Design Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Design Manager

Residential Design-Build

A growing residential design-build company is looking for an experienced Design Manager to lead and help grow its residential Design department.

We're looking for more than a talented designer. We need someone who can lead people, develop designers, create accountability, improve processes, and still understand what it takes to deliver an exceptional residential design experience.

The Design Manager is responsible for the health and performance of the Design department—from the client experience and quality of our designs to project timelines, budget alignment, team development, and the successful transition of projects into construction.

This is a hands-on leadership position for someone who loves residential design but is also excited about building a great team and making the entire department better.

What You'll OwnLead the Design Team

• Lead, coach, and develop Designers and Associate Designers.

• Establish clear expectations and hold the team accountable to them.

• Manage workloads, project assignments, schedules, and design capacity.

• Provide meaningful design feedback and help team members continue developing their skills.

• Build a collaborative environment where people communicate well, challenge ideas, learn from each other, and continue improving.

Own the Design Process

• Oversee projects throughout the design process, from Sales/Design Handoff through concepts, selections, estimating, construction documentation, and Production Handoff.

• Ensure projects move through design on schedule and don't become unnecessarily stalled or extended.

• Continually evaluate and improve design processes, standards, templates, and tools.

• Create consistency without taking away the creativity that makes great design possible.

• Identify problems early and take ownership of getting them resolved.

Protect the Client Experience

• Ensure clients feel heard, understood, informed, and confidently guided throughout design.

• Coach Designers on client communication, presentations, and how to guide clients through difficult decisions.

• Step into projects when additional leadership or problem-solving is needed.

• Ensure the finished design reflects the client's needs and expectations—not simply the Designer's personal preferences.

Keep Design & Budget Connected

• Work closely with Estimating and the Design team throughout the process to keep design direction aligned with the client's expected investment.

• Encourage smart design decisions that balance creativity, value, constructability, and budget.

• Help identify potential cost concerns before significant design time is invested.

• Ensure the Design team provides Estimating and Production with complete, accurate information.

Connect Design to Construction

• Work closely with Sales, Estimating, and Production so projects transition smoothly between departments.

• Ensure drawings, selections, specifications, and construction documents are complete and buildable before handoff.

• Participate in project reviews, Production handoffs, and construction milestones when Design leadership is needed.

• Use feedback from completed projects to improve future designs and processes.

Help Drive the Business

• Monitor Design department workload, backlog, performance, and revenue against company goals.

• Participate as a leader in company planning and continuous improvement.

• Help determine what the Design department needs to look like as the company continues to grow.

• Support additional residential projects, including spec-home selections, model-home selections, and staging as needed.

Who We're Looking For

You are an experienced residential designer who has reached the point where you want to do more than just manage your own projects.

You enjoy developing people, solving problems, improving systems, and raising the standard around you.

You can look at a beautiful design and appreciate it—but you can also ask:

Can we build it? Does it make sense for this client? Are we respecting their budget? Is it documented correctly? And is our team delivering the experience we promised?

You should be comfortable having difficult conversations, giving constructive feedback, setting expectations, and holding people accountable while still creating an environment where people enjoy coming to work.

Experience with high-end residential remodeling, custom homes, interior design, architecture, or residential design-build is strongly preferred. Previous experience leading or mentoring designers is important.

Experience with Chief Architect or similar residential design software, construction-management platforms, and residential construction is valuable.

Who We Are

We are a growing residential design-build company specializing in high-end remodeling and custom homes .

We're continuing to grow, but growth alone isn't the goal. We want to build a company where our processes, people, and client experience get better as we grow.

Our goal is to create an exceptional experience for our clients, employees, trade partners, and vendors.

Our culture values people who are positive, curious, adaptable, empathetic, motivated, and enjoy what they do.

We're looking for a Design Manager who shares those values and is excited about the opportunity to build a Design department—not simply manage one.

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