Estimating Director

The Estimating Director provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for the company’s national, trade-specific estimating function across refrigeration, HVAC, electrical, and carpentry projects. This role establishes estimating standards, leads and develops the estimating team, oversees bid strategy and final estimate reviews, and ensures proposals are accurate, competitive, timely, and aligned with company growth and profitability objectives. The Director partners closely with executive leadership, regional Construction and Project Managers, customers, subcontractors, suppliers, and field teams to define scope, evaluate risk, identify value opportunities, and support successful project pursuits and turnover.

Duties and responsibilities

• Direct the national estimating function and translate company growth, margin, and risk objectives into departmental priorities, standards, and measurable goals.
• Lead, coach, and develop trade-specific Estimators; plan staffing and workload, establish performance expectations, and support hiring, training, and succession planning.
• Establish, maintain, and continuously improve standardized estimating processes, cost databases, templates, and technology to enhance accuracy, speed, consistency, and visibility.
• Oversee the estimating lifecycle from opportunity review and bid/no-bid input through scope development, quantity takeoff, solicitation, pricing, review, submission, negotiation, award, and project turnover.
• Lead estimate kickoff, milestone, and final review meetings; verify complete scope coverage, assumptions, exclusions, escalation, contingency, labor productivity, subcontractor coverage, and commercial risk.
• Review and approve estimate packages before submission within delegated authority and present bid strategy, pricing, risk, and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Partner with customers and internal Account, Construction, and Project Managers to define project scope, resolve deficiencies, develop value-engineering options, negotiate pricing, and strengthen long-term relationships.
• Build and maintain productive relationships with subcontractors, suppliers, and manufacturers; drive competitive coverage, negotiate fixture, gear, material, and subcontract pricing, and monitor critical delivery requirements.
• Ensure all pursuits, bid values, status updates, award probabilities, and outcomes are accurately recorded in Fieldgetics; maintain a reliable forecast of anticipated awards and estimating capacity.
• Track departmental performance, including hit rate, gross margin, estimate variance, cycle time, backlog, and forecast accuracy; use results to improve decisions and processes.
• Oversee development of contractual exhibits, scope sheets, instructions to bidders, bid packages, material takeoffs, and supporting estimate documentation.
• Provide direction to field supervision and project teams to align execution planning with design intent, estimate assumptions, and cost-effective construction methods.
• Lead post-bid and post-project reviews, organize historical bid and cost information, and incorporate lessons learned into future estimates, tools, and benchmarks.
• Represent the estimating function in site visits, pursuit calls, customer presentations, and cross-functional planning meetings; communicate decisions and expectations clearly across the organization.
• Perform other related duties as required and assigned.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Experience and education

• Bachelor’s degree in construction management, engineering, business, or a related field preferred; an equivalent combination of education and progressively responsible construction estimating experience may be considered.
• Ten or more years of progressive estimating or preconstruction experience, including significant experience in refrigeration, HVAC, electrical, carpentry, or related specialty-trade construction.
• Five or more years of demonstrated leadership experience managing estimators, multiple concurrent pursuits, and geographically dispersed or multi-trade teams.
• Demonstrated success producing and reviewing complex estimates, leading bid strategy, managing commercial risk, and supporting profitable project awards.
• Advanced ability to interpret construction drawings,…