Associate Project Director, Bridge, for COWI in North America

Lead with a team of experienced leaders

We are seeking an Associate Project Director, Bridge, to join our team in Seattle and Oakland. We are widely recognized for our expertise in bridges, with experience focusing on detailed design work for complex bridge types, such as cable-stayed, suspension, truss, and arch bridges. In this role, you will provide senior leadership across project delivery, client relationships, and business development, while contributing to the growth of our presence in the West Coast and the U.S. market.

Your key responsibilities

• Lead and deliver complex bridge infrastructure projects for public and private clients, ensuring projects are completed on time and within budget from planning through delivery.
• Provide project management leadership across multidisciplinary teams (civil, structural, geotechnical) to achieve high-quality, coordinated outcomes.
• Serve as the primary client interface, managing contracts, fee negotiations, schedules, and risk while maintaining strong client relationships.
• Manage project commercial performance with a focus on profitability, technical excellence, innovation, and securing follow-on work and change orders.
• Support business development activities, including go/no-go decisions, teaming strategies, and proposals, with a focus on growing the Northwest market.
• Mentor and develop staff while contributing to local office growth, including team building, hiring decisions, and expanding COWI’s presence in the region.

Your skills

• A Bachelor’s degree in Civil or Structural Engineering (Master’s preferred) with 15+ years of experience in bridge design infrastructure.
• A Professional Engineer (PE) license (or ability to obtain in Washington or California), with demonstrated technical credibility and delivery expertise.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex, multidisciplinary projects with full accountability for scope, schedule, budget, and commercial performance.
• Demonstrated success in senior client relationship management, including contract negotiations, risk management, and delivering high client satisfaction.
• Demonstrated success in financial and commercial performance, including managing margins and securing follow-on work.
• Background in business development and team leadership, including pursuing proposals, expanding markets on the West Coast, and mentoring and building effective teams.