Commercial Manager

DLR Group; United States; Remote; USD 145,000 - 165,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Disability insurance

Wellness programs

Flex spending

Paid holidays

Paid time off

401(k) plan

Employee stock ownership

Bonus opportunities

Job summary

DLR Group is seeking a seasoned Commercial Manager to shape risk and commercial strategy across our design projects. You will protect commercial integrity, balance design ambition with financial and contractual considerations, and guide teams from concept through construction to successful outcomes.

The role calls for deep contract knowledge, leadership across project delivery phases, and collaboration with clients, managers, and legal counsel.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of commercial management experience in design/construction, including large projects over $500M.
• Deep understanding of contract structures, terms, workflows, and risk allocation.
• Ability to assess complex issues, solve problems, and communicate clearly with teams and stakeholders.
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced project environment.
• Proficiency with MS Office, Adobe Creative Suite, and Bluebeam.

Responsibilities

• Develop a project-specific risk roadmap at kickoff, aligning contract terms, commercial strategy, and execution plans.
• Identify, communicate, and evaluate commercial, contractual, design, and delivery risks throughout the project lifecycle.
• Partner with project managers, client leaders, and legal counsel to prepare, negotiate, and manage variations and requests for additional services.
• Deliver guidance that strengthens commercial awareness and supports risk-aware decision-making across teams.
• Drive continuous improvement to enhance the efficiency of commercial execution firmwide.
• Foster collaboration among project teams, commercial leadership, and legal partners while promoting commercial discipline.

Skills

Commercial management

Risk management

Contract negotiation

Project leadership

MS Office

Adobe Creative Suite

Bluebeam

Tools

Microsoft Office

Adobe Creative Suite

Bluebeam

Job description

Chicago, Illinois, United States; Dallas, Texas, United States; Los Angeles, California, United States; Omaha, Nebraska, United States; Overland Park, Kansas, United States; Phoenix, Arizona, United States; Seattle, Washington, United States

DLR Group is an integrated design firm with a promise to elevate the human experience through design. This fuels the work we do around the world and inspires our mission to improve the lives of our clients, our communities, and our planet. If this sparks your interest, you’re in the right place.

Our team has an opening for a Commercial Manager. DLR Group has a network of 30+ studios across the United States. For this role, we encourage exceptional applicants across the ecosystem.

Position Summary:

Join the team at DLR Group as a Commercial Manager. In this brand-new role to our firm, you will help shape how we elevate the human experience by design, bringing commercial insight to the creative process so great ideas can become successful, buildable realities. In this pivotal role, you will protect the commercial integrity of our projects while championing design excellence, bridging creative ambition with financial, contractual, and risk considerations. From early concept through construction, you will provide strategic leadership across every phase of project delivery, helping teams make informed, thoughtful decisions that balance innovation, value, and long-term success.

If you’re energized by the opportunity to partner with talented designers, influence meaningful work, and help bring exceptional ideas to life, we’d love to hear from you!

What you will do:

• Develop a project-specific risk roadmap at kickoff, aligning contract terms, commercial strategy, and execution plans while equipping key team members with practical risk management processes
• Proactively identify, communicate, and evaluate commercial, contractual, design, and delivery risks throughout the full project lifecycle
• Partner with project managers, client leaders, and legal counsel to prepare, negotiate, and manage variations and requests for additional services
• Deliver guidance and targeted education that strengthens commercial awareness and supports risk-conscious decision-making across project teams and stakeholders
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives that enhance the consistency, efficiency, and effectiveness of commercial execution firmwide
• Foster strong collaboration among project teams, commercial leadership, and legal partners while promoting a culture of commercial discipline and risk literacy across the firm

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum of 10 years of commercial management experience within the design and construction industry, including work on large, complex projects exceeding $500M in construction cost
• Deep understanding of contract structures, commercial terms, project delivery workflows, and risk allocation across the design and construction lifecycle
• Demonstrated ability to assess complex issues, solve problems thoughtfully, and communicate clearly with project teams and stakeholders
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities and competing demands in a fast- paced project environment
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, Adobe Creative Suite, and Bluebeam

Preferred Qualifications:

• Brings a proactive, self-starting approach and thrives as a collaborative partner across multidisciplinary teams
• Strong emotional intelligence and the ability to build trust, adapt communication style, and work effectively with a diverse range of colleagues, clients, and partners
• Comfortable balancing creative ambition with commercial practicality to help deliver exceptional design outcomes within sound business parameters
• Experience advancing commercial discipline and risk-aware decision-making in highly collaborative, design-driven environments

Our comprehensive Benefits at DLR Group include medical, dental, vision, disability, wellness programs, flex spending, paid holidays, and paid time off. We also offer a 401(k) plan, employee stock ownership, and bonus opportunities. Compensation considerations are based on location, experience, and skills. The suggested pay range for this position is:

Pay Range

$145,000 - $165,000 USD

DLR Group is an integrated design firm delivering architecture, engineering, interiors, planning, and building optimization for new builds, renovations, and adaptive reuse projects.

We are 100% employee-owned: every employee is literally invested in our clients’ success. At the core of our firm are interdisciplinary teams engaged in every step of project lifecycles. Our teams champion true collaboration, open information sharing, shared risk and reward, value-based decision making, and proficient use of technology to deliver exceptional design. We are pursuing the goals of the 2030 Challenge, the ME2040, and the SE2050, and are an initial signatory of the China Accord and the AIA 2030 Commitment.

Through our values – commitment, creativity, environmental stewardship, fun, integrity, ownership, sharing, teamwork – we elevate the human experience through design, together.

DLR Group follows a four-day in-office work model, with employees having the flexibility to work somewhere other than the office on Fridays.

We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action/M/F/Veteran/Disabled employer.

As set forth in DLR Group’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.