Director of Field Maintenance Operations

Maguire Iron, Inc.; Sioux Falls (SD); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Maguire Iron, Inc. is seeking a Director of Field Maintenance Operations to lead nationwide water tower rehabilitation and maintenance programs from our Sioux Falls base. This executive role drives strategic execution, safety, and financial performance while scaling field capabilities.

You will oversee scheduling, workforce planning, SOP standardization, and performance reporting to senior leadership, with a focus on efficiency, training, and zero incidents.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Construction Management, Civil/Structural Engineering, Business Administration or equivalent executive experience.
• Minimum of seven years in the water tank industry or equivalent field-experience.
• Proven ability to manage multi-site field operations and scale field crews.
• Ability to analyze master project schedules, bid specs, and engineering drawings.
• Proficiency in labor cost analysis, budgeting, and margin reporting to drive profitability.
• Strong executive presence with negotiation and cross-functional alignment skills.

Responsibilities

• Oversee macro-scheduling and logistics for maintenance crews across multiple projects.
• Establish division KPIs for timelines, labor hours, and budgets; review field reports for anomalies.
• Lead recruitment, onboarding, and retention strategies for field crews and supervision levels.
• Standardize SOPs and compile performance data for executive leadership review.
• Develop training curricula for onboarding and upskilling Foremen and field workers.
• Champion an incident-free safety culture and ensure regulatory compliance.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Field operations management

Logistics coordination

People management

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Construction Management

Civil/Structural Engineering

Business Administration

Job description

For over 100 years, Maguire has been an industry leader in the fabrication, construction, and maintenance of water storage tanks and elevated water towers. Maguire is seeking a strategic and highly experienced Director of Field Maintenance Operations to lead our field maintenance teams. Under general direction, the Director will oversee the strategic execution, operational safety, and financial performance of all water tower rehabilitation and maintenance projects nationwide. This executive-level role is responsible for driving field efficiency, standardizing operational procedures, leading multi-crew talent acquisition and retention strategies, and scaling division capabilities to meet company growth goals.

Essential Functions

Strategic Operational Leadership & Scheduling:

• Oversee the macro-scheduling and logistics for all maintenance crews, optimizing resource allocation, equipment utilization, and crew placement across multiple simultaneous projects.
• Establish and enforce division-wide KPIs for project timelines, labor hours, and budget adherence; review structural field reports to address systemic operational anomalies.
• Govern the division's close-out and punchlist strategy, implementing scalable processes to ensure zero-call-back completions and rapid project finalization with owners and engineers.
• Serve as a senior liaison between Project Management, Logistics, and Field Operations to align pre-construction planning with field execution capabilities.

Workforce Management & Talent Strategy:

• Drive crew retention and performance by developing structured personnel evaluation frameworks, leadership pathways, and accountability metrics for Field Superintendents, Foremen, and field hands.
• Lead division recruitment strategy in partnership with HR; oversee the interviewing, selection, and onboarding infrastructure to scale field crews effectively.
• Define wage frameworks and compensation strategies for field personnel in collaboration with the SVP of Operations.
• Intervene and resolve high-level personnel disputes, labor challenges, or performance issues that elevate past the foreman level.

Operational Efficiency & Training Infrastructure:

• Architect and implement the division's continuous improvement program, auditing field procedures to identify and deploy methods that increase year-over-year operational efficiency.
• Standardize and document proven field standard operating procedures (SOPs); compile performance data and efficiency metrics for executive leadership review (SVP/DOO).
• Assist in developing training curricula for onboarding and upskilling new Foremen, Iron/Steel workers, and field hands to ensure rapid mastery of Maguire's safety and technical protocols.

Safety Governance & Risk Mitigation:

• Champion an incident-free safety culture across the entire division, ensuring absolute adherence to corporate SOPs, OSHA regulations, and federal/state standards.
• Partner directly with the Safety Director to review field incident trends, update high-risk operational policies, and implement modern safety technologies or methods.
• Conduct regular senior-level site audits to enforce regulatory compliance and ensure field leadership is executing strict safety protocols without compromise.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed and not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of team members. May perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals to perform the essential functions.

• Bachelor’s Degree in Construction Management, Civil/Structural Engineering, Business Administration, or equivalent field-tested executive experience preferred.
• Minimum of seven years of experience in the water tank industry; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Proven track record of managing multi-site field operations, scaling industrial labor forces, and leading high-performing construction teams.
• Ability to analyze master project schedules, interpret complex construction bid specs and engineering drawings, and synthesize large datasets into executive performance reports.
• Proficiency in labor cost analysis, resource budgeting, and interpreting margin reports to drive division profitability.
• Exceptional executive presence with the ability to negotiate, speak effectively before public utilities/municipal boards, and align cross-functional corporate departments.

The ideal candidate must have working knowledge of all job specific operating procedures, be extremely quality conscious and detail oriented, accept responsibility and account for own actions, have the ability to work independently with minimal supervision, be able to build solid relationships with internal and external customers, be dependable and trustworthy, and have basic computer skills.

Work Environment:

• Majority of the time is spent in an office environment.
• Frequently required to sit, squat, talk and hear.
• Adhere to Maguire’s PPE Policy and Safety Programs.
• Occasionally lift and/or move up to 40 pounds.
• Able to work at a sustained pace and produce quality work.
• Ability to travel up to 30% of the time.

At Maguire, we believe in protecting and storing quality water. We do this by being the best water tank company for our customers and employees.

Maguire is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE). Maguire complies with all applicable federal, state and local laws regarding hiring and employment. Qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or veteran status.