engineering, or a related technical field
• 6-10 years of experience spanning both technical / engineering and economic or financial work - you have operated comfortably in both worlds and move fluidly between them
• A track record of translating complex economic analyses into strategic recommendations that informed real capital or technology decisions
• Engineering fluency sufficient to engage credibly with process engineers on mass balances, carbon yields, and product stream economics without requiring education on fundamentals
• Demonstrated experience building technoeconomic or financial models from scratch and owning them end-to-end - including NPV, IRR, cost curves, and sensitivity analysis - to drive real capital and strategic decisions
• Financial fluency sufficient to build cost curves, run scenario analyses, and present economic findings to leadership and investors with confidence
• Proven ability to operate independently in ambiguous problem spaces - you structure your own analysis, identify the highest-leverage questions, and deliver clear recommendations without waiting for direction
• Genuine curiosity about how industrial systems work - you engage directly with engineers, ask the right questions, and treat the model as a living reflection of the business
• Deep analytical thinking and an ability to distill complicated analyses into clear, actionable formats for a range of technical and non-technical audiences

Bonus, if You Bring

• Prior experience in a high-growth startup or early-stage industrial or climate tech company
• Experience in management consulting or technical advisory roles with exposure to capital-intensive industrial systems
• Familiarity with carbon markets, MRV frameworks, or registry requirements
• Experience with Life Cycle Assessment or carbon accounting methodologies
• Exposure to carbon removal, pyrolysis, bio-oil, biochar, or related climate technologies

$125,000 - $160,000 a year

with flexibility for highly experienced candidates within this level

What We Offer

• Stock options
• Health benefits (medical, dental, vision)
• Traditional and Roth 401(k) with a 50% match on contributions up to 6%
• Paid time off, including parental leave
• A yearly professional development stipend
• Healthy snacks for onsite employees
• A chance to pivot into a role in climate!

Visa Sponsorship Policy

Since we are a small startup, certain accommodations for visa sponsorship may not be within our capability. At this time, Charm Industrial is only sponsoring E3 and TN visas.

Our Commitment

Charm Industrial is an equal opportunity employer. We hire based on skills, experience, and passion for our mission. Climate challenges require a wide range of perspectives and expertise, and we welcome applicants from all backgrounds. We're excited to grow our team with people who bring unique strengths and help us improve as a company.