Design Manager

Symons Fire Protection, Inc. is a premier, full-service fire-life safety contractor based in San Diego, CA. For over 30 years, we have specialized in the design, installation, inspection, and maintenance of residential and commercial fire sprinkler and alarm systems across Southern California. We pride ourselves on operational excellence, high-quality craftsmanship, and unwavering safety standards.

Benefits

• 401(k) with company matching
• Medical, dental, vision, life, and AD&D insurance (FREE Employee Only premium for SIMNSA and Kaiser Permanente Bronze Base medical plans)
• Vacation, paid holidays, birthday holiday, and sick pay
• Discretionary bonus program
• FREE Employee Assistance Plan (EAP)
• FREE onsite gym
• FREE premium coffee and snacks
• Company celebrations (e.g., summer picnic, holiday event)
• Employee referral program
• Professional development support from a management team that actively cares about your growth

Pay

$125,000 - $155,000 per year

About the Role

We are seeking a Design Manager who retains operational and financial accountability for the design department. This role focuses on resource planning, departmental profitability, major client relationships, and navigating complex regulatory hurdles with senior County and City AHJs. This position requires proven, multi-year people management experience with a demonstrated history of guiding professional career paths, managing workplace dynamics, and building high-retention engineering cultures.

Responsibilities

• Leadership: Oversees departmental operational budgets, software licensing configurations (Autosprink, NFPA, Autodesk, Bluebeam, HydraCAD), and long-term department expansion.
• Financial Accountability: Monitors project burn rates, estimates design hours for multi-million dollar contracts, and safeguards the department's gross profit margins.
• QA/QC: Audits the highest-risk projects (e.g., high-rise, high-piled storage, or hazardous industrial spaces) and serves as the final escalation point for complex plan-check disputes.
• Talent Management: Owns the ultimate authority to hire, fire, discipline, and promote department personnel in alignment with company growth objectives and policies.
• Leadership Development & Mentorship: Coaches, mentors, and develops the team, preparing them for advanced management paths.
• People Management: Conducts career-pathing sessions, establishes succession planning matrices, resolves high-level interpersonal conflicts, and actively works to reduce employee burnout.
• Performance Monitoring: Establishes key performance indicators (KPIs) for the department, conducts formal performance reviews, and implements corrective action plans when necessary.
• Culture: Cultivates a psychologically safe work environment where team members feel empowered to collaborate, voice technical concerns, innovate, and report errors without fear of negative repercussions.
• Other management duties as assigned.

Productivity Expectations

• Department Utilization: Targets an overall department billable utilization rate of 85%.
• First-Pass Success: Maintains a department-wide first-pass plan check approval rate of 90%+ across all Southern California municipalities.
• Backlog Stability: Ensures design department capacity matches project backlog schedules up to 90 days out.

Requirements

• At least 8 years of progressive engineering and design experience, including a minimum of 5 years of direct leadership experience overseeing a team of 10+ design professionals.
• NICET Level III in Water-Based Systems Layout certification.
• Expert proficiency in Autocad, Autosprink, Hydracad, NFPA, and Bluebeam Revu (Studio, Sets, Quantity Link) for department-wide standardization and macro executive review.
• Expert command of local Fire Code amendments and WUI (Wildland-Urban Interface) regulations.
• Must currently reside in the Southern California area; remote candidates will not be considered.