Project Controls Manager

Luster National, Inc.; Sacramento (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Luster National, Inc. in Sacramento, CA seeks a Project Controls Manager to oversee large, complex heavy civil infrastructure programs. You will coordinate cost and schedule baselines, perform earned value analysis, and defend forecast figures with program leadership.

The role requires deep expertise in WBS/CSB, change control, risk integration, and mentoring junior analysts, with a track record on complex projects valued >$500M.

Qualifications

• Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent multi-tasking and organizational skills.
• Collaborative mindset that fosters teamwork, trust, and positive relationships.
• Natural curiosity, problem-solving abilities, and a commitment to continuous improvement.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the programs integrated controls system, including the work breakdown and cost breakdown structures, coding standards, and baseline change procedures, so cost and schedule data reconcile to the same source.
• Review and validate contractor cost and schedule submittals, including baseline schedules, monthly updates, progress payments, and contingency drawdown requests, against contract requirements and verified field progress.
• Analyze earned value, cost and schedule performance indices, and productivity trends, and surface the variances that will move the forecast before they show up in a monthly report.
• Evaluate change proposals, delay claims, and time impact analyses for cost and schedule merit, and recommend a position to program leadership.
• Oversee the program forecast, cash flow projection, and contingency and reserve position, and test the assumptions behind each of them.
• Coordinate the risk register with the cost and schedule baselines so quantified exposure carries into the forecast and into contingency decisions.
• May lead the monthly controls cycle, presenting cost and schedule status, trends, and recommended corrective action to program leadership.
• Coordinate controls across adjacent contracts and program interfaces so impacts that cross package boundaries are captured before they land in a claim.
• Coordinate that work across roadway and structures packages, systems and trackwork contracts, airfield phasing, and water and utility relocation work.
• Coordinate across estimating, scheduling, engineering, contracts, document control, and finance so one set of numbers supports program decisions.
• Oversee the controls data in the programs management information systems and verify that cost, schedule, and change records are complete, correctly coded, and traceable for funding agency reporting and external audit.
• May lead and mentor controls analysts and specialists, setting expectations for analysis quality, turnaround, and how findings get escalated.

Skills

Communication

Multitasking

Organizational skills

Collaboration

Problem solving

Continuous improvement

Interpersonal skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in construction management, engineering, finance, or business

Job description

Sacramento, California, United States

Position Title: Project Controls Manager

About the Positions

Were seeking Project Controls Managers to support large, complex heavy civil infrastructure programs, including highways, roads, bridges, transit (bus and rail), aviation (international airports), and water/wastewater projects delivered through both traditional and alternative delivery methods. These roles sit where cost, schedule, risk, and change come together, so the baseline, the forecast, and the performance a program reports all tell the same story. We are looking for people who can defend a number in front of a contractor and in front of program leadership on the same day.

This post is for future roles and not for a specific opportunity that is available right now. We accept applications and conduct interviews in advance of upcoming hiring needs. When a candidate is selected, their profile is activated in our talent pool for this specialty area. We notify our talent pool candidates first whenever we have a project need.

Responsibilities

may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Oversee the programs integrated controls system, including the work breakdown and cost breakdown structures, coding standards, and baseline change procedures, so cost and schedule data reconcile to the same source.
• Review and validate contractor cost and schedule submittals, including baseline schedules, monthly updates, progress payments, and contingency drawdown requests, against contract requirements and verified field progress.
• Analyze earned value, cost and schedule performance indices, and productivity trends, and surface the variances that will move the forecast before they show up in a monthly report.
• Evaluate change proposals, delay claims, and time impact analyses for cost and schedule merit, and recommend a position to program leadership.
• Oversee the program forecast, cash flow projection, and contingency and reserve position, and test the assumptions behind each of them.
• Coordinate the risk register with the cost and schedule baselines so quantified exposure carries into the forecast and into contingency decisions.
• May lead the monthly controls cycle, presenting cost and schedule status, trends, and recommended corrective action to program leadership.
• Coordinate controls across adjacent contracts and program interfaces so impacts that cross package boundaries are captured before they land in a claim.
• Coordinate that work across roadway and structures packages, systems and trackwork contracts, airfield phasing, and water and utility relocation work.
• Coordinate across estimating, scheduling, engineering, contracts, document control, and finance so one set of numbers supports program decisions.
• Oversee the controls data in the programs management information systems and verify that cost, schedule, and change records are complete, correctly coded, and traceable for funding agency reporting and external audit.
• May lead and mentor controls analysts and specialists, setting expectations for analysis quality, turnaround, and how findings get escalated.

Attributes

• Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent multi-tasking and organizational skills.
• Collaborative mindset that fosters teamwork, trust, and positive relationships.
• Natural curiosity, problem-solving abilities, and a commitment to continuous improvement.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelors degree in construction management, engineering, finance, or business, or related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 10+ years of project controls experience for large (>$500M), complex, heavy-civil infrastructure projects.
• Experience integrating cost and schedule data on a common work breakdown and cost breakdown structure, including baseline management and change control.
• Experience applying earned value methods and critical path schedule analysis to evaluate program performance and forecast outcomes.
• Experience reviewing contractor cost and schedule submittals against contract requirements and verified progress.