Chief Estimator; Oak Power; Req in Riverside Job Riverside area,California USA,Construction

Position: Chief Estimator (Live Oak Power) (Req #: 361) at Goodfellow Bros Inc in Riverside,

Chief Estimator

Location:

Riverside, CA

Position Summary:

As Chief Estimator at Live Oak Power, you will play a key leadership role in securing and delivering successful underground utility, electrical utility infrastructure, and TUG construction projects by preparing accurate, timely, and competitive estimates and bid proposals. In addition to leading the estimating process, this position is intended for an experienced professional who is capable of managing and developing the estimating department, establishing consistent estimating practices, overseeing workload and bid priorities, and supporting the continued growth of the organization.

Working closely with senior estimators, the President, and Project Teams, you will help develop winning bids, provide guidance and oversight to estimating staff, and ensure a seamless transition to Project Management once projects are awarded. You will also support project success throughout construction by assisting with change orders, providing ongoing estimating expertise, and contributing to effective account management and overall project profitability.

This role is ideal for a collaborative, detail-oriented leader who can balance hands-on estimating responsibilities with departmental leadership and who is committed to upholding Live Oak Power's high standards of safety, professionalism, quality, and operational excellence.

Position Description

Estimating and Preconstruction Leadership

Lead the estimating and preconstruction process for underground utility, electrical utility infrastructure, and TUG construction projects.

Oversee the development of accurate, competitive, and timely estimates from initial opportunity review through final bid submission.

Review plans, specifications, contracts, geotechnical reports, and other bid documents to define scope, evaluate constructability, and identify cost, schedule, and contractual risks.

Establish pursuit strategies, assign estimating responsibilities, and oversee quantity take-offs, production assumptions, labor, equipment, material, subcontractor, and indirect cost pricing.

Lead pre-bid meetings, site visits, bid strategy sessions, and final estimate reviews with executive and operational leadership.

Ensure adequate subcontractor and supplier coverage, clearly defined scopes, and competitive pricing.

Use historical cost data, production rates, and market conditions to improve estimate accuracy and inform bid decisions.

Ensure proposals, bid summaries, assumptions, exclusions, and supporting documents are complete, accurate, and submitted on time.

Team Leadership and Development

Lead, mentor, and develop estimators and preconstruction team members, providing technical guidance, workload direction, performance feedback, and career development support.

Assign estimating responsibilities based on project complexity, team capacity, and individual experience while maintaining accountability for deadlines and deliverables.

Review the work of estimators to ensure accuracy, consistency, completeness, and compliance with established estimating procedures.

Promote collaboration, accountability, continuous learning, and knowledge sharing across the estimating and operations teams.

Support recruiting, onboarding, training, and succession planning for the estimating department.

Operational Collaboration

Partner with the President, executive leadership, project management, field operations, and other key stakeholders to evaluate opportunities and develop competitive, executable project strategies.

Lead project turnover meetings following award, ensuring the project team understands the estimate, scope, assumptions, exclusions, subcontractor commitments, production expectations, and identified risks.

Support preconstruction planning, procurement strategy, scheduling, value engineering, and constructability reviews.

Provide estimating expertise during construction, including change order pricing, cost analysis, claims support, scope interpretation, and evaluation of project performance against the original estimate.

Collaborate with project teams to capture lessons learned, actual production data, and final cost information for future estimating use.

Process Improvement and Financial Oversight

Establish, maintain, and continuously improve estimating standards, procedures, templates, systems, and quality-control practices.

Maintain and enhance historical cost databases, labor and equipment rates, production benchmarks, subcontractor pricing, and market intelligence.

Monitor estimating performance, bid volume, hit rates, backlog opportunities, and estimate-to-actual results to identify trends and areas for improvement.

Recommend and implement estimating technologies, tools, and processes that improve efficiency, consistency, collaboration, and accuracy.

Support annual planning, forecasting, business development strategy, and evaluation of market opportunities.

Client Relations and Business Support

Participate in client meetings, pre-bid conferences, site walkthroughs,…