The Cloudburst Group is seeking Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) consultants to support the execution of multiple contracts funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as well as state and local communities. For the past decade, Cloudburst has been supporting communities in disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation planning.
With the increases in the number of disaster events throughout the country, the need to support local entities in planning disaster allocations is increasing. Cloudburst is seeking consultants to work as part of a team responsible for supporting state and local entities in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disaster events. This includes providing support to communities to effectively plan for the use of federally funded resources and assure compliance with funding requirements. Support includes working with grantee(s) in meeting grant conditions, developing policies and procedures, conducting the public engagement process, and ensuring an understanding for complying with the cross-cutting and administrative requirements of HUD grants.
Consultant will be able to:
- Support communities preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disaster events to effectively plan for the use of grant resources and assure compliance with funding requirements
- Apply theoretical and practical project management knowledge to support meeting clients’ goals and objectives
- Work directly with project teams to define the scope and schedule of technical assistance engagements that work to support communities to design and implement housing, homeless, and community development programs
- Ensure timelines are met and workstreams are executed effectively
- Ensure effective communications with the team and the client to report on progress, and implement and manage change when necessary to meet project deliverables
- Leverage familiarity with Department of Housing and Urban Development funded programs and requirements to propose viable solutions to clients
As requested, specific tasks may also include:
- Conducting Waiver research and drafting waiver requests
- Completing and/or updating the Certifications of Proficient Controls for submission to HUD
- Preparing an Implementation Plan
- Completing the Public Action Plan
- Completing materials to satisfy all requirements of the Public Action Plan in accordance with the Federal Register Notice and further HUD requirements
- Implementing public engagement efforts
- Revisions, updates, changes to the Public Action Plan as requested by HUD
The Consultant will be responsible for answering questions and providing guidance on issues related to CDBG-DR program management elements.
Desired Consultant criteria include individuals with:
- Minimum of six (6) years of experience working on disaster recovery projects funded by HUD CDBG-DR
- Specific experience facilitating direct technical assistance (TA) engagements and/or trainings related to CDBG-DR and cross-cutting requirements is required.
- Strong facilitation skills, CDBG-DR content development, and presentation experience are preferred
- Experience with federal procurement and grants management with the ability to work on current large-scale disaster recovery efforts
- Thorough knowledge of federal grant program regulations
- Strong analytical skills, ability to research, analyze, and synthesize data in a meaningful way
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Ability to manage and prioritize multiple tasks and communicate regularly with project leadership and client points of contact
- Ability to work independently as required, with a strong commitment to a team environment
- Ability to meet project milestones and delivery schedules
- Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint)
Cloudburst’s work is guided by a mission to improve economic, social, and environmental resilience. To this end, in many of the populations and communities where we work, wefocus on addressing structural and institutional racism that disproportionately impacts Black, Indigenous, and other people of color. Cloudburst believes that effective services and solutions are created with communities historically impacted by the systems we are attempting to transform. We strongly encourage applications from people who are representative of the culturally and ethnically diverse communities with which we work.
If you meet the above qualifications and are interested in consulting with Cloudburst, please respond to this Request for Qualifications by sending an email to [email protected] with the following information:
- Brief biography that details your experience in using federal disaster relief funds including meeting grant conditions, developing policies and procedures, conducting the public engagement process, and ensuring an understanding for complying with the cross-cutting and administrative requirements of HUD grants.
- Availability – average # of hours you could be available per month.
- Fully loaded hourly consulting rates for 2024, 2025 and 2026.
- Resume.
Note: All respondents should be able to work as a consultant outside of their regular employment arrangement. Verification may be requested.