Posted by: Jennifer Schultz, ECO Canada
Environmental consulting is one of the top areas of environmental employment in Canada, employing over 317,000 environmental employees. That’s equivalent to over 17% of Canada’s environmental workforce!
Environmental consultants help companies lower their environmental impact, and work in a variety of areas such as soil contamination, water pollution, air quality, and waste management.
But if you’re looking to start your environmental career or transition into a new one, how do you know if environmental consulting is a good fit?
Here are 5 signs you should work in environmental consulting:
1. You’ve gained skills in math, science, design, engineering and environmental economics (and enjoyed learning them).
Environmental consulting requires a number of skills and knowledge. Hard skills such as math, science, design, engineering, environmental economics will provide an important background to grow your experience.
These skills are highly marketable but are more difficult to learn once you are out of a post-secondary environment.
2. You enjoy researching and performing data analysis.
Environmental consultants analyze problems by conducting research (including collecting raw data) and then analyze it to identify improvements or solutions.
Do you enjoy tasks such as collecting samples, creating a spreadsheet to analyze data, or solving a client’s problem? Then this career may be a good fit.
3. You know the latest environmental laws and regulations.
As an environmental consultant, clients are counting on your expertise to keep them compliant with the latest regulations and laws.
Do you like to keep up with the latest trends and updates in the environmental sector? This a great way to build your strategic thinking skills– and a good sign environmental consulting may work for you.
4. You excel at meeting deadlines.
Successful environmental consultants are able to complete projects on time and within budget. To do this, you’ll need to be time-efficient, plan ahead and multi-task.
If you can meet your deadlines and work effectively under pressure – this may be the career for you.
5. You enjoy working with others including building relationships.
In its simplest form, environmental consultants sell knowledge to others. But to do this well, you’ll need well-developed people skills.
Can you communicate effectively, work productively with others to find solutions, or manage conflict? Then you’re well on your way to consulting success.
But you’ll also need to create professional end products, including presentations and reports. This means taking complex information and presenting it to your clients in a well-written, easily understandable format.
This is a skill that many environmental professionals need to work at, but is critical for success in a consulting environment.
Learn what it takes to build your environmental consulting career with our online training.
