Engineering Project Cost Controls Manager (Capital Forecasting

Engineering Project Controls Manager

Desert Holdings is the leading premium dessert company in the world. We craft artisanal, scratch-made desserts at scale, combining culinary innovation with the finest real ingredients. With a rich heritage spanning seven distinctive brands, we bring unmatched expertise and tailored solutions to our Retail and Food service partners.

Reporting to the VP of Engineering & Reliability, the Engineering Project Controls Manager is responsible for leading project controls, capital planning, portfolio reporting, and governance processes for the Engineering organization. The role provides oversight of capital forecasting, project performance management, capital approval workflows, portfolio analytics, and project controls standards across Dessert Holdings' manufacturing network.

The position partners closely with Engineering, Operations, Maintenance, Quality, Supply Chain, and Finance to improve capital effectiveness, strengthen governance, and provide visibility into project execution performance. The role manages one direct report and is responsible for the continuous improvement of project controls processes, reporting tools, and capital planning practices that enable successful project delivery across multiple food manufacturing facilities.

• Lead project controls for capital projects across multiple manufacturing facilities, ensuring effective management of scope, schedule, budget, risk, and project performance.
• Develop and maintain project execution plans, schedules, budgets, forecasts, and risk mitigation strategies in partnership with Engineering leadership and project teams.
• Establish and drive standardized project controls processes, including change management, cost control, forecasting, reporting, and governance.
• Manage the enterprise capital portfolio, including project prioritization, resource planning, forecasting, performance tracking, and strategic capital allocation.
• Lead annual and long-range capital planning activities while supporting business case development, ROI analysis, and investment decision-making.
• Own project and portfolio financial controls, including cost tracking, forecasting, accruals, commitments, estimate-at-completion processes, and capitalization compliance.
• Analyze project and portfolio performance, identify risks and variances, and recommend corrective actions to ensure successful project delivery.
• Develop, maintain, and present executive dashboards, KPIs, portfolio reports, and project performance metrics to support leadership decision-making.
• Facilitate cross-functional collaboration among Engineering, Operations, Maintenance, Finance, Supply Chain, Quality, contractors, and OEM partners to achieve project objectives.
• Lead project controls governance, stage-gate reviews, reporting standards, PMO tools, templates, and documentation practices to ensure compliance and consistency.
• Supervise, coach, and develop project controls support staff while promoting accountability, standardization, and continuous improvement across the function.
• Direct project closeout activities, including financial reconciliation, asset capitalization, records management, lessons learned, audit readiness, and continuous improvement initiatives.

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Construction Management, Project Management, Finance, Accounting, Business, or related field preferred. Equivalent professional experience will be considered.
• Minimum of 5–10 years of experience in project controls, capital planning, engineering project management, project management office (PMO), manufacturing finance, or related disciplines.
• Experience supporting capital project portfolios within manufacturing and industrial environments, with prior experience in consumer packaged goods (CPG), food, beverage preferred
• Demonstrated experience in capital forecasting, project reporting, cost controls, schedule management, or project governance processes.
• Experience leading cross-functional initiatives and influencing stakeholders across multiple sites and functions.
• Experience supervising, mentoring, or leading project support personnel is…