Director of Design Build Operations

Leadership across design, project delivery, client experience, and operations

B.A. Worthing is a family-owned design-build firm built on trust, craftsmanship, and a reputation for quality. As the company grows, we are adding a Director of Design-Build Operations to become the leadership and operating layer connecting design, project delivery, clients, people, and systems across the full project lifecycle.

This is a hands-on leadership role with responsibility for both the Design/Drafting and Project Management teams. You will help translate design vision into buildable projects, strengthen how work moves from design through construction, develop the people doing the work, and build the processes that allow the company to scale without losing the quality and service that built its reputation. Over time, routine design, project, client, and team decisions should increasingly be resolved through this role rather than defaulting to ownership.

• Lead design execution from feasibility and schematic development through construction documents, permitting, and plan-check; stay hands-on with drawings, technical review, and redlines when needed.
• Translate design vision and client objectives into buildable solutions while balancing aesthetics, constructability, budget, client expectations, and downstream construction needs; strengthen design quality controls and team capability.
• Lead design direction independently on projects under $500K. On larger projects, partner closely with ownership during an initial trust-building period, with independent authority expected to expand over time.

• Maintain portfolio visibility into status, milestones, dependencies, priorities, budgets, risks, and decisions across design, preconstruction, and construction.
• Create clear accountability through each project phase, surface risks early, resolve cross-functional issues at the appropriate level, and ensure information moves effectively between Design/Drafting, Project Management, estimating/preconstruction, and construction.
• Ensure Project Managers are prepared to assume construction-phase ownership with the right plans, project context, decisions, and expectations in hand.
• Review scope, estimates, proposals, assumptions, and supporting project information; identify constructability, scope, and pricing issues early enough to address them before construction.
• Keep design intent, project scope, pricing, and assumptions aligned; build working knowledge of B.A. Worthing's historical costs, estimating practices, and project economics.
• Strengthen checks and balances before estimates and cost breakdowns are presented to clients, reducing preventable scope gaps and late-stage pricing surprises.

• Guide clients confidently through design and project decisions, keeping them clear on status, next steps, decisions required, and potential risks.
• Drive proactive communication and timely follow-up, reset expectations early when timing changes, resolve routine issues without unnecessary escalation, and surface sensitive or high-risk matters appropriately.
• Build trusted relationships that reinforce B.A. Worthing's reputation and support strong satisfaction, repeat business, and referrals.

• Identify workflow gaps, bottlenecks, inconsistent practices, and areas that rely too heavily on individual knowledge; develop, implement, and continuously improve SOPs and workflows across the design-build lifecycle.
• Drive adoption—not just documentation—so agreed processes improve information flow, accountability, handoffs, and execution across teams.
• Optimize Job Tread and other operating tools around B.A. Worthing's real workflows so project information, visibility, standards, and reporting reinforce how the business should operate.

• Set clear expectations for performance, communication, accountability, and follow-through; provide regular coaching, feedback, and development.
• Address performance and interpersonal issues directly and constructively, navigate different personalities with strong emotional intelligence, and build team capability and confidence.
• Create an environment where routine questions and issues are resolved at the appropriate level rather than defaulting to ownership.

• Maintain visibility into construction schedules,…