Director of MEP

Compensation: $140,000 - $170,000 / year

Department: Business Administration

Location: Fairport, New York

Compensation: $140,000 - $170,000 / year

Summary

The Director of MEP Engineering provides strategic leadership, technical oversight, and operational management of the firm's Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (MEP) practice. This role is responsible for leading the department's growth, ensuring high-quality project delivery, maintaining financial performance, developing staff, and strengthening client relationships. The Director of MEP Engineering collaborates closely with Architectural, Civil, Structural, and Business Administration teams to deliver integrated engineering solutions while advancing the firm's strategic objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide senior-level technical leadership and oversight across all MEP projects.
• Ensure projects meet quality standards, client expectations, budgets, and schedules.
• Develop and maintain departmental engineering standards, design protocols, QA/QC procedures, and best practices.
• Support project teams in resolving complex engineering challenges and mitigating project risks.
• Promote consistency in engineering documentation, specifications, and design standards.
• Encourage the adoption of emerging technologies, BIM workflows, energy modeling, and other innovative design tools.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with existing and prospective clients.
• Collaborate with Architectural, Civil, Structural, and other engineering disciplines to deliver integrated project solutions.
• Support Project Leads throughout project execution.
• Promote communication and collaboration across disciplines.
• Maintain availability for major client, project, or operational issues
• Develop and execute the strategic vision for the MEP Engineering Department in alignment with firm-wide goals.
• Partner with executive leadership to establish and maintain departmental strategic plans.
• Identify new business opportunities and strategic markets to expand MEP services.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with clients, owners, consultants, contractors, and industry partners.
• Represent the firm at industry organizations, conferences, networking events, and trade shows.
• Collaborate with Marketing to prepare proposals, presentations, and qualifications packages.
• Lead, mentor, and develop the MEP Engineering team, including Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing disciplines.
• Foster a collaborative, accountable, and high-performing team culture.
• Recruit, interview, hire, onboard, and retain top engineering talent in partnership with Human Resources.
• Conduct annual performance evaluations and establish professional development goals for managers and staff.
• Coordinate departmental training initiatives, including technical, project management, leadership, and software development.
• Conduct regular department meetings and maintain communication across departments.
• Serve as the escalation point for significant personnel or project-related issues.
• Collaborate with executive leadership to develop departmental budgets and financial targets.
• Monitor departmental financial performance, including Revenue, Profitability, Utilization, Backlog, Monthly billings, and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
• Forecast staffing and resource needs based on backlog and workload.
• Review project performance and recommend corrective actions when necessary.
• Ensure timely timesheet submissions and billing documentation.
• Balance resources across projects to maximize efficiency and profitability.
• Support continuous process improvements to enhance operational effectiveness.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related engineering discipline (Master's degree preferred).
• Professional Engineer (PE) license required.
• Minimum of 10–15 years of progressive MEP engineering experience, including leadership responsibilities.
• Experience within an Architecture/Engineering or multidisciplinary consulting firm is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated success leading multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Strong understanding of MEP building systems, project management, and engineering design.
• Proven business development and client relationship management experience.
• Strong financial management experience, including budgeting, forecasting, utilization, and profitability.

Preferred Software Proficiency

• Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Autodesk Revit
• AutoCAD
• BIM platforms
• Project management and resource planning software