Field Operations Manager

Construction & Landscaping Operations Manager

Employment Type: Full-TimeSchedule: Monday–Friday, approximately 7:00 AM–5:00 PM, with additional hours as neededReports To: Owners

Position Overview

We are a growing landscaping and outdoor construction company seeking an experienced, highly organized Construction & Landscaping Operations Manager to oversee our field crews and day-to-day production.

This is a hands-on leadership position. The Operations Manager will be responsible for making sure jobs are properly scheduled, crews understand the scope of work, projects are completed efficiently, customers receive quality work, and problems are resolved without requiring constant involvement from the owners.

We currently operate multiple crews performing landscaping, property maintenance, cleanups, pruning, planting, irrigation, fencing, hardscaping, outdoor construction and related property improvement services.

The ideal candidate does not need to personally be an expert at every trade, but must have strong construction/landscaping knowledge, excellent judgment, leadership ability, and the confidence to manage employees in the field.

Primary Responsibilities

Crew & Field Management

• Manage multiple landscaping and construction crews throughout the workday.
• Conduct or lead the morning crew meeting and make sure each crew understands its assignments.
• Ensure crews have the correct equipment, materials and information before leaving for jobs.
• Assign employees based on their skills and the requirements of each project.
• Visit active jobsites throughout the day to monitor progress and quality.
• Hold crew leaders accountable for productivity, workmanship and professionalism.
• Train employees on proper landscaping and construction techniques.
• Identify employees who need additional training or are not meeting company standards.
• Help management evaluate employee performance.
• Maintain a professional, respectful and productive work environment.
• Address attendance, productivity and behavioral problems promptly.

Scheduling & Production

• Build and manage daily and weekly production schedules.
• Coordinate multiple crews, vehicles, trailers and equipment.
• Review upcoming jobs before they are scheduled to ensure the scope, labor and material requirements are understood.
• Determine appropriate crew sizes and estimated labor hours.
• Monitor estimated labor hours versus actual labor hours.
• Adjust schedules when jobs take longer or shorter than expected.
• Minimize unnecessary drive time, downtime and repeated trips for materials.
• Keep crews productive throughout the workday.
• Communicate schedule changes to employees and office staff.

Quality Control

• Understand the scope of work before each project begins.
• Inspect jobs during production and/or before completion.
• Ensure work meets company standards and customer expectations.
• Verify that crews complete all items included in the customer’s estimate.
• Require before-and-after photos and proper job documentation.
• Identify problems before the customer has to complain.
• Coordinate corrections when work does not meet company standards.
• Reduce callbacks, rework and customer complaints.
• Create and enforce consistent quality standards across all crews.

Landscaping & Construction Knowledge

Candidates should have working knowledge of several of the following:

• Lawn mowing and edging
• Pruning and shrub maintenance
• Landscape cleanups
• Planting
• Mulch and bark installation
• Weed management
• Irrigation systems
• Drainage
• Fencing
• Decks and pergolas
• Pavers and patios
• Retaining walls
• Basic concrete work
• Outdoor construction
• Equipment operation
• Material estimating
• Jobsite safety

Expert-level knowledge of every service is not required, but the Operations Manager must be experienced enough to recognize good versus poor workmanship and know when additional expertise is needed.

Customer Service

• Communicate professionally with customers regarding active projects.
• Confirm that crews understand what the customer purchased.
• Address jobsite concerns before they escalate.
• Handle routine production-related customer questions and complaints.
• Perform final walkthroughs when appropriate.
• Communicate changes in scope to ownership before crews perform additional work.
• Protect the company from completing unpaid work that was not included in the original estimate.
• Help create an excellent customer experience from project start through completion.

Materials, Vehicles & Equipment

• Ensure crews have the proper tools and materials for scheduled work.
• Maintain standardized truck and trailer inventory.
• Coordinate material purchases and deliveries.
• Monitor equipment condition and report needed repairs.
• Help prevent lost, damaged or improperly used equipment.
• Ensure vehicles and trailers are kept organized and job-ready.
• Reduce unnecessary supply-store trips.
• Maintain accountability for company tools and equipment.

Estimating & Project Planning

Depending on experience, the Operations Manager may also:

• Perform onsite project assessments.
• Assist with estimates and job costing.
• Determine labor and material requirements.
• Review estimates before work begins.
• Identify potential complications before a project is scheduled.
• Help establish realistic production timelines.
• Provide feedback to the sales team when projects are being underpriced or incorrectly scoped.

What Success Looks Like

The Operations Manager’s primary goal is to create a field operation that does not require constant owner supervision.

A successful Operations Manager will:

• Keep crews productive and on schedule.
• Ensure jobs are completed correctly the first time.
• Reduce callbacks and rework.
• Improve communication between the office and field.
• Reduce unnecessary labor hours and material trips.
• Develop dependable crew leaders.
• Maintain high customer satisfaction.
• Protect company profit margins.
• Allow ownership to focus on sales, marketing and growing the company.

Qualifications

Preferred qualifications:

• 3 years of landscaping, construction, property maintenance or related field experience.
• Previous experience supervising field employees or multiple crews.
• Strong understanding of jobsite operations.
• Ability to read and understand scopes of work and estimates.
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills.
• Excellent communication and customer-service skills.
• Comfortable holding employees accountable.
• Ability to prioritize multiple projects simultaneously.
• Strong organizational and scheduling skills.
• Valid driver’s license and reliable transportation.
• Comfortable using a smartphone, scheduling software, photos, text messaging and basic business applications.
• Ability to work outdoors and visit active jobsites throughout the day.

Previous experience as a landscape foreman, construction superintendent, landscape production manager, field operations manager, project manager, crew supervisor or landscape operations manager is highly desirable.

The Person We’re Looking For

We are specifically looking for someone who is:

Proactive. You notice problems and solve them instead of waiting for the owner to tell you what to do.

Accountable. If a job is assigned to you, you make sure it gets finished correctly.

Organized. You can keep track of several crews and projects without things falling through the cracks.

Experienced. You can walk onto a landscaping or construction job and recognize whether the work is being performed correctly.

A leader. Employees respect you, but you are also willing to correct poor performance.

Customer-focused. You can speak professionally with homeowners and resolve concerns calmly.

Profit-conscious. You understand that taking twice as many labor hours as estimated, wasting materials and returning to correct poor work costs the company money.

Independent. You don’t need an owner following you around to make sure your responsibilities are completed.

Authority of the Position

This is a management position, not simply a crew-lead position.

The Operations Manager will have the authority to:

• Direct and reassign field employees.
• Adjust crew assignments.
• Correct unsafe or improper work.
• Stop work that is being performed incorrectly.
• Require employees to redo work that does not meet company standards.
• Recommend disciplinary action.
• Recommend hiring, promotion or termination of field employees.
• Coordinate equipment and vehicle assignments.
• Communicate directly with customers regarding production issues.

Major pricing changes, refunds, significant additional work and major financial decisions will remain with ownership.

Compensation

Competitive compensation based on experience.

Compensation may include:

• Base hourly or salary compensation
• Performance bonuses
• Paid time off
• Advancement opportunities as the company grows

Exceptional performance will be rewarded based on improvements in crew productivity, quality, customer satisfaction and overall profitability.

Growth Opportunity

Our company is actively growing, and this position has the opportunity to develop into a senior leadership role.

We are looking for someone who wants to help build systems, develop employees and grow with the company—not someone simply looking for another landscaping job.

The right person will play a major role in helping us build a landscaping and construction operation capable of running efficiently at a much larger scale.

Pay: $20.00 - $30.00 per hour

Benefits:

• Opportunities for advancement
• Retirement plan
• Safety equipment provided

Work Location: On the road

Salary : $20 - $30