Computational Designer at Stantec in San Francisco, CA

Computational Designer

Location: San Francisco, CA, United States

Your Opportunity

We are seeking a Computational Designer to join Stantec’s Design Computing team. This is an opportunity to collaborate with the team to support current, and help to develop computational design, automation, and design technology innovation. This role will support our Buildings Practice by identifying, prototyping, and implementing high-value automation across architecture, engineering, BIM, and digital delivery workflows.

The successful candidate will work directly with Senior Computational Designers, practitioners and project teams to understand current delivery methods, identify automation opportunities, and translate project needs into practical computational workflows. They will build and validate proofs of concept, test them against real project conditions, and coordinate with in-house development, Digital Practice, Digital Delivery, IT, and platform teams to transition successful prototypes into scalable, stable BIM-integrated tools and supported firmwide workflows.

Your Key Responsibilities

Project Delivery and Design Integration

• Apply computational design methods to mission critical, data center, industrial, advanced manufacturing, and other technically complex building projects.
• Develop parametric and data-driven workflows that connect geometry, program, planning criteria, engineering inputs, equipment layouts, system requirements, performance criteria, and documentation outputs.
• Support early design exploration, option studies, layout evaluation, and decision-making through practical computational methods.
• Work across architecture, electrical, mechanical, structural, and digital delivery teams to improve coordination, reduce manual rework, and increase design clarity.
• Translate project-specific challenges into reusable workflows, automation patterns, and delivery methods that can be applied across future projects and sectors.

Automation, BIM and Digital Delivery

• Participate in practitioner and project-team conversations to identify high-value automation opportunities.
• Build Revit-based automations using Dynamo, Rhino.Inside.Revit, Grasshopper, Python, C#, the Revit API, or related workflows, with a focus on electrical and mechanical design, coordination, documentation, and data tasks.
• Automate repetitive design, analysis, QA/QC, documentation, modeling, and data-management tasks where they improve speed, reliability, or coordination across disciplines.
• Build, test, validate, and document proofs of concept against real project needs and conditions.
• Partner with development and platform teams to transition successful prototypes into scalable BIM-integrated tools or supported firmwide workflows.
• Balance innovation with reliability by ensuring automations are maintainable, aligned with project delivery standards, and ready for handoff when appropriate.

Value, Metrics and Communication

• Define, track, and communicate value metrics for computational design, including hours saved, reduced rework, faster iteration, improved coordination, risk reduction, delivery quality, workflow reuse, project-team adoption, and demonstrated business value.
• Translate technical work into clear project and business language for project managers, discipline leads, clients, and firm leadership.
• Provide regular reporting on active automations, utilization, project impact, adoption barriers, lessons learned, and opportunities for broader deployment.
• Support pursuits, proposals, and internal case studies by showing how automation and computational design improve delivery for mission critical and other technical sectors.

Your Capabilities and Credentials

• Advanced expertise in Rhino, Grasshopper, Revit, Dynamo, Rhino.Inside.Revit, Speckle, the Revit API, and custom computational design components.
• Experience with BIM-integrated computational workflows and project-ready automation.
• Professional experience applying computational design on data centers, industrial facilities, mission critical projects, advanced manufacturing, or similar complex technical building projects.
• Proficiency in scripting or programming, such as Python, C#, JavaScript, or related languages, with an emphasis on reliability, maintainability, and project usability.
• Experience using AI-assisted development tools to explore, prototype, debug, or extend computational design workflows while maintaining quality, clarity, and reliability.
• Ability to translate architectural, electrical, mechanical, engineering, and project delivery requirements into actionable computational frameworks.
• Familiarity with electrical and mechanical systems coordination, repeatable planning modules, technical documentation, and fast-track delivery environments.
• Engineering background or experience working closely with engineering teams is a strong plus, especially in electrical or mechanical building systems.
• Background in systems thinking, process improvement, or workflow standardization for multidisciplinary design teams.
• Experience mentoring designers, engineers, or project teams in computational design methods.
• Ability to define success criteria, track progress against measurable KPIs, and communicate outcomes to project managers, discipline leads, and practice leadership.

Education and Experience

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Architecture, Engineering, Design Computing, Computational Design, or a related field.

3+ years of professional experience applying computational design within an architectural, engineering, industrial, mission critical, or integrated multidisciplinary design practice.

Demonstrated experience supporting data center, industrial, mission critical, advanced manufacturing, or other technically complex projects.

Proven ability to develop reusable computational workflows that improve project delivery beyond a single task or one-off script.

Professional licensure is strongly preferred, such as architecture, engineering, or a related discipline.

Please include a portfolio and sample of project work.

This description is not a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that may be required of the employee and other duties, responsibilities and activities may be assigned or may be changed at any time with or without notice

About Stantec

Stantec is a global leader in sustainable engineering, architecture, and environmental consulting. The diverse perspectives of our partners and interested parties drive us to think beyond what’s previously been done on critical issues like climate change, digital transformation, and future-proofing our cities and infrastructure. We innovate at the intersection of community, creativity, and client relationships to advance communities everywhere, so that together we can redefine what’s possible.