Director, Retail Field Installation Services

Midnight Oil; Grayslake (IL); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Imagine Group is seeking a Director of Field Services to lead the installation and field services organization, driving customer satisfaction, financial performance, and operational excellence across national programs. This role requires strong leadership, cross-functional collaboration, and a focus on continuous improvement.

The position oversees installer networks, risk management, and capacity planning to support complex retail graphics and related field service programs, with four days

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, Operations Management, Project Management, Construction Management, or related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 10+ years of progressive experience managing installation, field services, construction operations, or similar operational environments.
• 5+ years of leadership experience managing teams, project managers, or operational personnel.
• Experience managing budgets, profitability, forecasting, subcontractor relationships, and operational performance.
• Experience implementing operational processes, performance metrics, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Lead Installation Project Managers, Coordinators, and support staff with clear expectations and performance management.
• Drive workforce planning, talent development, succession planning, onboarding, and employee engagement initiatives.
• Own performance of installation and field services portfolio and ensure quality, schedule, and service delivery.
• Develop and maintain a national network of installation partners and field service providers.
• Monitor financial performance, budgeting, estimating governance, and subcontractor spend.
• Establish and monitor KPIs and scorecards to measure operational effectiveness.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic planning

Operations management

Financial forecasting

Team development

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business Administration or related

MBA (preferred)

Tools

ERP systems

BI tools

MS Excel

Job description

Description

Job Summary:

The Director, Field Services is responsible for the overall leadership and performance of Imagine's installation and field services organization. This role oversees portfolio execution, customer satisfaction, financial performance, installer network management, operational excellence, quality, safety, and team development to ensure successful delivery of complex retail graphics, signage, décor, and related field service programs. Success is achieved through strong leadership, cross-functional collaboration, operational discipline, and continuous improvement.

Requires four days onsite presence at our Grayslake location.

Job Description:

People Leadership & Organizational Development

• Lead, coach, and develop Installation Project Managers, Coordinators, and support staff through clear expectations, accountability, performance management, and professional development.
• Drive workforce planning, talent development, succession planning, onboarding, and employee engagement initiatives.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, customer focus, and continuous improvement.

Portfolio Execution & Customer Performance

• Own overall performance of the installation and field services portfolio, ensuring successful execution of customer commitments related to quality, schedule, communication, and service delivery.
• Establish workload balancing, project assignment, and resource allocation practices based on complexity, risk, geography, and team capability.
• Maintain executive-level customer relationships and support resolution of escalated operational issues.
• Ensure appropriate project controls, risk management, and recovery planning are in place across the portfolio.

Financial, Vendor & Capacity Management

• Own departmental financial performance, including profitability, forecasting, budgeting, estimating governance, and subcontractor spend.
• Develop and maintain a national network of qualified installation partners and field service providers.
• Ensure adequate installer capacity, market coverage, pricing discipline, and contingency planning to support customer programs and national rollouts.
• Monitor estimate-to-actual performance and implement corrective actions to improve operational and financial results.

Quality, Safety & Operational Excellence

• Establish and maintain installation quality, safety, compliance, and performance standards.
• Develop, implement, and continuously improve workflows, reporting, controls, and operating procedures.
• Lead root-cause analysis and corrective action efforts to improve execution, customer satisfaction, quality, and profitability.
• Establish and monitor KPIs and scorecards to measure operational effectiveness and drive continuous improvement.

Cross-Functional Leadership & Business Performance

• Partner with Sales, Account Management, Production, Logistics, Finance, and Operations teams to ensure seamless project execution.
• Lead installation-related handoffs, escalations, recovery planning, and risk mitigation efforts.
• Influence operational decisions and drive accountability across stakeholder groups to achieve business objectives.
• Ensure commitments, assumptions, budgets, timelines, and risks are effectively communicated and managed across functions.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• Leads and develops the Installation organization, including Installation Project Managers, Coordinators, and support personnel. Accountable for talent management, organizational capability, workforce planning, and performance outcomes. Provides strategic oversight of installation partners and subcontractors, ensuring capacity, quality, safety, schedule adherence, and customer commitments are consistently met.

Requirements

Minimum Qualifications of Position:

• Bachelor's degree in business administration, Operations Management, Project Management, Construction Management, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 10+ years of progressive experience managing installation, field services, construction operations, retail graphics programs, or similar operational environments.
• 5+ years of leadership experience managing teams, project managers, or operational personnel.
• Demonstrated experience managing budgets, profitability, forecasting, subcontractor relationships, and operational performance.
• Experience implementing operational processes, performance metrics, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Preferred Qualifications of Position:

• Master's degree in business administration, Operations Management, Project Management, or related discipline.
• 15+ years of leadership experience in retail graphics, signage, visual merchandising, field services, construction operations, or related industries.
• PMP, Lean, Six Sigma, or other professional certifications.
• Experience managing national installation networks and multi-site deployment programs.
• Experience leading organizational transformation, operational scaling, or process improvement initiatives.

Knowledge and Skills:

• Strategic leadership of complex installation, field service, or multi-site operational environments.
• Financial and operational management, including forecasting, budgeting, profitability, estimating oversight, and performance measurement.
• Vendor, subcontractor, and workforce management, including capacity planning and resource optimization.
• Quality, safety, compliance, and continuous improvement leadership.
• Strong communication, relationship management, negotiation, coaching, talent development, and performance management skills.
• Proficiency with project management, reporting, and business intelligence tools.

Working Conditions and Physical Requirements:

• Occasional walking
• Manual dexterity for repetitive work
• Frequent sitting for prolonged periods of time
• Regular travel to customer sites, installation locations, vendor facilities, and company offices
• Ability to visit active installation, warehouse, and construction environments
• Occasional evening and weekend support related to customer installations and project deadlines
• Ability to lift, push, and pull materials as required during site visits and inspections

EEO Statement:

The Imagine Group provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

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