Senior Project Manager of Construction

Job Description

Job Description

Senior Project Manager

Schema Group, LLC
Hospitality & Hotel Renovation Specialists
Location: Chicago, IL — In Office
Employment Type: Full-Time

About Schema Group

Schema Group is a licensed general contractor specializing in hotel renovations and hospitality construction nationwide. We partner with leading hospitality brands, hotel owners, operators, and boutique properties to deliver high-quality, schedule-driven renovation projects.

Our projects are fast-paced, detail-oriented, and highly collaborative, often requiring careful coordination within active and operational hotel environments. We pride ourselves on strong client relationships, disciplined project management, quality workmanship, and our ability to successfully execute complex renovations while minimizing disruption to hotel operations.

We are seeking an experienced Senior Project Manager to join our team and take a leadership role in the successful execution of hospitality renovation projects from preconstruction through closeout. The ideal candidate has a strong construction background, excellent financial and organizational skills, and experience managing projects in the hospitality, hotel, commercial, or renovation sectors.

Position Overview

As a Senior Project Manager, you will have overall responsibility for the planning, execution, financial performance, and successful completion of assigned construction and renovation projects.

You will serve as a key point of contact between Schema Group, our clients, architects, engineers, consultants, subcontractors, vendors, and hotel ownership/management teams. This position requires a proactive leader who can anticipate challenges, make sound decisions, maintain project momentum, and ensure projects are delivered safely, on schedule, within budget, and to the required quality standards.

The Senior Project Manager will work closely with company leadership, accounting, project managers, superintendents, engineers, and field teams to ensure all aspects of the project are effectively coordinated and managed.

Key Areas of Ownership

• Project planning and preconstruction
• Budget development and cost control
• Scheduling and project coordination
• Subcontractor and vendor management
• Client and stakeholder management
• Change order management
• Procurement and material coordination
• Quality control and project documentation
• Risk identification and mitigation
• Project closeout and turnover
• Team leadership and mentorship

Key Responsibilities

Project Planning & Preconstruction

• Lead projects from initial award and preconstruction through final completion and closeout.
• Develop and maintain comprehensive project schedules, budgets, procurement plans, and execution strategies.
• Review plans, specifications, scopes of work, contracts, and other project documents to identify potential issues, conflicts, omissions, and opportunities.
• Coordinate with architects, engineers, consultants, ownership, hotel management, and internal teams to resolve design and constructability issues.
• Assist with estimating, subcontractor buyout, scope development, value engineering, and project budgeting.
• Establish project milestones and clearly communicate expectations to all project stakeholders.

Project & Financial Management

• Maintain overall responsibility for project financial performance, including budgets, commitments, forecasts, costs, and profitability.
• Review daily field reports, labor reports, work orders, and project documentation; ensure field progress, labor allocation, and cost information are accurately captured and acted upon
  
• Monitor project costs and identify potential budget variances before they become issues.
• Review and approve subcontractor invoices, pay applications, purchase orders, and project-related expenditures.
• Manage the change order process from identification and pricing through client approval and execution.
• Prepare and maintain accurate project forecasts and cost reports.
• Work closely with accounting to ensure timely billing, collections, payment processing, and accurate financial reporting.
• Review subcontractor and vendor contracts to ensure scope, schedule, insurance, and commercial requirements are being met.
• Maintain accurate documentation of project costs, commitments, changes, and financial status.

Schedule & Project Execution

• Lead or oversee recurring owner/architect/contractor meetings, including agendas, meeting minutes, action-item tracking, and project-status reporting.
• Ensure timely distribution and tracking of drawings, submittals, RFIs, schedules, sketches, punch lists, and other project documents.
• Develop, maintain, and actively manage project schedules in coordination with superintendents, subcontractors, vendors, and clients.
• Monitor critical path activities and identify potential delays before they impact the overall project schedule.
• Coordinate procurement and long-lead materials to ensure timely delivery.
• Develop recovery plans and corrective actions when projects fall behind schedule.
• Coordinate multiple trades and subcontractors to ensure efficient sequencing and execution of work.
• Ensure project milestones and contractual requirements are achieved.

Hospitality & Hotel Renovation Management

• Manage renovations within active hotel environments while maintaining close coordination with hotel operations and management.
• Understand the unique requirements of guestroom, corridor, public-area, food & beverage, back-of-house, and other hospitality renovations.
• Coordinate construction phasing and work schedules to minimize disruption to hotel guests and ongoing operations.
• Work within hospitality brand standards, owner requirements, project specifications, and operational constraints.
• Coordinate shutdowns, access requirements, deliveries, noise restrictions, housekeeping requirements, and other operational considerations.
• Maintain a high level of professionalism and responsiveness when working directly with hotel ownership, management, and brand representatives.

Team Leadership

• Provide leadership, direction, and support to Project Managers, Assistant Project Managers, Superintendents, Project Engineers, and other project team members.
• Establish clear expectations, responsibilities, deadlines, and accountability across the project team.
• Mentor and develop junior project management staff.
• Lead regular project meetings and ensure action items are clearly assigned and followed through to completion.
• Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, problem-solving, and continuous improvement.

Client & Stakeholder Management

• Develop and maintain strong, professional relationships with clients, owners, hotel operators, architects, engineers, consultants, and other project stakeholders.
• Serve as a trusted point of contact throughout the project lifecycle.
• Communicate project status, schedule, budget, risks, changes, and key decisions clearly and proactively.
• Address client concerns promptly and work collaboratively to develop solutions.
• Participate in owner, architect, contractor, and project progress meetings.
• Help identify opportunities for repeat business and strengthen long-term client relationships.

Quality, Safety & Risk Management

• Promote and enforce company safety policies and project-specific safety requirements.
• Work closely with field leadership to ensure safe work practices are maintained throughout the project.
• Establish and maintain quality control processes to ensure work meets contract documents, specifications, brand standards, and client expectations.
• Conduct regular project reviews to identify potential quality, schedule, cost, or contractual risks.
• Proactively identify design conflicts, constructability issues, and potential project delays and develop appropriate solutions.
• Ensure required inspections, approvals, documentation, and closeout requirements are completed.

Project Closeout

• Lead the project closeout process, including punch lists, inspections, commissioning, warranties, as-builts, O&M manuals, and final documentation.
• Coordinate final completion and turnover with clients and hotel operations.
• Ensure all outstanding subcontractor, vendor, and project documentation is completed.
• Assist accounting and leadership with final project reconciliation and closeout.

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of project management experience in the construction industry
• Hospitality, hotel, commercial renovation, or similar construction experience strongly preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Civil Engineering, Architecture, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience managing construction projects from preconstruction through closeout.
• Proven experience managing project budgets, schedules, contracts, change orders, and subcontractors.
• Strong understanding of construction means and methods, project documentation, and contract administration.
• Proficiency with Bluebeam, Procore, and Smartsheet or comparable construction/project management platforms.
• Experience reviewing drawings, specifications, scopes of work, contracts, and change orders.
• Strong financial acumen with the ability to understand project budgets, forecasts, commitments, and cost reports.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Proven ability to manage client and partner relationships.
• Strong leadership and team-management skills.
• Highly organized with exceptional attention to detail.
• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects, deadlines, and competing demands.
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Ability to travel as required based on project needs.
• Valid driver's license and ability to travel to project sites as needed.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with major hotel brands and/or hotel ownership groups.
• Experience managing renovations in occupied or operating hotels.
• Experience managing multi-million-dollar renovation projects.
• Experience with guestroom renovations, public-area renovations, F&B spaces, and/or full-property renovations.
• Experience with project procurement, subcontractor buyout, and contract negotiations.
• Experience mentoring and managing other project management professionals.
• Strong understanding of hospitality brand standards and operational requirements.

What Success Looks Like

The successful Senior Project Manager will be someone who takes ownership of their projects and consistently anticipates what needs to happen next. You are organized, proactive, commercially minded, and comfortable making decisions in a fast-paced environment.

You understand that successful hospitality construction requires more than simply completing the work—you must balance schedule, budget, quality, guest experience, hotel operations, and client expectations throughout the project.

You are equally comfortable reviewing a project budget, negotiating with a subcontractor, walking a jobsite, leading an owner meeting, resolving a field issue, or mentoring a member of your team.

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary Range: $130k-155k
• Base salary based on 40 or more working hours per week
• SEP IRA plan with company contribution
• Health Insurance, Dental and Vision Insurance
• Long-Term and Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Life Insurance
• Paid vacation days per employment year

Equal Opportunity Employer

Schema Group is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

No soliciting