VP of Utility Operations (Bird Electric)

Why Bird Electric

Bird Electric Enterprises, LLC, a Black & Veatch company, is a U.S. self-perform electrical construction services provider supporting critical infrastructure customers. Bird's utility capabilities include overhead and underground distribution construction and maintenance, transmission construction and maintenance, and emergency restoration. Bird is combining its entrepreneurial field heritage with stronger enterprise systems, talent and the broader capabilities of Black & Veatch.

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Job Summary

Bird Electric is seeking a proven electric utility construction executive to strengthen its Utility business, install disciplined and scalable ways of operating, deepen strategic customer relationships and lead responsible, profitable growth. This is a consequential operating assignment for an executive who has advanced through increasingly responsible roles in electric transmission and distribution construction and understands how to translate field execution into predictable safety, quality, schedule, margin and customer outcomes. 

•    Serve as the senior operating executive accountable for the safe, profitable and disciplined performance of Bird Electric’s Utility business. 
•    Lead overhead and underground distribution, transmission construction and maintenance, and emergency restoration across multiple geographies, customers and project types. 
•    Work directly with customers, project teams and field leaders; intervene decisively when work is off plan and verify corrective-action closure. 
•    Build management systems, processes, procedures, leadership capability and operating rhythms required to run an efficient and profitable multi-state utility construction business. 
•    Use established utility-market credibility and relationships to deepen current accounts and originate qualified opportunities aligned with Bird’s risk tolerance, capabilities and geographic strategy. 
•    Partner with Black & Veatch to improve project delivery, activate EPC capabilities and bring integrated solutions to customers. 

Key Responsibilities

Safety, Quality and Field Leadership

• Champion a visible, field-led safety culture with HSE leadership and ensure high-risk work is properly planned, staffed, supervised and controlled.
• Maintain a frequent presence at project sites, offices, yards and customer locations; remove constraints and verify closure.
• Ensure compliance with Bird work methods, customer construction standards, OSHA requirements and contractual quality requirements.

Electric T&D Operations and Project Execution

• Provide executive oversight of overhead and underground distribution, transmission construction and maintenance, and emergency restoration.
• Direct the full project lifecycle from opportunity qualification and estimating through preconstruction, mobilization, execution, commissioning/turnover, billing and closeout.
• Apply advanced construction-management practices for scope, schedule, cost, labor productivity, equipment, procurement, change control, risk, quality and document management.
• Install work-ready gates, short-interval planning, look-ahead schedules, production tracking, constraint management and disciplined project reviews.
• Diagnose underperforming projects and lead recovery plans with root causes, owners, milestones, financial bridges and customer actions.

Financial, Commercial and Risk Leadership

• Own the Utility P&L, annual operating plan, revenue, project gross margin (PGM), operating income, overhead, cash and working-capital performance.
• Establish accurate forecasting and estimate-at-completion(EAC) discipline; identify margin fade, productivity variance, schedule exposure and commercial risk early.
• Govern bid/no-bid, estimate, risk and contract reviews so price, terms, schedule and execution strategy align with capacity and target returns.
• Assess contract, claims, warranty, subcontractor and customer risk and engage appropriate enterprise functions.

Operating System and Transformation

• Design and implement scalable systems, processes, procedures, standard work, decision rights, performance scorecards and management cadences.
• Implement and improve project controls, scheduling, ERP, CRM, document control, field reporting, fleet and business-intelligence practices.
• Use data to make accountability visible from crew productivity through enterprise financial performance.
• Adopt or adapt mature Black & Veatch practices where they improve safety, project controls, procurement, risk, quality or customer delivery.

Customer Relationships and Responsible Growth

• Serve as executive sponsor for strategic utility accounts and build trusted relationships with customer executives, operations leaders and procurement stakeholders.
• Leverage existing electric utility and power-delivery relationships to create access, strengthen credibility and originate qualified opportunities.
• Partner with Business Development and Estimating on account plans, market intelligence, pursuits, proposals, interviews and commercial strategy.

EPC and Black & Veatch Integration

• Partner with Black & Veatch engineering, procurement, project controls and program-delivery teams on integrated pursuits and execution.
• Manage engineering-to-construction handoffs, constructability, procurement lead times, design maturity, interface risk and change management in 

Leadership, Talent and Culture

• Recruit, lead, coach and retain directors, regional operations leaders, project leaders, superintendents and field leadership.

Management Responsibilities

Supervises work of others. Responsible for hiring, discipline, and pay administration of their subordinates.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Business Administration or a related discipline; equivalent executive-level T&D construction experience may be considered.
• Direct EPC or EPCM experience across engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning and project controls.
• Experience leading an open-shop utility or electrical construction business.
• Existing utility-owner and EPC relationships across Bird’s current or targeted operating footprint.
• Experience professionalizing or integrating a founder-led or family-owned contractor into a larger enterprise.
• Experience implementing ERP, CRM, scheduling, project-controls, fleet, field-data and business-intelligence systems.
• Credentials such as OSHA 10 ET&D, OSHA 30, PMP, PE, CCM or comparable utility/construction qualifications.

Minimum Qualifications

• Minimum 15 years of progressively responsible experience in electric utility transmission and distribution construction, maintenance, storm restoration or power delivery contracting, with demonstrated increases in scope, leadership responsibility and business accountability.
• Significant direct leadership experience in both electric transmission and distribution construction.
• Extensive knowledge of overhead and underground distribution, transmission line construction and maintenance, utility work methods, field labor deployment and owner requirements.
• Senior leadership experience overseeing multi-project, multi-customer and multi-location operations with substantial craft and field-leadership populations.
• Demonstrated full P&L accountability, including revenue, project gross margin, operating income, overhead, forecasting, working capital and corrective action.
• Advanced understanding of project management, construction management, estimating, scheduling, project controls, cost management, resource planning, procurement, change management, contract administration, risk management, quality and closeout.
• Proven success stabilizing or improving operational performance, implementing scalable systems and procedures, increasing forecast reliability and strengthening project execution.
• Demonstrated executive-level relationships within the electric utility industry and ability to develop business with utility owners, developers, EPC organizations or other power-delivery customers.
• Demonstrated ability to build accountable teams, develop successors and influence field, functional and executive stakeholders.
• Ability to be based in Hickory, North Carolina and travel approximately 50% throughout the operating footprint.
• All applicants must be able to complete pre-employment onboarding requirements (if selected) which may include any/all of the following: criminal/civil background check, drug screen, and motor vehicle records search, in compliance with any applicable laws and regulations.

Work Environment/Physical Demands

• Role combines office, customer, yard and active construction-site environments; field travel is required.
• Ability to conduct site walks and operate in varying weather, terrain and noise while following required PPE and safety protocols.
• Emergency or storm-restoration support may require extended hours, travel with limited notice and cross-functional leadership under pressure.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals to perform essential functions.