Director of Project Management / Senior Project Manager - Solar and BESS - Up-State New York / Hybri

Senior Project Manager / Director of Project Management – Renewable Energy Construction - Up State New York Function: Project Management / Construction Delivery Employment Type: Full-Time Location: United States – Travel Required Work Authorisation: Must be legally authorised to work in the United States The Opportunity Our client is seeking a senior-level Project Management leader to provide strategic and operational oversight across the delivery of large-scale renewable energy construction projects. This is a leadership position with responsibility extending well beyond the administration of an individual project. The successful candidate will have overall accountability for project performance across cost, schedule, commercial management, client relationships, quality, safety, procurement, risk, construction coordination, and closeout . The role will provide leadership throughout the project lifecycle, from development and pre-construction through construction, commissioning, grid readiness, commercial operation, and final handover. Working closely with construction leadership, engineering, procurement, finance, commercial teams, subcontractors, consultants, and project stakeholders, the successful candidate will establish strong project controls and ensure that delivery teams remain aligned with contractual commitments and business objectives. The position requires an experienced construction or renewable energy professional who can operate at both strategic and operational levels — setting direction for project teams while maintaining sufficient commercial and technical oversight to identify risks early and drive projects toward successful completion. Leadership & Project Management Philosophy Our client is looking for a senior project professional who can take ownership rather than simply administer processes. The successful candidate will be expected to: Establish clear accountability across project teams and delivery partners. Drive projects against approved commercial, schedule, quality, and safety objectives. Anticipate problems rather than react to them. Hold internal teams, consultants, contractors, and suppliers accountable for their commitments. Develop effective project-management systems, controls, and reporting structures. Make commercially sound decisions while maintaining strong client relationships. Provide leadership across multiple projects and competing priorities. Identify opportunities to improve delivery performance, reduce risk, and increase efficiency. Develop and mentor project-management and construction personnel. Act as a senior escalation point for complex project issues. Key Areas of Responsibility Provide senior-level oversight of renewable energy construction projects from development through final completion. Establish project execution strategies, delivery plans, governance structures, and performance expectations. Maintain overall visibility and control of project scope, budget, schedule, cash flow, contractual obligations, risks, and deliverables. Where required, oversee multiple projects simultaneously, ensuring appropriate prioritisation of resources and management attention. Establish consistent project-management practices, controls, reporting, and documentation standards. Monitor project performance and intervene where projects begin to deviate from approved objectives. Develop and implement corrective actions and recovery strategies when cost, schedule, or delivery targets are at risk. Ensure project teams maintain accurate and timely information throughout the project lifecycle. Provide senior leadership with clear visibility of project performance, emerging risks, and required decisions. Maintain senior-level accountability for project financial performance. Establish and monitor project budgets, forecasts, cash-flow projections, commitments, and cost-to-complete estimates. Review and approve project financial documentation, including owner billing, contractor and subcontractor applications for payment, material invoices, and supporting documentation. Lead commercial management of change orders, variations, claims, and other scope or cost changes. Ensure all financial adjustments are appropriately documented, justified, approved, and reflected within project forecasts. Review and manage key commercial provisions within EPC, subcontract, supplier, and professional-services agreements. Ensure project delivery remains consistent with contractual obligations and commercial objectives. Identify financial exposure and commercial risk at an early stage and develop appropriate mitigation strategies. Support contract negotiations and commercial resolution of disputes where necessary. Maintain accurate records to protect the client's commercial position throughout project delivery. Client & Stakeholder Leadership Serve as a senior point of contact for project owners, clients, consultants, contractors, and other key stakeholders. Build and maintain effective long-term client relationships based on transparency, accountability, and consistent delivery. Lead regular client and project review meetings. Present clear updates on schedule performance, financial position, change management, construction progress, safety, quality, risks, and key decisions. Manage expectations proactively and communicate potential challenges before they become critical issues. Resolve complex stakeholder issues and escalate matters appropriately when executive intervention is required. Ensure project commitments are clearly understood and consistently managed by the delivery team. Schedule & Project Controls Establish and maintain integrated project schedules covering engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, and handover activities. Ensure project milestones and critical-path activities are clearly defined and actively managed. Monitor actual progress against approved baseline schedules. Identify trends, slippage, dependencies, and emerging schedule risks. Challenge project teams and contractors where performance is falling behind expectations. Direct the development and implementation of schedule recovery plans when required. Coordinate schedule information across engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, and commercial functions. Ensure senior leadership has accurate and timely visibility of project schedule performance. Construction Delivery Oversight Provide senior oversight of site construction activities and ensure field teams remain aligned with project objectives. Work closely with construction managers, superintendents, site leadership, subcontractors, and technical representatives. Monitor construction productivity, resource requirements, quality, safety, schedule performance, and contractual compliance. Ensure subcontractors deliver against agreed scopes, schedules, quality requirements, and commercial terms. Lead regular construction coordination and performance meetings. Address issues that have the potential to affect cost, schedule, quality, safety, or client satisfaction. Ensure construction activities are appropriately coordinated with engineering, procurement, commissioning, and grid-connection requirements. Provide leadership and support to site management teams while maintaining appropriate accountability for performance. Engineering & Technical Coordination Provide project-level leadership and accountability for engineering deliverables. Coordinate closely with internal and external engineering teams to ensure designs and technical documentation are delivered in accordance with project requirements. Hold engineering consultants and design partners accountable for agreed deliverables and deadlines. Review significant technical issues and assess their potential commercial, construction, and schedule implications. Coordinate resolution of design changes, technical queries, RFIs, and engineering-related project risks. Ensure engineering decisions remain aligned with approved project scope and contractual requirements. Support technical reviews, inspections, commissioning activities, and specialist engineering requirements. Procurement & Supply Chain Provide oversight of procurement activities for major equipment, materials, and services. Ensure procurement strategies support project schedule, budget, quality, and contractual requirements. Monitor supplier commitments and identify potential delivery or commercial risks. Coordinate with procurement and construction teams to ensure critical materials are available when required. Support supplier negotiations and commercial decisions where appropriate. Ensure purchased materials and equipment meet project specifications and contractual requirements. Monitor the impact of supply-chain constraints, manufacturing delays, logistics issues, and vendor performance on project delivery. Risk, Quality & Compliance Establish a proactive approach to project risk management. Maintain visibility of major commercial, technical, construction, schedule, regulatory, procurement, and stakeholder risks. Ensure appropriate mitigation plans and owners are established for material risks. Oversee quality-assurance and quality-control requirements throughout project delivery. Ensure project activities comply with applicable contractual, regulatory, safety, environmental, and industry requirements. Work with relevant safety and quality personnel to identify and resolve deficiencies. Ensure project teams and contractors understand and comply with applicable safety requirements and site procedures. Monitor lessons learned and incorporate improvements into subsequent projects. Permitting & Regulatory Coordination Provide senior oversight of project permitting and regulatory requirements. Ensure required approvals, permits, licences, and authorisations are identified and obtained in accordance with the project schedule. Coordinate with development, engineering, construction, and external stakeholders on regulatory matters. Monitor changes in applicable requirements that could affect project execution. Ensure project teams understand their compliance obligations and maintain appropriate documentation. Lead project management activities through construction completion, commissioning, grid readiness, and operational handover. Coordinate completion inspections, walkdowns, punch-list management, and outstanding works. Ensure commissioning and start-up documentation is complete and properly controlled. Coordinate handover of technical, commercial, warranty, and operational documentation. Drive resolution of outstanding defects and contractual obligations. Ensure final project documentation is accurate, complete, and suitable for long‑term asset ownership and operation. Lead or oversee final commercial closeout, including final accounts, change orders, retainage, and subcontract closeout. Capture lessons learned and ensure relevant improvements are carried forward into future projects. Provide leadership, mentoring, and direction to project-management and construction personnel. Develop high-performing project teams with clearly defined roles, responsibilities, and accountability. Coach less-experienced project professionals and support their development. Establish appropriate delegation while retaining accountability for overall project performance. Promote effective collaboration between project management, engineering, construction, procurement, commercial, and finance functions. Address performance issues promptly and constructively. Support recruitment, onboarding, development, and succession planning where required. Promote a culture of ownership, accountability, safety, quality, and continuous improvement. Project Governance & Reporting Establish appropriate project governance and management controls. Develop executive-level project reporting covering cost, schedule, cash flow, procurement, construction, risk, quality, safety, and commercial performance. Ensure project information is accurate, current, and supported by appropriate documentation. Maintain effective electronic project records and document-control processes. Ensure key correspondence, drawings, RFIs, submittals, change orders, contracts, invoices, and project records are properly maintained. Provide senior leadership with recommendations on major project decisions and risks. Ensure project teams have reliable information on which to base commercial and operational decisions. Identify opportunities to improve project delivery methodologies, systems, processes, and workflows. Develop and implement initiatives designed to improve project predictability, efficiency, profitability, and client satisfaction. Analyse recurring project issues and implement preventative measures. Promote the use of lessons learned across the wider project portfolio. Identify opportunities to reduce unnecessary cost, improve productivity, and strengthen project controls. Stay informed about developments in renewable energy construction, project delivery practices, regulatory requirements and relevant industry standards. Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Business, Project Management, or a related discipline. Significant experience managing complex construction projects, preferably within renewable energy, power, infrastructure, or another technically complex construction environment. Professional project-management certification such as PMP, PgMP, or an equivalent qualification would be advantageous. Strong understanding of project controls, construction contracts, commercial management, scheduling, cost management, and risk. Strong knowledge of construction delivery methodologies and contractor management. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with executive leadership, clients, contractors, consultants, and technical teams. Strong negotiation, conflict-resolution, and stakeholder-management skills. Exceptional organisational and time-management abilities. Strong analytical and commercial decision-making capabilities. Proficiency with Microsoft Office and relevant project-management, scheduling, and reporting software. Experience The successful candidate should bring substantial experience in project delivery and demonstrate the ability to lead complex construction programmes with significant commercial and operational responsibility. Experience should ideally include: 8+ years of progressively responsible project-management or construction-management experience. Experience managing large-scale construction or infrastructure projects from pre-construction through completion. Demonstrable ownership of project budgets, forecasts, schedules, cash flow, and commercial performance. Experience managing EPC contractors, subcontractors, consultants, suppliers, and professional-services providers. Strong experience with change management, claims, contract administration, and commercial negotiations. Experience managing client relationships at senior level. Experience leading multidisciplinary project teams. Experience managing multiple projects or a significant project portfolio would be highly advantageous. Renewable energy experience, particularly utility‑scale solar, energy storage, or related power infrastructure, is preferred. Demonstrated experience developing project recovery strategies and resolving complex delivery challenges. A track record of improving project-management processes, project controls, and delivery performance. #J-18808-Ljbffr Leap29