Location: Nosara, Costa Rica / Remote (Hybrid)

Reports To: Venture Partner

Build More Than Buildings. Help Build a New Paradigm.

Shift Living is seeking an exceptional early-career professional to work directly alongside our senior leaders as a Development Associate | Chief of Staff Track.

This is not a traditional analyst or associate role.

It is a high-exposure opportunity to work shoulder-to-shoulder with experienced leaders while helping build one of the world's most ambitious regenerative real estate companies.

Shift Living’s first and flagship project is Shift Esperanza, a pioneering $300 million regenerative real estate community in Nosara, Costa Rica. Set in one of Central America’s most sought-after destinations for conscious living, the project blends sustainability, wellness, and community in a master-planned, multi-phase residential development, and a mixed-use commercial village. We have already received all permits, raised all project capital, sold 24 homes and condo units, completed significant infrastructure work and began building our first homes. Built on principles of permaculture, wellness, and regenerative design principles, Shift Esperanza represents a new paradigm for real estate, where development becomes a positive force for people and the planet, and is significantly more profitable than the standard model.

Over the next three to five years, you will gain firsthand experience across virtually every aspect of the development business—from financial modeling, acquisitions, and investment analysis to master planning, strategic partnerships, capital raising, organizational leadership, and entrepreneurship.

You will participate in decisions and initiatives that most professionals would not encounter until much later in their careers. This role is intentionally designed for someone with the potential—not just the desire—to become a future CEO, founder, or regenerative real estate developer. Our goal is not simply to hire talent, but to help cultivate the next generation of awakened leaders, regenerative placemakers, and entrepreneurial developers.

If your primary objective is simply finding your next job, this position is probably not for you. If your ambition is to compress a decade of learning into a few extraordinary years while helping shape a company with big aspirations, we'd love to meet you.

What Makes This Opportunity Different

This role is designed for someone who wants far more than a conventional job description.

You will work directly with senior leadership, serving as a trusted strategic partner, financial analyst, project leader, and execution engine across a wide range of initiatives that span development, finance, operations, partnerships, and organizational growth.

One day you may be building a sophisticated financial model for a large-scale development. The next you may be preparing for an investor presentation, coordinating a multidisciplinary project team, evaluating a land acquisition opportunity, improving internal operating systems, or helping solve complex organizational challenges.

You’ll receive meaningful mentorship, significant responsibility, and uncommon visibility into what it actually takes to build enduring companies and transformative places.

Exceptional performance will naturally create opportunities for increasing responsibility, leadership, and long-term incentive participation, including the potential for future equity participation.

We’re not looking for someone to simply support the business.

We’re looking for someone who wants to help build it—and eventually be capable of becoming a senior leader and partner. Or branch out and become a founder of your own firm.

About the Role

Shift has assembled an impressive, international team to continue to execute the first project while scaling the model to other areas of Costa Rica and abroad. As Development Associate, you’ll operate as an extension of senior leadership, balancing strategic thinking with exceptional execution.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and maintain sophisticated financial models for development projects, acquisitions, and investment opportunities.

• Prepare and refine development pro formas, underwriting analyses, sensitivity analyses, and investment presentations.

• Drive cross-functional strategic initiatives from concept through execution.

• Prepare executive-level presentations, reports, board materials, and strategic analyses.

• Coordinate with architects, engineers, consultants, attorneys, contractors, investors, and internal teams.

• Conduct market research, competitive analysis, feasibility studies, and development research.

• Organize complex projects involving multiple stakeholders, deadlines, and priorities.

• Design and improve internal systems, operating processes, documentation, and organizational workflows.

• Anticipate executive needs, solve problems proactively, and remove friction before it reaches leadership.

• Track key initiatives and ensure follow-through across multiple workstreams.

• Represent Shift Living professionally with external partners, consultants, and stakeholders when appropriate.

• Support special projects as the company grows into new ventures and opportunities.

Role Requirements

• Fully bilingual in English and Spanish, both written and spoken.

• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including sophisticated financial development, investment, or acquisition models.

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.

• Highly organized with outstanding project management abilities.

• Strong analytical, quantitative, and critical thinking skills.

• Ability to manage multiple priorities while maintaining exceptional attention to detail.

• High degree of personal accountability, professionalism and emotional intelligence.

• Excellent organizational and systems-thinking abilities.

• Comfortable balancing strategic thinking with tactical execution.

• Willingness and flexibility to travel as projects require.

Preferred Qualifications

• Background in the built environment, real estate development, construction, real estate private equity, investment

banking, consulting, corporate finance, sustainability, impact or related fields.

• Proven entrepreneurial mindset and track record.

• MBA or equivalent graduate education is welcomed but not required.

• Experience evaluating investment opportunities.

• AI savvy and familiarity with modern collaboration, productivity, and project management platforms.

• Latin American background or familiarity with Latin American business culture is preferred.

• Willingness to work and live in Nosara, Costa Rica is highly favorable.

Your Growth Journey

Over the next three to five years, you’ll gain exposure to nearly every discipline involved in creating successful real estate development and impact companies including:

• Real estate development

• Financial modeling and investment analysis

• Capital raising and investor relations

• Master planning and project execution

• Strategic partnerships

• Organizational design

• Executive and personal leadership

• Entrepreneurial decision-making

• Company building and scaling

• Negotiation

• Adept communication

Our expectation is that by the end of this journey, you will possess not only technical expertise but also the judgment, confidence,

and leadership capacity to assume significant executive responsibility—whether within Shift Living or building something of your own.

Who You Are

We're less interested in your résumé than your trajectory.

The ideal candidate combines exceptional analytical ability with emotional intelligence, maturity, and leadership potential. You are equally comfortable building a sophisticated Excel model as you are organizing a complex project, communicating with senior executives, or presenting ideas with confidence.

You think in systems but execute with discipline. You naturally take ownership, anticipate what's needed before being asked, and thrive in environments with high expectations and high accountability. You're thoughtful, organized, dependable, composed under pressure, and able to bring order to complexity.

You're ambitious—but grounded in a long-term vision.

Confident—but coachable.

Intellectually curious.

Emotionally mature.

Highly disciplined and self-organized.

People naturally trust and respect you. You possess a quiet confidence and natural presence that allows you to earn credibility well beyond your years, while maintaining the humility to learn every day.

Conscious living, self-development, regenerative principles, and the desire to create places that positively impact both people and planet resonate deeply with who you are.

Most importantly, you aspire to build something meaningful with your life—not just a successful career, but a legacy.

How To Apply

Send your resume and a short video (maximum 4-5 minutes) to talent@shiftliving.com responding the following questions:

• What about this role excites you?

• What are your superpowers? What makes you special and why do you feel you would be a better fit than other applicants we might receive?

• What do you hope to be doing in 5 years?

• Tell us about a time you built a financial model or analysis that directly influenced a decision.

• This role requires juggling multiple stakeholders and deadlines at once. How do you stay organized under that kind of pressure?