PRINCIPAL OF CONSTRUCTION SERVICES
Employment Type
Full-time
FLSA Status
Exempt
Department
RC (Construction Services)
Reports To
VP – Federal Contracting
Direct Reports
Senior PMs, PMs, Construction Managers
Location
Indianapolis, IN
JOB SUMMARY
The Operating Principal (OP) is accountable for the operational excellence, financial performance, risk posture, and leadership of the Construction Services Program. This role focuses on execution, quality, margin discipline, safety, compliance, and talent development, while maintaining limited client-facing interaction centered on quality control, issue resolution, and senior-level alignment. The OP is also responsible for supporting the Managing Principal (MP), other service area Principals, and Business Development personnel in the acquisition of additional work for the service area.
The OP serves as the senior operational authority for remedial construction delivery and acts as a steward of firm standards, governance, and performance. The duties of this position are carried out with wide latitude, judgment and discretion, under direct supervision and direction of the MP of Construction Services.
ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS
Client Management
- Prioritize all August Mack work involving CS to ensure maximized work quality, scheduling and revenue.
- Participates in client communications related to project quality, execution issues, safety concerns, and corrective action plans.
- Verify all client commitments are achievable, documented, and aligned with contractual requirements before project integration.
- Serves as an escalation point for significant delivery, schedule, cost, or compliance issues impacting client confidence.
- Supports Client, Principals and Project Managers by reinforcing scope clarity, constructability alignment, and execution feasibility.
- Reviews and approves formal client correspondence related to claims, change disputes, or performance concerns.
- Support Company growth initiatives and Business Development efforts to secure and execute internal and external work by:
- Meeting with customer project team and contacts during execution of work and updating client information in Vantagepoint;
- Attending select client meetings with Principals to provide technical support;
- Presenting project approach to clients in kick-off meetings or project interviews;
- Providing resources and technical information to assist with bids and estimates.
Finance
- Direct and ensure program-level financial performance meets or exceeds targets for revenue, gross margin, backlog quality, and forecast accuracy.
- Reviews and approves project budgets, cost structures, and contingency strategies for major remedial construction efforts.
- Validate change order and cost controls regularly; ensure earned value tracking is updated by project teams.
- Partners with Finance to evaluate project write-ups, write-downs, reserves, and implement margin recovery plans.
- Supports capital planning decisions related to equipment utilization, subcontractor strategy, and self-perform investments.
- Provides leadership on pricing discipline and risk-adjusted margins for construction work.
- Support MP in preparation and implementation of annual CS business plan.
Risk Management
- Conduct regular health, safety, environmental, contractual, and financial risk audits and update mitigation protocols based on findings within the program.
- Reviews and acknowledges risks and implements all contracts, subcontract agreements, and project delivery approaches to mitigate risk
- Ensures compliance with insurance requirements, bonding, regulatory obligations, and client-specific risk terms.
- Leads response strategy for incidents, claims, disputes, and regulatory inquiries within 24 hours of occurrence.
- Establishes and enforces risk identification, mitigation, and escalation protocols across all remedial construction projects.
- Partners with Risk Management and Legal to continuously improve contract language, project controls, and field compliance practices.
Operations
- Provides executive oversight of project execution, scheduling, staffing, and delivery across the Construction Services Program.
- Ensures all employees maintain required certifications and verify compliance on a project basis. Establishes and enforces standard operating procedures, construction execution plans, and quality control frameworks.
- Implement operational improvements, staffing changes, and hiring needs based on evaluation of KPIs and service area goals.
- Reviews performance of at-risk or underperforming projects and directs corrective action plans.
- Ensures Project Managers effectively manage scope, subcontractors, change orders, documentation, and compliance with contractual requirements.
- Leads continuous improvement initiatives through post-project reviews, lessons learned, and refinement of construction execution and delivery processes.
- Champions early project planning and constructability reviews to reduce execution risk, improve predictability, and enhance project outcomes.
Personnel Management
- Leads, mentors, and develops Project Managers, Construction Managers, Field Leaders, and technical staff within the program.
- Defines role expectations, performance standards, and promotion readiness criteria.
- Participates in hiring, succession planning, and organizational design for remedial construction operations.
- Conducts or supports performance evaluations, coaching, and corrective actions.
- Promotes a culture of safety, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
- Serves as a visible leader in reinforcing firm values and operational discipline.
- Forecast staffing needs and lead hiring and advancement efforts, as necessary, to support growth.
- Maintain strong understanding of the morale and dynamics of CS.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES
Specific knowledge in the following areas is required:
- Civil and Environmental Construction
- Environmental and Health & Safety regulations
- Hazards inherent to environmental work and related safety measures
- Strong knowledge of soil and groundwater treatment processes and remediation system construction techniques
- Strong project management, scheduling, quality control and cost control skills
- Strong leadership, communication, and client management skills
JOB SPECIFICATIONS:
Education: Requires a bachelor's degree in construction management, environmental science, environmental engineering, geology, hydrogeology or a related field. Other combinations of education and experience that meet the minimum requirements may be substituted.
Recommended Experience: 10+ years of professional experience in environmental remediation, civil construction, or a related field including two years of management experience Must have knowledge of Microsoft Project or other equivalent scheduling software. PMP certification and/or QCM certification is a plus.
Additional Requirements: Must have a valid driver’s license, acceptable driving record, and physically capable of operating vehicles safely. This classification requires the use of a personal or company vehicle on company business. Individuals must be physically capable of operating the vehicles safely, possess a valid driver's license and have an acceptable driving record.
JOB CONTEXT:
25% travel to various Company offices and project locations; 75% office (controlled environment).
August Mack Environmental is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
