Chief Estimator

At Shawmut Design and Construction, we take pride in the culture we’ve built as a 100% employee-owned company—one that’s been recognized with more than 100 Best Place to Work awards. We’ve been honored as a National Fortune Best Workplace, a Fortune Best Workplace for Women, Millennials, and Parents, and one of America’s Best Employers by Forbes—along with numerous regional recognitions across our 15 offices nationwide.

Here’s a glimpse into what we offer:

• Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance.
• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) – Be an employee-owner!
• 401(K) with Company Match – Receive a company match up to 4% of your eligible pay.
• Generous Paid Time Off – vacation and sick time, 12 holidays, summer Fridays, and a yearly volunteer day.
• The Extras – Cell phone, laptop, tuition reimbursement, pet insurance, financial planning services, and more.

The purpose of this role is to manage the estimating team, and to ensure that projects are set up properly to be executed to the highest standards on all varieties of projects. Shawmut policies, procedures and protocol are to be promoted and managed throughout the estimating team, including the execution of the best practices. The responsibilities of this role include managing the estimating team workload, forecasting of staffing needs, reviewing/implementing/driving best practices, researching and implementing evolution of the estimating process, being an effective communicator, having good presentation skills, and possessing the ability to coach/mentor estimating staff/peers.

Your responsibilities:

• Maintains Sector radar of upcoming projects and works with operations to manage client’s demands for preconstruction services. Reports status of department and workload to management team.
• Attends weekly scheduling meeting and communicates with PXs in order to understand the new project opportunities. Assigns projects to individual estimators and establishes project teams. Educates project team members about client strategies and ensures that they execute them.
• Develops comprehensive understanding of project strategy and deploys this throughout the Estimating process and project set-up to ensure profitability, client satisfaction and the best subs for the job. Establishes mutually agreeable, profitable deal structure with client (i.e. negotiations, deal set-up, etc.) with little or no supervision.
• Ensures that the information required to begin the Estimating process is accurate and available. Acts as a liaison with project operations team to ensure all information is transferred at project start.
• Reviews all documents to the extent required to coach the estimating team in the development of the estimate. When required, coaches staff members on how to inspect a site to be fully versed on how the site will affect subcontractor pricing. This includes working with Operations to include a site logistics plan.
• Understands areas of risk and profitability to focus project team decision making.
• Coaches, mentors and drives the use of Shawmut policies, protocols and procedures, for each project and team to ensure that projects are estimated and built the “Shawmut Way”.
• Manages individual and team members to milestones to ensure that your knowledge of the project and its requirements is always one step ahead of the Subcontractors.
• Reviews and Monitors Estimating and Preconstruction budget ensuring that the team stays on course. Reviews any overruns with the Sector Lead and PXs and adjusts the budgets accordingly.
• Ensures that the best bids are obtained for each trade, based on the needs of the project. Uses knowledge of appropriate pricing and marketplace to evaluate Subcontractor proposals.
• Articulates the impact of union/open shop environment on each project and ensure that it is incorporated into the Estimating and planning processes. Uses own up-to-date knowledge of trade jurisdictional issues in a union/open shop environment to accomplish this.
• Assists and reviews the preparation of budgets for all phases (i.e. conceptual, schematic, design/development, final phase). Ensures, when appropriate, a thorough reconciliation and Peer Review Process.
• Uses knowledge of negotiated, GMP and lump sum bidding to deliver outstanding client service and deliver the best price to the client.
• Provides input in GC/Fee proposals
• Ensures that the sub qualification process is inclusive of all the requirements in the final review of deal with owner including adequate market coverage. Ensures adequate market coverage by maintaining a current knowledge of local markets and qualified vendors.
• Guides multiple jobs and multiple job teams in the pre-construction and estimating phase.
• Acts in place of project manager or project executive to develop general condition studies prior to account responsibility being assigned.
• Provides sales support for presentations to owners, developers and architects.
• Establishes annual performance goals for each direct report and ensures that goals are established for direct reports. Conducts timely and meaningful verbal and written performance evaluations for direct reports and ensures that the same is done for his/her direct reports.
• Inspires, educates and coaches estimating staff to deliver superior client service, profitably. Demonstrates effective relationship building within the project team, and throughout Shawmut.
• Formally plans, develops and executes specific client strategies to ensure client intimacy and maximize account opportunities. While maintaining existing relationships, builds new relationships with existing and potential clients.
• Works closely with the Sector management team to develop and execute a strategic plan for the Sector. This includes growth strategies, market focus, people development, etc. Attends strategic industry functions to further Shawmut’s visibility and reputation in the marketplace.
• Develops and maintains client and industry relationships at the appropriate level reinforcing Shawmut’s commitment to continuously addressing their needs and interests.
• Always promotes positive subcontractor relations for all the project team members by dealing professionally and fairly with all subcontractors and vendors instilling this philosophy in project teams.

• Experience: 15+ years of solid estimating experience.
  • Management experience: coaching, feedback delivery, delegating and mentorship.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in construction related field.
  • Additional Role Specific Skills:
    • Vast knowledge of all trades & all phases of the preconstruction processes: scope, time frames/field execution, typical missed scope/exposures, conceptual, final pricing/competitive bidding.
    • Demonstrated communication and presentation skills.
    • Knowledge of contract types and deal structures.

Shawmut prohibits discrimination against any staff member or applicant on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, age, religion, national origin, marital status, veteran status, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, genetic information, disability, creed, citizenship status, or any other legally protected characteristic.

Miami Base Salary Range: $250,000 – $310,000  The range stated is specific to Miami.  Placement within the listed range depends on many factors including, but not limited to years of experience, project size capability (for Construction & Field roles) and internal company equity.