Hybrid Design Manager - Water/Wastewater Preconstruction Lead

Wharton-Smith, Inc.; Sanford (FL); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Wharton-Smith, Inc. is seeking an experienced Design Manager or Project Manager to support municipal water and wastewater projects from pursuit through GMP development.

Based in the Jacksonville, Florida area, this hybrid role works on projects from $4M to $500M and emphasizes early strategy, design collaboration, constructability, and owner engagement with estimating and operations teams. The role requires a Bachelor’s degree in a related field, 7+ years in municipal Water/Wastewater, strong

Qualifications

• 7+ years in municipal Water/Wastewater construction or design.
• Experience as a Project Manager on municipal Water/Wastewater projects.
• Experience developing or supporting GMP pricing.
• Ability to collaborate with owners, engineers, and operations teams.
• Proficiency with scheduling software (P6 preferred) and cost management systems.

Responsibilities

• Support proposal development, RFQs and RFP responses.
• Participate in client interviews and presentations.
• Establish and maintain strong municipal owner and engineer relationships.
• Lead coordination between engineering and estimating teams during design phase.
• Review drawings, geotechnical reports, and specifications for constructability.
• Identify and mitigate project risks early in the design process.
• Provide constructability comments and coordinate subcontractor participation.
• Develop and coordinate GMP budgets and bid packages.
• Maintain preconstruction schedules in P6 and align with operations for construction planning.
• Lead milestone and stakeholder coordination meetings.
• Track preconstruction financials and costs.
• Provide value engineering solutions to meet budget and objectives.
• Ensure compliance with municipal funding requirements and assist construction transition.

Skills

Project leadership

Client communication

Stakeholder engagement

Risk management

Constructability reviews

Schedule management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Civil, Mechanical, or Electrical Engineering or related field

Tools

Primavera P6

Job description

Wharton-Smith, Inc. is seeking an experienced Design Manager or Project Manager to support municipal water and wastewater projects from pursuit through GMP development.

Based in the Jacksonville, Florida area, this hybrid role works on projects from $4M to $500M and emphasizes early strategy, design collaboration, constructability, and owner engagement with estimating and operations teams. The role requires a Bachelor’s degree in a related field, 7+ years in municipal Water/Wastewater, strong