Senior Project Manager (Mission Critical/Data Centers)

WSP in the U.S.; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

kW Mission Critical Engineering, a WSP company, is seeking a Senior Project Manager in Houston, TX to lead diverse engineering teams from initiation through completion. You will coordinate with clients, write proposals, manage budgets, change orders, invoicing and project closeout.

The ideal candidate brings 7+ years in engineering project management, excellent communication, and the ability to oversee complex, multi-disciplinary projects in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.
• 7+ years of experience in Project and/or Program Management on large engineering/construction projects.
• Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams; manage scope, cost and quality to successful completion.
• Excellent written and oral communication; presentations to senior management.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills and collaboration across disciplines.
• Clear, concise, tactful communication with senior management, clients, peers and staff.
• Strategic, analytical thinking and decision-making abilities.
• Adaptability and ability to manage deadline pressure, ambiguity and change.
• Experience negotiating contract terms.
• Proficiency with MS Office and project management software.
• Ability to read drawings and specifications.

Responsibilities

• Lead multi-disciplinary teams of Engineers, Designers and staff through multiple projects from initiation to completion.
• Prepare work plans, proposals, and schedules; obtain management/client approvals.
• Communicate project status and quality to clients; resolve issues proactively.
• Manage stakeholder relationships and project deliverables to meet schedules.
• Address change management with clients and internal departments.
• Monitor budgets, KPIs and forecasting for projects.
• Lead business development initiatives including RFQs/RFPs.
• Prepare scope of work and fee estimates for approvals.
• Mentor team members and junior Project Managers.
• Ensure project records and correspondence are maintained.
• Schedule and facilitate project meetings; manage subconsultant agreements.

Skills

Project management

Communication

Budgeting

Client management

Leadership

Scheduling

Contract negotiation

MS Office

PM software

Education

Bachelor's degree

PMP Certification (preferred)

Tools

MS Project

Job description

Overview

Great people. Great places. Great projects. kW Mission Critical Engineering, a WSP company, is a high-performance, fast‑paced consulting engineering firm designing data centers and mission critical environments across the globe. We hire smart, responsive, team players to work in collaborative and mentoring office settings. Our mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, controls, telecommunications, and security building system designs keep many of the world’s top Fortune 100 financial, technology, enterprise, hyperscale, and colocation companies up and running 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Opportunity

kW Mission Critical Engineering, a WSP company, is currently looking for a Senior Project Manager for our Houston, TX office. As a Senior Project Manager with us, you will lead a diverse group of engineers from project initiation through completion with minimal oversight. This includes regular communications and coordination with clients, managing expectations, writing and managing proposals, creating change orders, composing budgets, invoicing and project closeout.

Your Impact

• Lead multi-disciplinary teams of Engineers, Designers and other staff through completion of multiple simultaneous projects ranging from small to large with a wide range of complexities and requirements
• Independently prepare project work plans, proposals, and schedules, and obtain management/client approval
• Lead and initiate regular communications with clients regarding project status and project quality, and proactively resolve issues
• Manage relationships with project stakeholders, including internal and external clients and vendors, regulatory authorities and technical agencies, and the public. This involves keeping the stakeholders informed of progress and issues in order to manage expectations on all project requirements and deliverables, and meet the project schedule
• Address change management matters promptly and professionally with clients and internal departments
• Maintain awareness of project budget maintenance, key performance indicators and forecasting
• Lead and manage business development initiatives including Requests for Qualifications and Requests for Proposals
• Compile a comprehensive and realistic scope of work, and prepare a complete and accurate fee estimate, in a format suitable for obtaining the required management approvals
• As Team Leader, provide mentoring, assistance, encouragement and motivation to team members and junior Project Managers
• Provide strong administrative and technical leadership for the project and maintain all project records and monitor correspondence
• Schedule and facilitate all project meetings required to successfully coordinate work activity
• Administer subconsultant agreements as assigned. Have thorough knowledge of the company's contracts and understanding of all parties involved.
• Implement and manage the kW Quality Control Plan for each project
• Proactively track and report workload management throughout the project
• Manage client and subconsultant invoicing

Who You Are

The ideal candidate has experience managing multiple projects simultaneously in an engineering consulting environment. Candidate thrives in an extremely fast‑paced and ever‑changing environment requiring flexibility, pivoting, and an open‑minded approach and has experience working in a client‑facing role requiring extensive communication and knowledge of costing, budgets, and scheduling and/or resourcing.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree
• 7+ years of experience in Project and/or Program Management and experience on large, engineering and/or construction projects
• Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams of project professionals; concurrently managing issues, scope and quality while bringing projects to successful completion within the cost and time requirements
• Exceptional written and oral communication skills, including experience making presentations to senior management
• Exceptional interpersonal skills
• Ability to work well with people from many different disciplines with varying degrees of technical experience
• Clear, concise, and tactful communication with senior management, clients, peers and staff
• Strategic, conceptual analytical thinking and decision‑making skills
• Adaptability and flexibility including the ability to manage deadline pressure, ambiguity and change
• Experience negotiating contract terms
• Proficiency with computer office productivity (i.e., MS Office) and project management software tools
• Detail oriented with ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines
• Familiarity reading drawings and specifications

Preferred Qualifications

• Project or Program Management Professional certification (i.e., PMP)
• Experience in an engineering consulting environment
• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, construction management, project management
• Experience in project planning, cost management and schedule management, and methods of analyzing and reporting project performance on financial and other KPIs

About WSP

WSP USA is the U.S. operating company of WSP, one of the world's leading engineering and professional services firms. Dedicated to serving local communities, we are engineers, planners, technical experts, strategic advisors and construction management professionals. WSP USA designs lasting solutions in the buildings, transportation, energy, water and environment markets. With more than 15,000 employees in over 300 offices across the U.S., we partner with our clients to help communities prosper.

www.wsp.com

WSP provides a flexible and agile workplace model while meeting client needs. Employees are also afforded a comprehensive suite of benefits including medical, dental, vision, disability, life and retirement savings focused on providing health and financial stability throughout the employee’s career.

Equal Opportunity Employer

WSP USA (and all of its U.S. companies) is an Equal Opportunity Employer Race/Age/Color/Religion/Sex/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity/National Origin/Disability or Protected Veteran Status.

The selected candidate must be authorized to work in the United States.

Notice To Third Party Agencies

WSP does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiters, employment agencies, or other staffing services. Unsolicited resumes, including those submitted to hiring managers or other business leaders, will become the property of WSP and WSP will have the right to hire that candidate without reservation – no fee or other compensation will be owed or paid to the recruiter, employment agency, or other staffing service.