Senior Operations Specialist; Water

Join to apply for the Senior Operations Specialist (Water) role at HDR.

Join to apply for the Senior Operations Specialist (Water) role at HDR.

At HDR, our employee‑owners are fully engaged in creating a welcoming environment where each of us is valued and respected, a place where everyone is empowered to bring their authentic selves and novel ideas to work every day. As we foster a culture of inclusion throughout our company and within our communities, we constantly ask ourselves:
What is our impact on the world?

We believe water is more than a resource, it's a shared responsibility. As part of our Water Business Group, you’ll help shape how communities manage water for generations to come. From delivering safe drinking water and treating wastewater responsibly to developing sustainable water supplies and protecting lives and property through flood control, your work will directly support public health, environmental sustainability, and infrastructure resilience.

HDR is looking for an energetic, hard‑working problem solver to become a full‑time Senior Operations Specialist to work on both municipal and industrial water treatment facilities. If you are someone who is looking to work on a variety of treatment technologies for multiple treatment plants, then this position will be for you. This individual will work on water treatment projects that can range from small municipalities to some of the most iconic in the United States.

You will not only be a part of our East Region team, but will be a key member of HDR’s nationwide Operations Team. This team is made up of other experienced maintenance and operations experts, and coordinate to share best practices, experience, and opportunities to utilize every team member’s unique expertise.

The work location will be at the HDR office closest to your current location. Please check the HDR website nearest to you.

• Support HDR project leaders at the local, state, and regional level on water treatment projects requiring input from Operations Specialists.
• Review drawings for operability review and Haz Ops analysis with an eye for what it takes to successfully operate a variety of treatment processes successfully.
• Manage operations and maintenance projects with both municipal and industrial clients. It will involve client interfacing, regulatory reporting, as well as personnel, subcontractor, and maintenance management.
• Develop startup and commissioning plans and host workshops to share those ideas with client’s contractors and operators to ensure the plan will work for each specific plant.
• Perform startup and commissioning of new water treatment facilities. This work involves you playing a key role in working alongside contractors and engineers to ensure the new equipment functions correctly before handing it over to the operations and maintenance staff.
• Perform formal and informal training to help our clients’ treatment plants operate as well as they can operate.
• Participate in the testing of facilities to ensure they are ready for startup and after startup they meet the capacity requirements of the design.
• Perform condition assessment and asset management tasks on water and wastewater facilities, using state of the art evaluation tools to efficiently capture the information and opinions that you generate.
• Perform operational or maintenance troubleshooting and evaluations on municipal and industrial water facilities.

Work will involve a base of projects in the southern portion of the central United States, but will also include projects in several sites across the country. This provides the opportunity to work on a variety of new and innovative projects, and provides a career path that has more growth than typical utility organizations.

This job may require 30 to 40% travel, more is possible. Weekend travel is normally not required.

• Minimum 10 years field experience in troubleshooting mechanical, electrical, and instrumentation equipment at water treatment facilities and/or resolving water treatment process problems. Additional construction experience is a plus.
• High level water treatment operator license or…