Water Business Group Professional Services Director

HDR; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 175,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical

Dental

Vision

Retirement plan

Paid time away

Parental leave

Paid holidays

Tuition reimbursement

Job summary

HDR is an employee-owned firm delivering water infrastructure projects worldwide. As the WBG Professional Services Director, you will provide executive leadership for technical quality, project delivery excellence, and professional practice across the matrix organization.

Reporting to the WBG President, you’ll align practice groups, drive continuous improvement, and position HDR as a leader in the global architecture marketplace while supporting recruiting and delivery initiatives.

Qualifications

• 15 years of experience in professional services, program management, or related fields.
• Demonstrated experience building and leading technical teams and practices.
• Active involvement in AEC industry associations.
• Commitment to HDR's employee-owned culture.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and training of staff in technical, professional, business, and service delivery competencies.
• Develop approaches to new or developing technologies and digital delivery in the group.
• Lead evaluation, implementation, and adoption of professional services technologies to improve quality and delivery.
• Coordinate and monitor staff training in company policies and processes.
• Lead continuous improvement through development of technical standards and best practices.
• Support business group activities related to recruiting, hiring, retaining, and developing key staff; workload and resource balancing; involvement in associations; delivery growth and risk management.
• Partner with project and program delivery services, including program management, project management, construction management, owner's advisor services, and delivery programs.
• Lead and coordinate development of technical and delivery approaches, risk management, and problem-solving for strategic initiatives.
• Lead QA/QC activities to ensure delivery quality and adherence to standards.

Skills

Professional engineering registration

Leadership and people management

Program/project management

Quality assurance

Stakeholder engagement

Risk management

Job description

At HDR, our employee-owners are fully engaged in creating a welcoming environment where each of us is valued and respected, a place where everyone is empowered to bring their authentic selves and novel ideas to work every day. As we foster a culture of inclusion throughout our company and within our communities, we constantly ask ourselves: What is our impact on the world?

Watch Our Story: https://www.hdrinc.com/our-story

Each and every role throughout our organization makes a difference in our ability to change the world for the better. Read further to learn how you could help make great things possible not only in your community, but around the world.

We believe water is more than a resource, it's a shared responsibility. As part of our Water Business Group, you’ll help shape how communities manage water for generations to come. From delivering safe drinking water and treating wastewater responsibly to developing sustainable water supplies and protecting lives and property through flood control, your work will directly support public health, environmental sustainability, and infrastructure resilience. We bring together experts across disciplines to solve complex challenges with bold thinking and technical excellence. Whether you're modernizing aging systems or pioneering innovative approaches, your contributions will make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. This isn’t just a job, it's a chance to lead change, drive progress, and leave a lasting legacy.

Reporting directly to the Water Business Group (WBG) President, the WBG Professional Services Director serves as a key member of the WBG Business Group leadership team, providing executive leadership for technical quality, project delivery excellence, and professional practice. The position aligns technical practice groups across the matrix organization, strengthens delivery capabilities, and advances consistent standards, processes, and best practices that enhance project performance, quality and client outcomes, to support high-quality project outcomes.

The Professional Services Director partners closely with business group operations, market sector, and technical leaders to advance technical excellence, strengthen professional communities, develop future leaders, and foster collaboration across disciplines and regions. Through leadership of quality, risk management, and delivery improvement initiatives, this role drives continuous improvement, supports alternative delivery strategies, and helps position HDR as a leader in the global architecture marketplace.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and monitor the development and training of business group staff in technical, professional, business, and service delivery competencies.
• Develop appropriate approaches to new or developing technologies, digital delivery methods, and service areas in support of business group and related company initiatives, including emerging delivery models.
• Lead the evaluation, implementation, and adoption of professional services technologies, digital delivery tools, and enabling systems that improve quality, efficiency, consistency, and risk management across the business group, including systems supporting program and project delivery.
• Coordinate and monitor staff training in company policies and processes including technical, business, ethical, safety, human resources, risk management, technology, quality, and service delivery program areas.
• Lead and monitor activities for continuous improvement, including the development and use of technical standards, procedures, best practice, lessons learned, and technology-enabled and delivery-focused processes.
• Support business group practice groups, professional discipline groups, project and program teams, and company initiatives related to productivity, organizational improvements, policy alignment, technology integration, and service delivery effectiveness.
• Partner with project and program delivery services, including program management, project management, construction management, owner's advisor services, and alternative and collaborative delivery programs.
• Lead and coordinate the development of technical and delivery approaches, risk management practices, and problem-solving efforts for strategic initiatives, key pursuits, complex programs, projects, and critical services.
• Lead quality assurance efforts to implement QA and QC Program activities that provide confidence the business group is fulfilling quality and delivery requirements and striving for continuous improvement.
• Monitor product and delivery QC review activities, including the assignment of experienced and qualified reviewers and effective resolution of project issues.
• Facilitate the effective use of Professional Associates in project and program delivery, QA and QC activities, development of best practices, lessons learned, mentoring, training, and technology adoption.
• Support business group activities related to recruiting, hiring, retaining, and developing key staff; workload and resource balancing; qualified staffing of project and program teams; involvement in technical and professional associations; publishing; community and client engagement; technology advancement, service delivery growth, and risk management.
• Support communication, coordination, and collaboration within the business group and across other business groups, including coordination with operations, cross sectors, marketing, corporate Professional Services, and technology leadership to advance delivery strategies.

Preferred Qualifications

• Maintains a professional engineering registration with extensive related technical expertise.
• Extensive experience in the leadership and management of professional services, program management, project delivery, construction management, owner's advisor, or alternative and collaborative delivery services on complex or large-scale programs and projects.
• Demonstrated success leading, mentoring, and developing diverse technical, professional, and service delivery teams.
• Proven ability to work cooperatively with company leadership, operations managers, business class directors, technical directors, and marketing leaders on professional services and delivery-related initiatives.
• Strong understanding of quality assurance, quality control, risk management, and continuous improvement practices related to professional and service delivery.
• Executive presence with strong interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to engage effectively with technical and non-technical audiences, clients, and partners.
• Demonstrated commitment to quality, continuous improvement, professional responsibility, and HDR values.

Required Qualifications

• 15 years of experience
• Demonstrated experience in managing and developing technical teams and practices
• Maintain AEC industry associations
• An attitude and commitment to being an active participant of our employee-owned culture is a must

What We Believe

HDR is our company. Together, we build on each other's life experiences and perspectives to make great things possible every day. This shapes our collaborative culture, encourages organizational trust and connects us closer to the clients and communities we serve.

Our Commitment

As employee owners, we all have a role in creating an inclusive environment where each of us is welcomed, valued, respected and empowered to bring our authentic selves to work every day.

Benefits and Compensation

The expected compensation range for this position is $175,000 - $300,000 depending upon skills, experience, education and geographical location. (Stated benefits are for full-time regular positions. Temporary and part-time roles eligible for limited benefits.)

• Medical
• Dental
• Vision
• Short and long-term disability
• Life insurance
• An employee assistance program
• Paid time away
• Parental leave
• Paid holidays
• A retirement savings plan with employer match
• Employee referral bonus
• Tuition reimbursement

Locations

Primary Location: United States-Nebraska-Omaha

Other Locations: United States-North Carolina-Charlotte, United States, United States-Wyoming-Cheyenne, United States-Pennsylvania-Bethlehem, United States-Oregon-Salem, United States-Maryland-Baltimore, United States-Texas-Fort Worth, United States-Montana-Missoula, United States-District of Columbia-Washington DC, United States-Wisconsin, United States-Maryland-Lusby, United States-Texas-Houston, United States-Michigan, United States-California-Irvine, United States-Wisconsin-Madison, United States-Washington-Tacoma, United States-Nevada-Reno, United States-Colorado-Fort Collins, United States-Iowa-Des Moines, United States-New York-Albany, United States-California-Folsom, United States-Oregon-Portland, United States-Washington, United States-Montana-Bozeman, United States-Texas-El Paso, United States-Utah, United States-Texas-Corpus Christi, United States-Washington-Seattle, United States-Nevada-Las Vegas, United States-Virginia, United States-Montana-Billings, United States-Texas-Dallas, United States-Montana-Helena, United States-Washington-Spokane, United States-Minnesota-Duluth, United States-Texas-Austin, United States-Texas, United States-Virginia-Virginia Beach, United States-Massachusetts-Boston, United States-Colorado-Denver, United States-Oregon-Bend, United States-Missouri-St Louis, United States-South Dakota, United States-Georgia-Savannah, United States-Arizona-Tucson, United States-Arkansas-Little Rock, United States-Pennsylvania-Mechanicsburg, United States-Washington-Olympia, United States-Tennessee, United States-Hawaii-Honolulu, United States-Arizona-Phoenix, United States-Kentucky-Louisville, United States-North Carolina-Greensboro, United States-Georgia-Atlanta, United States-South Carolina-Greenville, United States-Pennsylvania-Plymouth Meeting, United States-South Carolina, United States-Oklahoma-Oklahoma City, United States-Tennessee-Memphis, United States-Louisiana-Baton Rouge, United States-Virginia-Richmond, United States-Pennsylvania, United States-Ohio-Cleveland, United States-Iowa, United States-Florida-Tampa, United States-Ohio-Columbus, United States-Kentucky-Lexington, United States-Ohio-Cincinnati, United States-Washington-Bellevue, United States-Missouri-Kansas City, United States-South Dakota-Sioux Falls, United States-Oregon, United States-Alabama-Mobile, United States-Tennessee-Nashville, United States-Louisiana-New Orleans, United States-Florida, United States-Florida-Pensacola, United States-New Mexico-Albuquerque, United States-New York-White Plains, United States-Missouri-Columbia, United States-South Carolina-Charleston, United States-Virginia-Roanoke, United States-Colorado, United States-South Carolina-Columbia, United States-Virginia-Vienna, United States-Florida-Orlando, United States-Alaska-Anchorage, United States-Minnesota-Minneapolis, United States-Indiana-Indianapolis, United States-Pennsylvania-Pittsburgh, United States-California, United States-California-San Diego, United States-Michigan-Lansing, United States-Pennsylvania-Philadelphia, United States-Virginia-Glen Allen, United States-Florida-Miami, United States-New Jersey-Pennington, United States-Illinois-Springfield, United States-California-Sacramento, United States-Connecticut-Rocky Hill, United States-Michigan-Ann Arbor, United States-Utah-Salt Lake City, United States-North Dakota, United States-North Carolina-Winston-Salem, United States-Michigan-Detroit, United States-Washington-Everett, United States-Maine-Portland, United States-Montana, United States-Idaho-Coeur d'Alene, United States-North Dakota-Fargo, United States-New Jersey-Woodcliff Lake, United States-Illinois-Chicago, United States-California-Los Angeles, United States-Idaho-Boise, United States-North Carolina-Raleigh, United States-Texas-San Antonio, United States-West Virginia-Charleston

Industry: Water

Schedule: Full-time

Employee Status: Regular

Business Class: WW Treatment and Effluent Mgmt

Job Posting: Aug 25, 2026

At HDR, we are committed to the principles of employment equity. We are an affirmatively action and equal opportunity employer (https://www.hdrinc.com/equal-employment-opportunity-employer). We consider all qualified applicants, regardless of criminal histories, arrest and conviction records.