Senior Civil Highway Project Manager

WSP; Minneapolis (MN); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

WSP in Minneapolis, MN seeks a Senior Civil Highway Project Manager to lead large-scale roadway programs for Minnesota counties and MnDOT. You will manage design teams, oversee budgets, and ensure technical excellence across planning, preliminary and final design, procurement, and construction phases.

You will mentor staff, develop proposals, and build client relationships to grow WSP's presence in Minnesota's transportation sector.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.
• 15+ years of post-education experience in engineering and civil design.
• Minimum 10 years of verifiable professional project management experience.
• Professional Engineer registration in Minnesota or ability to obtain within six months.
• Proven experience with Minnesota county and MnDOT projects.
• Experience with Bentley OpenRoads Designer software.

Responsibilities

• Lead identification and delivery of county and MnDOT highway projects across Minnesota.
• Manage design projects, studies, and tasks with QA/QC adherence.
• Lead preparation of preliminary and final design plans, cost estimates, and special provisions.
• Provide guidance and leadership to junior staff and project teams.
• Mentor staff and develop proposals, scopes, schedules, and budgets.
• Collaborate with clients, regulators, and partners to grow WSP’s Minnesota market.

Skills

Project management

Leadership

Communication

Strategic thinking

QA/QC

Self-leadership

Interpersonal skills

Client relationship

Education

Bachelor's degree in civil engineering

Tools

Bentley OpenRoads Designer

Job description

This Opportunity

WSP is growing its Minneapolis, MN office and is seeking a highly experienced and motivated candidate for our Senior Civil Highway Project Manager position. This position will be critical to delivering infrastructure solutions across Minnesota, with a focus on Minnesota county and Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) projects, while ensuring technical excellence and high-quality deliverables. This individual will join our Transportation & Infrastructure Group, lead client care and pursuits for county projects, provide technical expertise for MnDOT project pursuits, and lead and mentor staff. The successful candidate will have a comprehensive range of skills, including project management and roadway design experience related to preliminary and final highway design. The candidate must also be well versed in multiple county project delivery processes and have solid familiarity with MnDOT State Aid and MnDOT Trunk Highway project delivery processes. The candidate will have the opportunity to provide situational guidance to other project managers and managers addressing current and future challenges. This includes developing documentation and recommendations that accurately account for and address project risk, innovation, and future-ready considerations.

Your Impact

People and Culture

• Support and mentor local staff, emphasizing Minnesota standards, career development, and advancement of technical skills.
• Collaborate with engineers, planners, other professionals, and infrastructure authorities on federally, state-, regionally, and locally funded improvement projects.
• Develop a personal network and pursue proposal and business development opportunities.
• Interact effectively with others to develop high-quality technical and professional deliverables for projects and proposals.
• Inspire, motivate, and promote the best of WSP to our clients and communities, ensuring strong engagement and team morale.

Clients

• Participate in client engagement, build a personal network for yourself and WSP staff, and lead assigned client care programs.
• Drive the performance of the business to strategically grow our market share and ensure WSP is a preferred provider of engineering services.
• Determine client requirements and lead and contribute to the development of proposals, scopes, schedules, and budgets.
• Identify cross-business-line opportunities through discussions with industry partners and clients, focusing on Minnesota counties.

Expertise

• Lead the identification of potential projects by maintaining familiarity with multiple county capital improvement programs (CIPs) and positioning WSP for future requests for proposals (RFPs).
• Collaborate with WSP’s marketing team to deliver high-quality proposals for a variety of work types.
• Apply advanced civil engineering techniques and processes to identify improvements throughout complex infrastructure and transportation projects, including concept development, preliminary design, final design, procurement, construction, and operations.
• Manage design projects, studies, and tasks.
• Lead the preparation of preliminary and final design plans, cost estimates, and special provisions while developing staff capabilities in these areas.
• Work independently with minimal oversight and provide guidance and leadership to junior team or project members, with strict adherence to QA/QC procedures.
• Demonstrate a high level of self-leadership, with attention to detail and the ability to multitask and prioritize responsibilities.

Operational Excellence

• Lead small- and large-scale civil engineering projects by ensuring contributors understand their responsibilities and deadlines; preparing and overseeing project budgets; monitoring external events; tracking hours and expenses; ensuring satisfactory performance; and supervising subcontractors, contract work, and employees.
• Promote excellence and innovation in delivering high-quality technical products.
• Promote a commitment to improving and maintaining technical excellence.
• Provide leadership in technical and professional project activities.
• Foster innovation that helps clients view WSP as a trusted industry leader.
• Demonstrate a strong commitment to technical excellence and QA/QC procedures.
• Exercise responsible and ethical decision-making regarding company funds, resources, and conduct, and adhere to WSP’s Code of Conduct and related policies and procedures.

Who You Are

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.
• 15+ years of post-education experience in engineering and civil design.
• A minimum of 10 years of verifiable professional project management experience.
• Professional Engineer registration in the State of Minnesota or the ability to obtain registration within six months.
• Proven experience with Minnesota county and MnDOT projects.
• Background in Bentley OpenRoads Designer software.
• Ability to think strategically and creatively and develop approaches to challenging projects.
• Highly effective interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to express intricate ideas clearly and professionally to engineering and non-engineering audiences.
• Strong self-leadership and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to interact effectively, persuasively, and tactfully with clients, regulators, project managers, and employees at all levels of the organization.
• Ability to work independently and provide guidance and leadership to mid- and senior-level team or project members, with strict adherence to QA/QC procedures.

Preferred Qualifications

• Active membership in a local professional organization.
• Experience leading design teams on multidisciplinary projects, including subconsultant oversight.
• Experience with infrastructure planning and design, corridor studies, and rehabilitation projects.
• Knowledge of relevant county, MnDOT, and State Aid design criteria, specifications, codes, regulations, compliance practices, submittal procedures, and recordkeeping requirements.
• Extensive experience with local county transportation and MnDOT projects.
• Well-established client relationships and industry contacts, including counties, MnDOT, and business partners in the Minnesota marketplace.
• Sound decision-making, strategic and visionary thinking, and creative business development capabilities.