Principal Engineer

Senior / Principal Civil Engineer - Office Leadership

Location: Salinas, California

Employment Type: Full-Time

Discipline: Civil Engineering / Public Works / Municipal Infrastructure

An established multidisciplinary engineering consultancy is seeking an experienced Senior or Principal Civil Engineer to take a key leadership position within its Salinas, California office.

This is an opportunity for an experienced civil engineering professional to combine technical project delivery, client management, business development and team leadership, while playing a major role in the continued growth of an established Central Coast operation.

The successful candidate will work closely with public and private-sector clients throughout Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties, while helping develop the local team, strengthen existing client relationships and identify new opportunities across the region.

The Role

Responsibilities will include:

Lead and manage civil engineering projects from planning and design through construction

Oversee project scope, budgets, schedules, staffing and quality

Manage multidisciplinary project teams and external consultants

Develop and maintain relationships with municipalities, public agencies and private-sector clients

Support and lead business development activities throughout the Central Coast

Identify new project opportunities and participate in strategic client development

Lead the preparation of proposals, statements of qualifications, RFP/RFQ responses and interview presentations

Provide technical oversight and quality control across engineering deliverables

Mentor, develop and provide leadership to engineering staff

Support the continued growth and development of the Salinas office

Represent the business within local industry, professional and community organizations

Coordinate with permitting agencies, municipalities and other project stakeholders

Project Experience

The position may support projects across a variety of civil and public infrastructure disciplines, including:

Municipal and public works infrastructure

Roadway and transportation improvements

Site and land development

Water resources and utility infrastructure

Stormwater and drainage

Capital improvement programs

Public agency infrastructure

Planning, design and construction support

Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate will bring:

Approximately 12+ years of civil engineering and project management experience

California Professional Engineer (PE) registration

Strong experience delivering projects for municipalities, public agencies or other public-sector clients

Demonstrated project management experience including scope, budget and schedule responsibility

Experience leading engineering teams and mentoring technical staff

Strong client-facing and relationship-management skills

Experience supporting or leading business development activities

Knowledge of proposals, RFPs, RFQs and Statements of Qualifications

Strong understanding of California public works and infrastructure projects

Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Ability to operate effectively as both a technical leader and client-facing consultant

Existing relationships with agencies and clients throughout Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and the wider Central Coast region would be particularly valuable.

Why Consider This Opportunity?

This position offers significantly more than traditional project management. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to help shape the future of a local office within an established engineering organization.

The role provides:

A highly visible leadership position

Opportunity to lead and grow a regional engineering team

Significant autonomy and influence over local market strategy

Established client relationships and company resources

Diverse public and private infrastructure projects

Strong long-term career progression

Competitive senior-level compensation and benefits

This opportunity would suit an experienced Senior Engineer, Principal Engineer, City Engineer, Public Works leader, Engineering Manager or established Project Manager who is interested in combining technical engineering with leadership, client development and business growth.

Qualified professionals interested in discussing the opportunity confidentially are encouraged to apply.