Independent Consultant – Technical Planning and Coordination (Remote)

Organisation: Global Energy Monitor (GEM), on behalf of the Open Energy Research and Analytics Consortium (ORA)
Position: Independent Consultant – Technical Planning and Coordination
Location: Remote
Contract Duration: 12 months
Expected Start Date: Mid-December 2026
Estimated Workload: Approximately 20 hours per week
Proposed Budget: Approximately US$135,000
Application Deadline: November 11, 2026
Application Method: Submit your application through GEM’s Careers Page.

About the Opportunity

The Open Energy Research and Analytics Consortium (ORA) is seeking an experienced independent consultant to coordinate the technical planning and development of a shared open energy data infrastructure across five partner organisations.

ORA is a collaborative initiative involving the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), Ember, Global Energy Monitor (GEM), Open Energy Transition (OET), and TransitionZero. The consortium aims to build an open energy intelligence system that brings together reliable data, open-source tools, reproducible modelling, and collaborative analysis.

Although its members have developed many of the technical components needed for this system, their data infrastructure and workflows are not yet fully coordinated. Differences in data definitions, identifiers, formats, and methodologies can make it difficult for researchers and other users to combine information, verify results, and reuse datasets.

The consortium is therefore undertaking a 12-month foundational planning phase to establish a shared technical and governance framework for its future platform. This includes agreeing on common data standards, identifying the most appropriate technical architecture, defining user needs, and preparing a roadmap for the next stage of development.

The consultant will play a central role in coordinating this work, bringing together technical specialists and organisational representatives to develop a practical plan that all five members can support.

The initiative also recognises the growing role of artificial intelligence in energy research. Standardised, well-documented, versioned, and citable datasets will be important for helping AI systems access and interpret reliable energy information.

About the Role

The selected consultant will serve as ORA’s Technical Coordinator, combining project management, stakeholder facilitation, and technical analysis.

Working with representatives from all five member organisations, the consultant will assess existing data assets and systems, identify opportunities for interoperability, facilitate agreement on shared standards, and recommend an architecture for integrating datasets, models, and analyses.

The assignment will also support the development of a limited proof of concept for a central data hub. GEM will manage the technical build through data engineering contractors, while the consultant will coordinate requirements, support member input, and assess the resulting prototype.

The final outcome will be a consortium plan, co-authored with the five members, that includes an implementation-ready technical and governance roadmap for the next phase of ORA’s platform and its flagship product, the Open Energy Outlook.

ORA is committed to keeping its core datasets, shared infrastructure, and collaborative tools open-source and publicly available.

Key Responsibilities

1. Consortium Facilitation and Stakeholder Engagement

The consultant will coordinate the planning process across the five participating organisations and help them reach agreement on shared technical priorities.

Responsibilities include:

• Preparing meeting agendas and supporting materials for consortium discussions.
• Facilitating technical planning sessions and helping members reach consensus where their existing practices or priorities differ.
• Interviewing data leads at each organisation to understand their datasets, systems, workflows, and priority user requirements.
• Documenting decisions, outstanding issues, agreed actions, and next steps.
• Helping define the platform’s priority audiences, including energy modellers, policy analysts, journalists, civil-society researchers, planners working in developing regions, and AI systems.
• Identifying the access methods, tools, and data-quality assurances required by different user groups.
• Guiding members through the review of proposed shared protocols, architecture options, and the scope of the data hub.

2. Project Management and Coordination

The consultant will manage the overall planning work programme and coordinate activities across the consortium.

Key duties include:

• Developing and maintaining an integrated workplan covering milestones, dependencies, responsibilities, and expected outputs.
• Monitoring progress, risks, decisions, and outstanding action items.
• Coordinating communication with the ORA Secretariat, consortium members, and relevant leads.
• Ensuring that project activities remain aligned with agreed objectives and delivery milestones.
• Working with GEM on the data hub proof of concept, including defining requirements with consortium members and coordinating the handover to the team responsible for the build.

3. Technical Planning and Data Integration

A major part of the assignment involves assessing existing data infrastructure and recommending ways to improve interoperability across the five organisations.

The consultant will:

• Develop a central inventory and map of datasets, data scrapers, and internally maintained data held by consortium members.
• Identify gaps, duplicated efforts, and opportunities to improve interoperability.
• Propose common data schemas, identifiers, and metadata documentation.
• Develop a framework for a jointly governed identifier crosswalk that connects records maintained by different organisations.
• Help members establish shared approaches to automated data validation and open, machine-readable documentation.
• Assess possible platform architectures, including hosted, federated, and hybrid approaches, with flexibility for different data products where appropriate.
• Recommend an approach that supports versioned datasets and traceability to primary sources.
• Work with GEM’s Chief Data Officer to contribute to a strategy for presenting ORA’s trusted datasets as a preferred source for AI-assisted energy and climate research.
• Support a structured learning exchange on AI-assisted research methods.

4. Data Hub Proof of Concept and Future Roadmap

The consultant will help translate the consortium’s technical discussions into practical requirements for the next phase of platform development.

This will involve:

• Defining the scope and requirements for a limited data hub proof of concept.
• Ensuring the proposed prototype addresses the needs of selected user groups.
• Coordinating input from consortium members during the planning and review process.
• Assessing the prototype developed by data engineering contractors working under GEM’s direction.
• Preparing a final consortium plan that sets out the recommended technical architecture, shared governance arrangements, implementation priorities, and roadmap for future development.

Expected Deliverables

The consultant will be responsible for producing the following deliverables. The inception workplan will establish agreed delivery dates, review responsibilities, and acceptance criteria for each output.

1. Inception report and integrated workplan: A detailed plan covering activities, milestones, responsibilities, dependencies, and delivery arrangements.
2. Assessment report: An assessment of member organisations’ data assets, existing systems, workflows, and priority user needs.
3. Cross-member data map and gap analysis: A consolidated view of datasets and related infrastructure, identifying gaps and opportunities for integration.
4. Priority audiences and use cases: An agreed definition of the platform’s primary users and their requirements.
5. Draft shared data standards: Proposed approaches to metadata, identifiers, automated validation, and data documentation.
6. Platform architecture options paper: An assessment of potential hosted, federated, and hybrid architecture models.
7. Architecture recommendation and draft protocols: A recommended technical design and proposed shared data protocols.
8. Data hub proof-of-concept requirements: A documented scope and set of requirements to be handed over to GEM for implementation.
9. Final consortium plan and roadmap: A jointly developed plan outlining the technical and governance arrangements required for the next phase.
10. Ongoing coordination materials: Meeting agendas, meeting notes, and monthly progress reports.

Changes to the agreed scope, deliverables, or milestones will require mutual written agreement between GEM and the consultant, following consultation with the ORA Secretariat.

Required Qualifications and Experience

Minimum Requirements

Applicants must demonstrate the following:

• At least eight years of professional experience in data architecture, data management, or data product development, preferably involving climate or energy data.
• Demonstrated experience facilitating and managing technical projects or working groups involving multiple organisations.
• The ability to communicate and coordinate effectively in English across organisational boundaries.

Preferred Qualifications

The following experience and skills are considered advantageous:

• Stakeholder facilitation: Experience building consensus among organisations with different technical practices, priorities, and governance arrangements.
• Data integration and interoperability: Experience designing or implementing common schemas, identifiers, entity resolution, metadata standards, and data documentation.
• Open energy data: Familiarity with open energy datasets, open-source energy modelling tools, and reproducible data pipelines.
• Platform architecture: Experience evaluating hosted, federated, and hybrid infrastructure, versioned data releases, and application programming interfaces (APIs).
• AI and data accessibility: Understanding of how AI systems consume structured data, machine-readable metadata, APIs, and Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers.
• Open-source and public-interest initiatives: Experience with open-data projects, digital public goods, research organisations, or mission-driven initiatives, including governance, licensing, and data stewardship.
• European location: Being based in Europe is preferred to support time-zone overlap with consortium members.

Eligibility to undertake an independent consultancy will be assessed in the country where the services will be performed before a contract is offered.

Location and Working Arrangements

This is a remote independent consultancy. The organisation expresses a preference for candidates based in Europe because of the need to coordinate with consortium members across time zones.

The assignment is expected to begin in mid-December 2026 and run for 12 months from the agreed start date.

The estimated workload is approximately 20 hours per week. This is a planning estimate rather than a requirement to follow a fixed weekly schedule. The consultant will organise their own working arrangements while meeting agreed milestones and attending mutually scheduled meetings.

Any extension beyond the initial 12-month period will require a separate written agreement covering the scope, duration, and fees, subject to funding availability.

Consultancy Budget and Payment Terms

The proposed budget allocation is approximately US$135,000 for the consultancy.

Services will be provided on a time-and-materials basis, with an hourly or daily rate agreed before the contract is executed.

The consultant will be required to:

• Submit monthly invoices detailing the time worked and services provided.
• Provide a brief monthly progress report against the agreed workplan.
• Meet the agreed milestones and deliverable requirements.
• Manage their own schedule and working arrangements.
• Cover their own taxes, insurance, equipment, and benefits.

Important financial clarification: The US$135,000 figure is the proposed budget allocation for the consultancy, not a confirmed fixed salary or guaranteed personal payment. The actual fees will depend on the agreed rate, work performed, and contractual terms. The announcement does not specify whether the budget includes any additional costs beyond the consultancy services.

Contract Management and Reporting

Global Energy Monitor (GEM), which currently hosts the ORA Consortium Secretariat, will be the contracting party and will administer the consultancy.

GEM’s Chief Data Officer will serve as the primary technical and contractual contact. This person will confirm milestones with the consultant and approve deliverables against the agreed scope and acceptance criteria.

The consultant will coordinate with:

• GEM’s Chief Data Officer.
• GEM’s Director of Product.
• The ORA Secretariat Coordinator.
• Technical representatives from the five consortium member organisations.

The Secretariat Coordinator and Chief Data Officer will review deliverables together, and GEM will administer payments under the agreed contract.

Although GEM will oversee contractual requirements and outputs, the consultant will remain responsible for determining how the consultancy services are performed.

How to Apply

Interested candidates must submit their application through the Global Energy Monitor Careers Page no later than November 11, 2026.

Applicants should prepare the following materials:

1. Résumé or CV

Provide an up-to-date résumé highlighting relevant experience in data architecture, data management, data product development, technical project coordination, and cross-organisational collaboration.

2. Cover Letter

The cover letter should address three specific areas:

• Your relevant experience, particularly in data integration, interoperability standards, and facilitating work across multiple organisations.
• Your availability and earliest possible start date.
• Your current location and time zone.

3. Examples of Relevant Work

Submit one or two examples of previous work, such as:

• A data architecture proposal.
• An interoperability framework.
• A technical roadmap.
• A report developed through collaboration across multiple organisations.

Briefly explain your contribution to each example. Links and anonymised excerpts are acceptable, but confidential materials should not be submitted.

4. Proposed Consultancy Rate

State your proposed hourly or daily rate in US dollars. If you quote a daily rate, specify the number of working hours included in that rate.

Application deadline: November 11, 2026.

References may be requested from shortlisted applicants. The evaluation committee will consider candidates’ preferred skills, relevant experience, and availability to undertake the assignment.

GEM reserves the right to request clarification, interview shortlisted candidates, negotiate the final scope and terms, or decide not to make an award.

Who Should Consider Applying?

This consultancy may be particularly relevant to experienced data professionals who combine technical expertise with the ability to coordinate complex projects involving several independent organisations.

You may be a strong candidate if you have:

• Eight or more years of experience in data architecture, data management, or data product development.
• Experience bringing separate datasets or technical systems together through shared standards.
• A background in climate, energy, environmental research, or open-data infrastructure.
• Experience facilitating technical decisions among multiple organisations.
• Knowledge of reproducible data pipelines, metadata, APIs, or AI-ready data systems.
• The ability to turn technical discussions into clear plans, documented decisions, and implementation roadmaps.

The assignment is not simply a software development role. It places substantial emphasis on technical planning, coordination, stakeholder consensus, and the preparation of a practical strategy for future platform development.

Applicants should also consider the independent-contractor arrangement, expected availability, country-specific eligibility, and responsibility for their own taxes, insurance, equipment, and benefits before applying.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this a remote position?

Yes. The consultancy is remote, with a preference for candidates based in Europe to facilitate time-zone coordination.

How long is the contract?

The initial contract is for 12 months from the agreed start date, with work expected to begin in mid-December 2026. Any extension requires a separate written agreement and depends on funding availability.

How many hours per week are expected?

Approximately 20 hours per week. This is an estimate, not a fixed weekly schedule, provided the consultant meets agreed milestones and participates in scheduled meetings.

What is the proposed budget?

The proposed consultancy budget is approximately US$135,000. The consultant must propose an hourly or daily rate, which will be agreed before the contract is executed.

What qualifications are required?

Applicants need at least eight years of experience in data architecture, data management, or data product development, preferably involving climate or energy data, together with experience managing technical projects or working groups across multiple organisations in English.

Is experience with artificial intelligence required?

Understanding how AI systems use data, including machine-readable metadata, APIs, and MCP servers, is listed as a preferred qualification rather than a minimum requirement.

What documents must applicants submit?

Applicants must provide a CV, a cover letter, one or two examples of relevant work, and a proposed hourly or daily consultancy rate in US dollars.

Where do I submit my application?

Applications must be submitted through GEM’s Careers Page. The vacancy announcement does not provide a direct link to the individual application form.

Final Reminder

This consultancy offers an opportunity to help shape an open energy data infrastructure intended to improve the integration, reliability, accessibility, and reuse of energy research data. The successful consultant will coordinate technical planning across five organisations and help establish the shared standards, architecture, and governance needed for the platform’s next development phase.

Before applying, ensure that your experience meets the minimum requirements and that your application includes all four requested components.

Deadline: November 11, 2026.

Editorial note: This listing is based on the supplied terms of reference. The contracting organisation’s official Careers Page and final consultancy agreement should be used to confirm application instructions, eligibility, fees, and contract conditions.