Director, Construction Services

EXO Inc. has been protecting public infrastructure across the U.S. since 2009. Without consistent maintenance and quality assurance, critical assets face a growing risk of failure over time. EXO delivers engineering, inspection, and remediation services for lighting poles, transmission towers, and other infrastructure exposed to ongoing wear from usage, aging, and environmental conditions. With deep expertise in vertical infrastructure, EXO builds on years of engineering design and fabrication experience across utilities, telecom, transportation, and retail sectors. This foundation supports a comprehensive inspection and asset management approach that addresses both new installations and aging structures requiring immediate attention.

About the role

The Director of Construction Operations is responsible for the strategic leadership, operational performance, and overall execution of the company's field construction operations. This position provides executive-level leadership to a geographically dispersed construction organization responsible for multiple concurrent projects involving the remediation, structural repair, maintenance, and construction of utility infrastructure, including transmission towers, lattice structures, concrete foundations, and associated infrastructure.

The Director of Construction Operations leads and develops the Construction organization and establishes the systems, processes, standards, and performance expectations necessary to achieve safe, efficient, high-quality, and profitable project execution. This role has broad responsibility for operational planning, workforce strategy, resource allocation, productivity, cost control, safety, quality, client satisfaction, and continuous improvement across the construction organization. The Director serves as a key member of the operational leadership team and partners closely with Executive Leadership, Project Management, Engineering, Safety, Quality, Equipment, Finance, Human Resources, and Business Development to establish organizational priorities, support strategic growth, strengthen operational capabilities, and improve overall company performance.

This position is expected to function as a strategic leader rather than solely as a project-level manager, developing scalable processes and a strong leadership team capable of supporting continued growth across multiple geographic markets.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic direction and executive leadership for construction operations across multiple geographic regions and concurrent projects.
• Lead, manage, and develop the Construction Superintendent organization and other field leadership personnel.
• Establish operational priorities, performance expectations, and accountability standards for field construction.
• Develop and implement standardized construction processes, procedures, and best practices to improve safety, productivity, quality, schedule performance, and profitability.
• Establish consistent operating standards across geographically dispersed projects while allowing appropriate flexibility for project-specific requirements.
• Develop annual and long-term operational plans aligned with company growth objectives.
• Identify organizational, operational, staffing, equipment, and resource requirements necessary to support projected business growth.
• Develop scalable systems and processes that allow the construction organization to expand without compromising safety, quality, or profitability.
• Serve as the senior operational escalation point for complex construction issues, field performance concerns, and major project risks.
• Conduct regular field visits and operational reviews to evaluate performance, coach leadership, and ensure company standards are consistently implemented.
• Establish and monitor operational KPIs and use data to drive accountability and continuous improvement.
• Partner with Executive Leadership to identify opportunities to expand capabilities, improve operational capacity, and increase competitive advantage.
• Recruit, lead, mentor, and develop Construction Superintendents and other field leadership.
• Build a high-performing construction leadership team capable of managing increasing organizational scale and complexity.
• Establish clear performance expectations, accountability structures, and leadership competencies for field management.
• Conduct performance evaluations and provide coaching, development, and corrective action as necessary.
• Develop succession plans and career pathways for Construction Superintendents and emerging field leaders.
• Identify high-potential employees and create development opportunities to strengthen the company's leadership pipeline.
• Establish consistent leadership practices across all regions and project teams.
• Promote employee engagement, retention, accountability, and a culture of operational excellence.
• Partner with Human Resources on workforce planning, recruiting strategies, organizational development, employee relations, and retention initiatives.
• Establish staffing models and organizational structures that support current operations and anticipated growth.
• Maintain executive-level oversight of multiple utility construction and structural remediation projects simultaneously.
• Partner with Project Management to establish project execution strategies, staffing plans, production goals, schedules, and resource requirements.
• Review portfolio-level project performance and proactively identify risks to safety, schedule, quality, client commitments, and profitability.
• Ensure projects are appropriately staffed with qualified personnel and supported by the necessary equipment, materials, and resources.
• Establish escalation protocols for significant project risks, cost issues, schedule delays, safety concerns, and client issues.
• Provide senior-level support in resolving complex field conditions and unforeseen construction challenges.
• Ensure effective coordination among Construction, Project Management, Engineering, Estimating, Quality, Safety, Equipment, subcontractors, and clients.
• Participate in major project kickoffs, executive project reviews, and strategic client meetings.
• Ensure lessons learned are captured and incorporated into future projects and operating procedures.
• Maintain visibility into the performance of the overall project portfolio rather than focusing solely on individual project execution.
• Provide strategic oversight and organizational leadership for projects involving:
  • Structural steel repair and reinforcement
  • Lattice transmission tower repairs
  • Foundation rehabilitation and replacement
  • Concrete restoration and structural concrete placement
  • Epoxy injection and grout repair
  • Reinforcing steel installation
  • Formwork installation
  • Structural demolition
  • Jackhammering and concrete removal
  • Corrosion mitigation
  • Excavation and backfilling
  • Heavy equipment operations
  • Utility right-of-way construction
  • Transmission and distribution infrastructure repairs
• Ensure the organization maintains the technical capability, qualified personnel, equipment, processes, and leadership necessary to execute this work safely and effectively.
• Own and drive construction operational performance with a strong focus on profitability, productivity, and cost control.
• Establish and monitor key operational and financial KPIs across the construction organization.
• Analyze labor productivity, equipment utilization, production rates, project costs, and operational efficiency.
• Partner with Finance and Project Management to monitor project profitability, cost trends, forecasts, and financial performance.
• Identify trends and root causes affecting margins and implement corrective strategies.
• Establish labor and equipment productivity expectations and accountability standards.
• Develop workforce and equipment forecasts based on current backlog and anticipated business growth.
• Optimize utilization of company-owned equipment, personnel, and other operational assets.
• Participate in annual budgeting, forecasting, and strategic planning.
• Evaluate capital equipment needs and make recommendations regarding equipment acquisition, replacement, or utilization.
• Develop initiatives to reduce operating costs, increase productivity, improve utilization, and enhance margins.
• Hold field leadership accountable for financial and operational performance.
• Serve as a senior champion of the company's safety culture and expectations.
• Partner with Safety Leadership to establish and continuously improve construction safety standards and programs.
• Ensure Construction Superintendents and field leaders consistently enforce OSHA regulations, company safety policies, and utility owner requirements.
• Monitor safety performance across the construction organization and establish measurable improvement objectives.
• Review leading and lagging safety indicators and develop action plans to address trends and recurring issues.
• Participate in significant incident investigations and ensure appropriate corrective actions are implemented.
• Conduct periodic field safety and operational audits.
• Promote proactive hazard recognition, job hazard analyses (JHAs), daily safety planning, and employee engagement in safety.
• Ensure compliance with environmental requirements and utility owner safety standards.
• Hold field leadership accountable for safety performance.
• Establish a culture of quality and accountability across construction operations.
• Ensure construction activities comply with engineering specifications, client requirements, contracts, and company quality standards.
• Partner with Engineering and Quality to establish consistent quality control processes and field execution standards.
• Review quality performance metrics and identify recurring issues or systemic deficiencies.
• Ensure quality concerns are addressed promptly and corrective actions are implemented.
• Establish processes to ensure proper documentation of inspections, testing, completed work, and project closeout.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives based on quality trends, project lessons learned, and field feedback.
• Develop and maintain strong executive-level relationships with key utility clients and strategic stakeholders.
• Participate in major client meetings, executive project reviews, and performance discussions.
• Serve as a senior escalation point for significant operational or field-related client concerns.
• Ensure construction leadership maintains a professional, responsive, and solutions-oriented approach to client relationships.
• Partner with Project Management and Business Development to strengthen client relationships and support repeat business.
• Support strategic growth initiatives by ensuring operational capabilities align with customer needs and market opportunities.
• Represent the company professionally and build confidence in the organization's ability to execute complex construction work.
• Partner with Executive Leadership and Business Development to evaluate operational capacity for new business opportunities.
• Assess manpower, equipment, leadership, geographic coverage, and technical capabilities required to support growth.
• Identify operational constraints that could limit revenue growth.