Sustainability Specialist, Circular Economy

NetApp is seeking a Sustainability Specialist, Circular Economy in McLean, VA. This role involves implementing circular economy strategies across operations and products, focusing on storage hardware technology. The specialist will collaborate with cross-functional teams to drive sustainability initiatives and assess risks in the data management industry. Candidates should have over 12 years of experience in sustainability-related fields, strong analytical skills, and a background in life cycle assessments.
Job Summary:

This role is a key part of NetApp's Sustainability Team. The Circular Economy Specialist will be crucial to advancing NetApp's sustainability initiatives, promoting a culture of innovation, and driving systemic change towards a circular economy. Reporting to the Chief Sustainability Officer, this role will be responsible for designing and implementing strategies to embed circular economy principles across the organization's operations, products, and supply chains, with a specific focus on storage hardware technology.

As a Circular Economy Specialist at NetApp, you will collaborate with cross-functional teams (Hardware, Software, Operations, and Procurement) to drive decarbonization initiatives, including energy efficiency, sustainable materials, and circularity in hardware component design. Serving as a subject matter expert in key sustainability domains, you will assess risks and resolve sustainability-related challenges in the storage and data management industry. You will work with diverse data sets, engage with senior business leaders, and collaborate with LCA stakeholders to advance NetApp's sustainability goals. A deep understanding of circularity practices, regulations, and trends is essential, along with the ability to provide guidance to internal stakeholders, customers, and partners. The ideal candidate will have experience in life cycle assessments (LCAs) or material flow analysis (MFA), and strong analytical skills to address complex, fast-moving challenges while managing uncertainty and data gaps.

Role Responsibilities:
• Establish a long-term vision and strategy for integrating circular economy principles into NetApp's operations working with internal stakeholders across multiple functions
• Set methodologies to measure key circular economy metrics and establishes baselines
• Develop and implement circular strategies, including material reuse, recycling and remanufacturing
• Collaborate with product design and sourcing teams to integrate sustainable materials and processes into product development
• Identify and assess innovative technologies for closed-loop manufacturing, waste reduction and resource optimization
• Prepare the company for future circularity mandates like CSRD, extended produce responsibility policies, product eco-label, etc

Job Requirements:
• 12+ years of experience in engineering, product management, or technical consulting in sustainability science-related fields
• Practical experience in conducting product carbon footprint assessments following international standards (e.g., ISO 14067, PAS 2050, GHG Product Protocol Standard). Experience with product life cycle assessment (LCA) and sustainable product design
• Experience working with stakeholders across both technical and business functions
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to apply systems thinking to complex problems. Experience managing complex datasets using tools like Excel and/or SQ
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, capable of engaging with senior business leaders
• Experience with high-volume storage hardware technology products preferred
• Experience with commercial LCA software and data preferred

Education:
• Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science, Sustainability, Engineering, or related field with 5+ years of relevant industry experience. Advanced technical degrees preferred (e.g., MS, PhD)

Compensation:
The target salary range for this position is $158K - $235K. The salary offered will be determined by the candidate's location, qualifications, experience, and education and may be outside of this range. Final compensation packages are competitive and in line with industry standards, reflecting a variety of factors, and include a comprehensive benefits package. This may cover Health Insurance, Life Insurance, Retirement or Pension Plans, Paid Time Off (PTO), various Leave options, Performance-Based Incentives, employee stock purchase plan, and/or restricted stocks (RSU's), with all offerings subject to regional variations and governed by local laws, regulations, and company policies. Benefits may vary by country and region, and further details will be provided as part of the recruitment process.