Demo

Principal Cost Controls Specialist

McDermott and Careers
Houston, TX Full Time
POSTED ON 3/25/2026
AVAILABLE BEFORE 5/22/2026

Job Overview:

The Principal Cost Controls Specialist interprets internal or external business issues and recommends best practices to improve cost and schedule. They will be tasked with solving complex cost management problems and will work independently with minimal guidance. The Principal Cost Controls Specialist may be required to guide junior personnel. As such, they must have in-depth expertise in costing and broad knowledge of the costing discipline within the project controls function.


Our ingenuity fuels daily life. Together, we’ve forged some of the most trusted partnerships across the energy value chain to make what was once just an idea a reality: laying subsea infrastructure thousands of feet below sea level, installing platforms hundreds of miles from shore, using our expertise to design and build offshore wind infrastructure, and reshaping the onshore landscape to deliver the energy products the world needs safely and sustainably.

For more than 100 years, we've been making the impossible possible. Today, we're driving the energy transition with more than 30,000 of the brightest minds across 54 countries.

Key Tasks and Responsibilities:

  • Implement McDermott processes and systems on projects
  • Lead the project controls team on large and highly complex EPC projects
  • Implement constructability concepts, (the how it’s built) and related interdependencies between Engineering, Procurement, Fabrication, and Construction in support of the Advanced Work Planning (AWP) process
  • Support the development of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) on complex projects with multiple partners and compensation types
  • Implement internal and contractual requirements on the project via the project controls execution plan
  • Lead setup and implementation of project controls systems
  • Responsible for the accuracy of project controls reports
  • Analyze and interpret cost forecasting and trending
  • Recommends solutions or recovery plans for problem areas
  • Lead preparation and review of the project monthly forecast
  • Support the project controls team in development of the cost spread and cash flows
  • Participate in proposal development, commercial alignment and project kickoff processes
  • Supervise and train junior personnel in all aspects of cost reporting
  • Lead the set up and maintenance of the progress measurement system
  • Implement and support the Change Management process
  • Lead change management efforts, including building of cost estimates and apply or manage amendments to the contract
  • Lead project reviews conducted with the client and internal management
  • Support the development and implementation of the Project Risk and Opportunity process
  • Participate or lead the weekly and monthly cost and schedule review meetings
  • Manage and maintain good client relations
  • Actively look for areas of improvement on project and company standards
  • Create Weekly/Monthly/Quarterly Reports
  • Assist in resource planning, recruiting, mentoring, and evaluations

Essential Qualifications and Education:

  • Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Finance, Engineering, or Construction Management is preferred or
  • 10 years of experience in Project Controls
  • Must have experience in a large-scale mega-project in Oil & Gas and Offshore Construction
  • Highly competent in the use of critical project management concepts such as EVM, project planning, risk analysis, and progress measurement)
  • Experienced in Microsoft Office applications
  • Project Management Professional is a plus
  • Understanding of Cost and Progress management systems is a plus Work independently with little or no supervision
  • Great communication and presentation skills, both written and spoken
  • Experienced in both Cost and Schedule with a focus on Cost Management
  • Understand the relationship between estimating, cost management, progress, schedule, and project accounting
  • Basic understanding of JDE Edwards is a plus

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Salary.com Estimation for Principal Cost Controls Specialist in Houston, TX
$98,132 to $123,316
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