CIRCULAR ACTION ALLIANCE

Compensation

Full Description

Role Overview  The National Reimbursement Senior Manager is a key national CAA team member responsible for leading reimbursement efforts in California and emerging EPR states. This role ensures the effective implementation of funding for covered costs, working collaboratively across state teams and leveraging operational excellence to support pre-program, program launch, and ongoing operations phases.  The Senior Manager oversees the full lifecycle of reimbursement applications—including identification of receipt, review, validation, analysis, iterative collaboration and approval—for eligible entities such as local jurisdictions, service providers, haulers, recyclers, alternative collection programs, and others. Through rigorous review, analysis, and collaboration, the Senior Manager determines the eligibility of applications to be deemed covered cost for reimbursement/funding.  The role collaborates extensively with the Executive Senior Managers and their teams, as well as Legal, Field Operations, Data & Analytics, Materials, Technical Services, Finance, and other CAA functional teams, ensuring accurate information flow, robust review processes, and alignment with state program and regulatory requirements. This position also manages funding visibility and provides insights into budgeting and fee-setting activities in partnership with the Data & Analytics team.  The position requires strong analytical capabilities, business case development expertise, operational insight, comfort with ambiguity, research proficiency, and the ability to create executable plans that address risks, issues, and challenges across multi-state EPR programs.  Key Responsibilities  Reimbursement Leadership  * Lead reimbursement strategy and execution across California and emerging EPR states, ensuring consistency, transparency, and regulatory alignment. * Determine eligibility of applications to qualify as covered costs based on rigorous evaluation, triangulation of information, and collaboration with functional subject matter experts. * Facilitate the development of optimal funding solutions for each project that advance environmental outcomes, regulatory compliance, and program performance targets. * Identify efficiencies, ineligible components, and cost gaps to ensure reimbursement determinations are accurate and aligned with state requirements. Reimbursement Program Planning & Development  * Develop and refine reimbursement policies, frameworks, methodologies, and operating procedures across multiple states. * Work closely with Legal, Field Operations, Data & Analytics, Materials, Technical Services, Finance, and other teams to ensure thorough, multidisciplinary review processes. * Collaborate with the Executive Senior Manager and their team to maintain effective information flow from applicants and ensure accurate assessment of operational data. * Support regulatory reporting, documentation requirements, and audit readiness. Business Case Development & Analysis  * Use analytical tools, data systems, and financial modeling to inform reimbursement determinations. * Demonstrate extensive experience in business case development—evaluating applicant-supplied cases and producing internal analyses. * Review and validate operational, financial, performance, and market data to support funding determinations. * Conduct scenario planning and financial evaluations to support long-term strategy and methodology development. * Develop, manage, maintain and improve the list of applications received for reimbursement funding Valuation of Funding Opportunities  * Identify and evaluate funding opportunities that align with regulatory obligations, performance improvement, and program priorities. * Identify missing valuation input data from received applications based on covered cost criteria and drive the workflows for data acquisition and ingestion in collaboration with the Data & Analytics team. * Provide recommendations on funding allocation, prioritization, and risk mitigation strategies. Assessment of Funding Requests  * Lead the comprehensive review of reimbursement applications, validating and triangulating content using internal data, external sources, operational datasets, and historical benchmarks. * Ensure each request undergoes rigorous analysis to identify eligible and ineligible portions and ensure accuracy, transparency, and compliance. * Engage with applicants to address questions, identify missing elements, and guide them toward complete and accurate submissions. Cross-Functional Collaboration  * Work collaboratively across internal teams—including Legal, Field Operations, Data & Analytics, Materials, Finance, and Planning—to ensure robust review and consistent interpretation of requirements. * Engage with local governments, haulers, recyclers, and other external interest holders to ensure information alignment and compliance with program needs. * Manage funding visibility and provide direct inputs into budgeting and fee-setting in collaboration with the Data & Analytics team. * Support strategic program planning, operational improvement initiatives, and alignment across reimbursement, operations, and compliance efforts. Additional Responsibilities  * Identify opportunities to build a reimbursement team as needed; recruit, develop, and mentor team members with a strong focus on efficiency, accuracy, and relevancy in all reimbursement workflows. * Conduct research to gather regulatory, operational, and economic information necessary for informed decision-making and solution development. * Thrive in ambiguous, evolving environments by developing clear, actionable plans to address challenges and emerging issues. * Perform other related duties as assigned. Skills & Competencies  * Deep experience in the recycling industry or related environmental sectors, with a highly analytical, collaborative, and action-oriented approach. * Strong budget management skills with strategic and business-oriented thinking. * Outstanding organizational and leadership capabilities, with proven success in planning and project implementation. * Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with successful experience engaging government agencies and diverse interest holder groups. * Ability to simplify complex information and present it clearly to varied audiences. * Advanced capabilities in financial analysis, data interpretation, reporting, budgeting, and business operations. * Skilled in identifying efficiencies, assessing application eligibility, and conducting in-depth reimbursement evaluations. * Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, dynamic environment with flexibility to pivot as needed. * Experience evaluating and developing business cases for operational and/or financial decision-making. * Develops, manages, maintains and improves the list of CAA-driven investment initiatives proposals for reimbursement funding * Experience with bi-party contracts and tri-party communications in a funding context * Experience with minimizing the likelihood of contract disputes, and resolving contract disputes with funding applications Qualifications  * Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree in a related field (MBA, environmental studies, economics, finance) preferred. * 8+ years of relevant professional experience in reimbursement, financial program management, claims analysis, waste/recycling operations, or similar fields. * Experience and familiarity with EPR programs (e.g., California SB 54, Oregon RMA, Colorado PRO, other states) strongly preferred. * Proven ability to work collaboratively in cross-functional, geographically distributed teams. Compensation & Other Information  * Location: Fully Remote, with some travel for meetings and interest holder interactions. * Pay Rate: Based on a variety of factors in accordance with applicable law including the successful candidate’s relevant experience, skills, knowledge and experience. * Reports To: Director, Program Planning & Strategic Projects Circular Action Alliance is an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants for employment will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, lactation, and related medical conditions), national origin, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or any other category protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. If you require accommodation as part of the application process, please contact careers@circularaction.org [careers@circularaction.org] listed below.