What are the responsibilities and job description for the Construction Project Manager position at CandidTalent?
Construction Project Manager (HVAC Controls)
Location: Ogden, Davis County and north Salt Lake area, Utah
Salary: $115,000 to $145,000 depending on experience
Schedule: On site five days, occasional overnight travel out of state
This is a leadership seat on federal work, which is a different thing entirely from managing commercial fit out.
The company is a controls and automation business that builds and services HVAC control systems and water and wastewater SCADA. Their northern Utah team runs projects on a federal site, with some municipal work alongside. The current project manager and the site lead are both moving on at the end of August, so they need someone to come in and take the whole thing rather than inherit half of it.
You would run a team of around six automation technicians plus subcontractors and vendors, and you would carry the budget as well as the schedule. It is a small enough operation that you actually run it. There is no layer between you and the VP of Operations.
What you'll do
Supervise the construction work day to day and keep it moving. Coordinate subcontractors and vendors, chair site meetings, and handle RFIs, submittals and the rest of the construction paperwork. Own safety compliance and run regular inspections. Track cost against budget, price and coordinate change orders, and report progress honestly to the customer and to your own management. Guide and develop the technicians on the team.
What you'll need
A real HVAC background is the first thing. Temperature controls, DDC, building automation or mechanical HVAC construction, whichever route you came through. Five years or more supervising construction work, as the person accountable rather than the person tracking it.
Experience carrying a budget and handling change orders commercially. You need to be able to pass a standard background check for site access, though no security clearance is required.
Military service is a genuine advantage here. Much of the daily interaction is with uniformed customers, and people who have served tend to read that environment faster. A construction management, electrical or mechanical qualification helps, but strong hands on experience will be considered without the degree. OSHA 30 is welcome. You do not need to tick every box.
Why this role is worth considering
Federal work has funding behind it and does not disappear when the commercial market softens. The projects are local, the team is small, and the person in this seat is the one making the calls rather than passing them up a chain. Engineers and managers tend to stay in this kind of work because it is steady and the customer relationship is long term.
Reasons engineers join include:
• Real budget and P&L ownership, not schedule tracking
• A small team where your decisions actually land
• Steady federal and municipal project pipeline
• Medical, dental, vision, life, EAP, FSA, HSA, LTD and STD insurance, plus wellness benefits
• Education reimbursement and a clear route to advancement
The working setup
On site five days a week, based in the Davis County area with time at customer locations. Travel is up to 40% on paper, though in practice it means occasional multi day trips out of state to support work at another site. This is not a hybrid or remote role and it would be unfair to suggest otherwise.
The kind of person who will do well
Someone who is technical enough to challenge a technician's estimate without pretending to be the engineer, comfortable being the face of the company in front of a demanding customer, and calm when a job goes sideways. If you want a purely office based project management role, or you need remote flexibility, this will not be the right fit.
If you have the HVAC background and you have run construction on site, it is worth a conversation.
Salary : $115,000 - $145,000