What are the responsibilities and job description for the Director – Construction & Project Development (Water/Wastewater Infrastructure) position at Elan Partners?
Director – Construction & Project Development (Water/Wastewater Infrastructure)
Direct Hire Opportunity
No Sponsorship
Onsite - Jacksonville, FL
This role combines strategic business development, client leadership, and operational oversight across large-scale infrastructure projects. The ideal candidate brings deep experience in municipal and industrial water/wastewater construction, has operated at a General Contractor (GC) or design-build level, and has successfully led both project execution and preconstruction efforts (including CMAR or Progressive Design-Build delivery). This individual has a strong, stable career progression, established market relationships, and thrives in a highly visible, client-facing leadership role.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Construction Management, or related field (or equivalent experience)
- 10–15 years of progressive leadership experience in construction, engineering, or project development
- Direct experience supporting municipal and/or industrial water/wastewater infrastructure projects (treatment plants, pump stations, pipelines, etc.)
- Proven experience operating at a General Contractor (GC), CMAR, or Progressive Design-Build level on projects $50M
Demonstrated experience leading both project execution and preconstruction/project development efforts, including:
- Proposal development, RFQs/RFPs, and client presentations
- GMP development, estimating, and pricing strategy
- Contract negotiation and procurement strategy
- Strong operational leadership experience overseeing multiple projects and/or project teams simultaneously
- Experience leading full construction scope, including:
- Subcontractor strategy and buyout oversight
- Field execution, safety, and quality management
- Schedule and cost control across multiple projects
- Change management and risk mitigation
- Coordination across disciplines through project completion and turnover
- Proven ability to manage financial performance, including forecasting, cost reporting, and margin improvement
- Strong client-facing and business development skills with a track record of building and maintaining long-term relationships
- Experience recruiting, mentoring, and developing high-performing project and construction teams
- Knowledge of insurance, risk management, and contract compliance practices
- Strong leadership, communication, negotiation, and decision-making skills
- Professional Engineer (PE) license and/or DBIA certification is a plus
- Texas market experience strongly preferred
- Willingness to travel as needed based on project and client demands
- Consistent, stable career progression (candidates with frequent short-term roles or primarily contract-based backgrounds are not a fit)
Responsibilities
- Provide leadership across both project development and field construction operations within the water/wastewater market
- Lead proposal strategy, pricing, and client negotiations for RFQs/RFPs and new project pursuits
- Serve as a senior client interface, building relationships and driving repeat business opportunities
- Oversee planning, design coordination, permitting, and construction execution for large-scale infrastructure projects
- Support and guide preconstruction activities, including estimating, scheduling, procurement strategy, and GMP development
- Establish and implement construction policies, procedures, and best practices across projects
- Oversee project performance across schedule, cost, quality, and safety metrics
- Provide strategic direction on construction methods, staffing plans, and self-perform work where applicable
- Review project financials, identify risks or cost overruns, and implement corrective actions
- Ensure subcontractor compliance, including insurance, bonding, and contractual obligations
- Participate in key project meetings, including design reviews, kickoff meetings, and client updates
- Oversee change management processes, including high-risk or complex owner change orders
- Direct project closeout activities and warranty execution across assigned projects
- Lead recruitment, hiring, development, and performance management of project and construction personnel
- Mentor and develop Project Managers, ensuring growth of internal talent and leadership pipeline
- Support dispute resolution, claims management, and risk mitigation across projects
This is an opportunity to step into a highly visible leadership role with a strong platform for growth, overseeing both the strategic and operational aspects of major infrastructure projects while building long-term client partnerships.