Cost Manager / Quantity Surveyor - Construction Management

Turner & Townsend; San Jose (CA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Turner & Townsend in the United States is seeking an experienced Cost Manager / Quantity Surveyor to support cost management for large-scale capital projects. The role covers cost planning, estimating, and cost control from early planning through final accounts, with strong client-facing responsibilities.

The ideal candidate has 3–5 years in cost management within construction, with Chartered status or progress toward chartership valued.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in construction management, cost management, quantity surveying, engineering or related field.
• 3–5 years of experience in cost management or quantity surveying within the construction industry.
• Experience supporting cost management on medium- to large-scale, complex construction projects, ideally in fast-paced or programmatic environments.
• RICS accreditation or progress toward chartership is highly valued.

Responsibilities

• Advise clients on strategy, prequalify vendors, assess proposals and bids, and manage the appointment process.
• Develop detailed project estimates (construction, fees, direct costs) and review junior colleagues’ estimates.
• Establish cost reporting schedules and manage budgets, spend forecasts, and risk registers.
• Review payment applications, negotiate change orders, and apply dispute avoidance practices.
• Oversee invoicing alignment with project delivery and financial controls.
• Lead post-contract reviews and maintain procedures for project handover and closeout.

Skills

Cost management

Quantity surveying

Estimating

Cost control

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management / Cost Management / Quantity Surveying / Engineering

Tools

Cost Estimating Software

Take-off platforms

Bid analysis sheets

Job description

Cost Manager / Quantity Surveyor - Construction Management

• Full-time

Turner & Townsend is a global professional services company with over22,000 peoplein more than 60 countries.

Working with our clients across real estate, infrastructure,energyand natural resources, we transform together delivering outcomes that improve people’s lives. Working in partnership makes it possible to deliver the world’s most impactful projects and programmes as we turn challenge into opportunity and complexity into success.

Our capabilities includeprogramme, project, cost, asset and commercial management, controls and performance, procurement and supply chain, net zero and digital solutions.

We are majority-owned by CBRE Group, Inc., the world’s largest commercial real estateservicesand investment firm, with our partners holding a significant minority interest. Turner & Townsend and CBRE work together to provide clients with the premierprogramme, project and cost management offering in markets around the world.

Turner & Townsend are seeking an experienced Cost Manager / Quantity Surveyor to support construction cost services across large-scale, complex capital projects within a dynamic and evolving portfolio. The role will support the delivery of both technical and commercial facilities, including new-build and redevelopment projects, from early planning and procurement through construction and final account.

You will act as a trusted client-facing commercial advisor, providing cost planning, estimating, and cost control services across multi-phase developments. This position requires strong communication skills, sound commercial judgment, and the ability to operate independently within a fast-paced consultancy environment.
Responsibilities:

• Advise clients on strategy, manage prequalification of vendors, assess proposals, bids, and bid levelling documentation, make final recommendations, attend and chair bid interviews, and manage the appointment process.
• Manage estimating services across full project lifecycles by developing detailed project estimates (construction, fees, direct work, and associated costs), reviewing estimates prepared by junior team members, presenting estimates to clients, delivering value engineering recommendations and risk assessments, validating vendor pricing, and leveraging benchmark data from comparable projects.
• Manage cost reporting by establishing reporting schedules, reviewing and presenting cost reports and forecasts, tracking project budgets and spend forecasts, developing and maintaining commercial risk registers, and facilitating regular cost review meetings with project teams and vendors.
• Manage cost control processes by reviewing payment applications, liaising with project managers on contractor entitlements, reviewing and evaluating change orders, providing recommendations to clients, and applying dispute avoidance and resolution practices across commercial matters.
• Manage and monitor the invoicing process to ensure alignment with project delivery and financial controls.
• Benchmark performance across multiple projects and programs to drive consistency and continuous improvement.
• Manage all facets of final accounting, including post-contract audits and account closeouts across multiple concurrent projects.
• Lead post-contract reviews to capture lessons learned and support ongoing process and program improvements.
• Develop and maintain procedures governing project handover and closeout across a range of project types.
• Perform all duties utilizing tools such as Bid Analysis Sheets, Change Control Forms, Cost Estimating Software, and Take-off platforms.
• SOX control responsibilities may be part of this role, which are to be adhered to where applicable.

• Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Cost Management, Quantity Surveying, Engineering, or a related field.
• 3–5 years of experience in cost management or quantity surveying within the construction industry.
• Experience supporting cost management on medium- to large-scale, complex construction projects, ideally within fast-paced or programmatic environments.
• Construction consultancy experience is strongly preferred.
• Strong understanding of estimating, cost planning, procurement, and change management best practices.
• RICS accreditation or progress toward chartership is highly valued.
• Strong communication, analytical, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to interface across multiple project teams.

*On-site presence and requirements may change depending on our client's needs

The base salary range for this full-time role is$120K-$150Kper year.Ranges are determined by role and level and represent a good faith effort to provide a fair and equitable salary. This range is a reflection of base salary only, not of a total compensation package.Please note Turner & Townsend reserves the right to pay more or less than the posted range, depending on candidate’s experience and qualifications.

Our inspired people share our vision and mission. We provide a great place to work, where each person has the opportunity and voice to affect change.

We want our people to succeed both in work and life. To support this we promote a healthy, productive and flexible working environment that respects work-life balance.

Turner & Townsend is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees and actively encourage applications from all sectors of the community.

Please find out more about us at www.turnerandtownsend.com/ andhttps://www.heery.com/

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

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