Director of Pre-Construction

MHB Group Canada; Toronto; On-site; CAD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

MHB Group Canada is seeking a strategic Pre-Construction Leader to guide projects from concept through procurement and readiness for construction. You will shape budgets, procurement strategies, and early design decisions across a growing portfolio including industrial, residential, mixed-use and commercial developments.

Based in Toronto, you will lead a high-performing pre-construction and estimating team, partnering with development and executive leadership to drive value, optimize costs, and

Qualifications

• 7+ years of pre-construction or related experience.
• Experience with large-scale residential, industrial, commercial, or mixed-use developments.
• Strong understanding of building design, budgeting, and construction.
• Experience budgeting, procurement, and cost optimization.
• Ability to negotiate contracts with senior stakeholders.
• Strategic thinker with attention to detail.
• Collaborative leadership across disciplines.
• Entrepreneurial mindset focused on growth.

Responsibilities

• Lead pre-construction across a diverse and expanding development portfolio.
• Establish project budgets from concept through tender and buyout.
• Develop estimating and procurement strategies aligned with project objectives.
• Drive value engineering, constructability and cost optimization.
• Advise on building systems, construction methodologies and delivery strategies.
• Lead trade procurement, contractor selection and tendering processes.
• Negotiating major construction contracts and commercial agreements.
• Working with development, consultants and project teams to improve outcomes.
• Establish and continuously improve pre-construction processes, standards and best practices.
• Build, mentor and grow a high-performing pre-construction and estimating team.
• Provide strategic input into project planning and delivery across the portfolio.

Skills

Pre-construction leadership

Budgeting

Procurement strategy

Estimating

Cost optimization

Contract negotiation

Team leadership

Strategic thinking

Stakeholder management

Job description

The biggest decisions on a development project happen long before construction begins.

The right procurement strategy. The right building systems. The right budget. The right team.

Our client is looking for a leader who can bring all of these together while helping shape the next stage of the company's growth.

This is an opportunity to join one of Canada's most entrepreneurial real estate development companies, with a diverse and growing portfolio spanning industrial, high-rise residential, mixed-use, commercial and hospitality developments.

You'll be at the table from the outset, working closely with Development and Executive Leadership to influence how projects are designed, budgeted, procured and prepared for construction.

With ambitious growth plans ahead, this is a chance to join the business at an exciting point in its evolution and help build the processes, team and strategies that will support its next phase.

Why This Opportunity?

This isn't a traditional pre-construction role. It's a strategic leadership position within a growing entrepreneurial organization.

You’ll lead the pre-construction function across a diverse development portfolio, guiding projects from early concept through procurement and construction readiness, while building a high-performing team and helping establish the framework for continued growth.

Working from one or both of the company's offices in downtown Toronto or the west GTA, you'll enjoy the pace and agility of a privately owned organization where ideas are valued, bureaucracy is minimal, and decisions happen quickly.

You’ll have the autonomy to make an impact, the visibility to influence senior leadership, and the opportunity to help shape how the company approaches pre-construction as it continues to grow.

You'll Be Responsible For

• Leading pre-construction across a diverse and expanding development portfolio
• Establishing project budgets from early concept through tender and buyout
• Developing estimating and procurement strategies aligned with project objectives
• Driving value engineering, constructability and cost optimization
• Advising on building systems, construction methodologies and delivery strategies
• Leading trade procurement, contractor selection and tendering processes
• Negotiating major construction contracts and commercial agreements
• Working closely with Development, consultants and project teams to improve project outcomes
• Establishing and continuously improving pre-construction processes, standards and best practices
• Building, mentoring and growing a high-performing pre-construction and estimating team
• Providing strategic input into project planning and delivery across the company's growing portfolio

About You

You’ll likely bring:

• 7+ years of experience in pre-construction, estimating or construction management
• Experience working across large-scale residential, industrial, commercial, mixed-use or other complex developments
• A strong technical understanding of how buildings are designed, budgeted and constructed
• Strong commercial acumen, with experience developing budgets, managing procurement and optimizing project costs
• Confidence negotiating construction contracts and working with senior stakeholders
• The ability to think strategically while remaining comfortable getting into the details
• A collaborative leadership style with the ability to influence across multiple disciplines
• An entrepreneurial mindset and an interest in building something, not simply maintaining the status quo

Why You'll Love It

This is an opportunity to join a successful company at an important stage of its growth.

You’ll work across a diverse portfolio, have a genuine voice in project strategy, and help build the pre-construction function that will support the company's next chapter.

For someone who enjoys autonomy, variety and the opportunity to make things better, this is a role where your experience can have a meaningful impact on both individual projects and the broader direction of the business.