Dartmouth College

ZRG has been engaged to recruit a Director, Capital Projects for Dartmouth College.

Position:

The Director of Capital Projects has pivotal responsibility for the planning, execution, and management of Dartmouth’s capital program. The Director of Capital Projects provides strategic, operational, and technical leadership for the planning, design, and execution of both major & minor capital project initiatives across the institution. This role oversees the full lifecycle of capital development, from early feasibility and budgeting through design, construction, commissioning, and turnover, ensuring that projects advance institutional priorities, meet academic and research needs, and uphold standards for quality, sustainability, and fiscal stewardship.

The Director, Capital Projects serves as a key liaison among Campus Services leadership, faculty, administration, external consultants, and regulatory agencies. Serves as a thought leader with seasoned capital project delivery acumen and experience, with a thorough understanding of project delivery in institutional campus settings at all stages.

The position is also responsible for ensuring the successful delivery of capital projects assigned to direct reports, including planning, estimating, budget control, permitting, construction, scheduling, reporting, and problem solving. Besides capital projects, projects include both improvements and renovations to administrative, research, academic, residential, and athletic facilities to support the associated programs.

Dartmouth’s Campus Services Division is responsible for planning, design, construction and operation of Dartmouth’s buildings, campus landscape, and infrastructure. Dartmouth’s facilities include over 5 million square feet of space in 165 buildings. These facilities serve over 6,900 students and 5,000 faculty and staff in a variety of academic, research, administrative, athletic, and residential spaces.

Key Accountabilities:

Strategic Planning

• Capability to steward the development and execution of components within the multi-year capital plan, aligning facilities investments with academic, research, student life, and operational priorities.
• Ability to counsel leadership on capital project feasibility, cost implications, risk, and long-term campus infrastructure needs.
• Strategic principal and facilitator of the start‑up of key capital project initiatives and programs of varying scales.

Program Management & Execution

• Oversees capital project initiatives of varying scales.
• Develop proposals to substantiate program priorities and resulting impact on Dartmouth’s buildings, infrastructure, and capital/operating budgets. Assembles annual capital budget submission packages for projects within area of responsibility.
• Establishes estimating and cost control procedures to ensure efficient utilization of institutional funds.
• Works with Campus Services Financial Office to ensure appropriate fiscal, procurement, and resource administration within area of responsibility.
• Ensures assigned projects follow Dartmouth’s signature authority policy.
• Collaborate with the other leaders in Project Management and Campus Services to develop and apply project delivery methods to assure best value results. Contributes to project planning and programming in conjunction with other Campus Services team members.
• Evaluates and tracks performance parameters. Supports reporting to administrative, faculty and trustee committees on status of prospective and active capital projects. Ensures capital program database is kept up to date while maintaining the 5-year capital plan.
• Works with latitude and resourcefulness under the general guidance of the AVP of Project Management. Takes initiative in anticipating technical issues and problems that will confront the College.
• Responsible for successful management of capital projects during transition between the planning phase through assignment of a dedicated project manager. Develops initial cost estimates and project delivery schedules.
• Keeps stakeholders well‑informed of project status through regular team meetings and presentation of capital project reports. Takes leadership role to resolve areas of disagreement between project stakeholders. Collaborates and coordinates activities with the Directors and Managers within Facilities Operations and Management including project scope, impact on operations, and technical specifications.
• Together with the Associate General Counsel for Facilities and other Campus Services constituents, coordinates submissions to Jurisdictional Authorities for permitting, and ensures compliance with appropriate regulations.
• Responsible for project quality control, schedule management, and cost control. Provides budget and schedule updates, reviews proposed change orders, contracts, proposals, RFPs, and discusses project issues with the AVP of PM. Coordinates the value engineering process, as needed.

Staff Management

• Guides and gives technical and managerial assistance to subordinate employees in the performance of their duties. Collaborate with other Project Management leaders to ensure parallel personnel administration policies and objectives among staff.
• Serves as a role‑model, advocate, and mentor to direct reports and staff. Creates and sustains an environment that fosters teamwork, excellence, respect, accountability, and diversity.

Culture and Employee Belonging

We are actively striving to make Campus Services a desired place to work in the Upper Valley, a place where people feel welcomed, where they can be their authentic selves, be heard, and feel accepted. We want this culture to be felt by those who receive our services. The way we treat one another should be the same way we treat our customers.

• Demonstrates a commitment to inclusion, and cultural awareness through actions, interactions, and communications with others.
• Participates in division wide CEB initiatives and training, including promotion of the 7 Principles (Empathy, Fairness, Dependability, Inclusivity, Consideration, Vulnerability and Respect)
• Collaborates, when appropriate, on other CEB-related initiatives within the division and College

Demonstrates professionalism and collegiality through actions, interactions, and communications with others appropriate to an environment that is welcoming to all.

Performs other duties as required.

About Dartmouth:

Dartmouth College is a private Ivy League institution founded in 1769 and located in Hanover, New Hampshire. It is known for its strong liberal arts focus combined with research opportunities across disciplines. The college offers more than 40 academic departments and programs, giving students flexibility to explore the arts and sciences before declaring a major. Dartmouth College campus spans approximately 269 acres, providing a traditional residential campus environment. The institution maintain an relatively small enrollment of about 6,900 students, including roughly 4,600 undergraduates and 2,300 graduate students, which contributes to its close‑knit academic community.

Academically, Dartmouth emphasizes personalized learning, reflected in its low student‑to‑faculty ratio of about 7:1. This allows for small class sizes and close interaction between students and professors, many of whom are actively engaged in research and mentorship. The college’s mission is “educate the most promising students and prepare them for a lifetime of learning and of responsible leadership through a faculty dedicated to teaching and the creation of knowledge.” This mission underscores Dartmouth’s commitment to both intellectual development and leadership preparation in a global context.

Dartmouth’s core values center on academic excellence, collaboration, diversity, and integrity. The institution promotes independent thinking while fostering a supportive and inclusive community. It emphasizes recruiting talented students regardless of financial background and encourages open debate, mutual respect, and lifelong connections among students, faculty, and alumni. These values collectively shape a culture that prioritizes ethical citizenship, intellectual curiosity, and responsibility to the broader world, aligning closely with the college’s long‑standing educational mission.

Location:

Hanover, NH

Qualifications:

Minimum Qualifications

• At least ten years of direct experience in planning, design, and management major capital construction projects, including LEED certified buildings.
• Experience building effective capital programs of varying scales.
• Documented success in meeting budget and schedule targets.
• Bachelor’s degree in technical field (engineering or architecture) or related to construction or project management or the equivalent.
• Experience managing teams including staff resource allocation and deployment, training/skill development, and regular evaluation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with high performance building, landscape design, construction, and standards.
• Knowledge of utility systems, current energy efficient building systems, and energy conservation best practices.
• Conceptual thinker who is attentive to details.
• Ability to work with diverse and at times opposing constituencies.
• Familiarity with Town, State, and Federal codes and ordinances.
• Knowledge of OSHA construction safety standards and regulations.
• Ability to develop and maintain project budgets, cash flow projections, and schedules.
• Skills in interpreting architectural and construction contracts.

Why Is This A Compelling Position?

Dartmouth embraces diverse, energetic, and talented people who are driven to grow and succeed. Influenced by their distinctive New England setting and heritage, Dartmouth embodies a pioneering commitment to “making a difference” in a community whose members work together to create knowledge, connect to the world, and further their sense of identity and direction. Embrace an environment that inspires discovery and encourages collaboration. You will find open spaces, open doors, and open minds.

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