Project Manager

About the role

The Buildings group at Consertus is seeking a Project Manager to oversee Owner Representative work in the Chicagoland area. The role involves supervising, directing, and coordinating planning, design, and construction phase activities; acting as a direct liaison with the owner, designers, and contractors regarding cost, schedule, quality, and contract administration. The Project Manager must independently manage multiple projects, often supporting public-sector and institutional clients, particularly K-12 school districts, libraries, and municipalities.

Key Responsibilities

• Project Leadership & Owner Representation

• Serves as the day-to-day owner's representative and primary project contact for assigned projects.
• Coordinates project stakeholders, facilitates clear communication, and drives decisions, action items, and issue resolution to maintain project objectives.
• Supports planning and programming, consultant selection, design management, public procurement, construction, occupancy, and project closeout.
• Identifies project risks, issues, and decisions; evaluates options and impacts; and develops practical recommendations for the client with senior leadership support as appropriate.
• Leads and documents project meetings and prepares concise reporting for client leadership and other stakeholders.

• Cost Management

• Develops and maintains project budgets, cash flow projections, contingencies, and cost forecasts.
• Maintains project costs during all project phases with limited supervision.
• Aids supervisory staff in managing project budget and cash flow analysis.
• Prepares and/or reviews cost estimates with limited supervision.
• Understands the contractor billing and change order process; reviewing these documents with limited help from supervisor.

• Schedule Management

• Develops and maintains overall project milestone schedules and works with the design and construction teams to support on-time completion.
• Creates schedules using scheduling software with limited help from supervisor concerning activity linkage.
• Reviews detailed design and construction schedules for sequencing, critical milestones, delays, and potential impacts.
• Identifies schedule concerns, evaluates impacts with the project team, and supports development and implementation of recovery strategies as needed.
• Collaborates with the Project Team and governmental agencies to obtain proper permits, inspections, and occupancy certificates.

• Design and Quality Management

• Reviews proposed materials, products, and design decisions for conformance with owner requirements, project scope, and applicable standards.
• Performs design and document reviews to identify coordination, constructability, scope, and quality concerns and works with the project team to resolve issues.
• Conducts site observations during construction to monitor progress and general conformance with design intent and contract documents.

• Procurement & Contract Administration

• Supports public procurement and bidding processes, including RFQ/RFP development, consultant and contractor selection, bid review, interviews, and award recommendations.
• Coordinates with the Project Team and governmental agencies to obtain proper permits, inspections, and occupancy certificates.

• Client Relations and Business Development

• Buils and maintains trusted client relationships, serving as a responsive advisor and increasing potential for additional business.
• May assist with marketing and business development activities.
• May attend evening board meetings dependent upon client.
• Manages hours for each task to ensure the amount allocated in the contract is not exceeded.

Qualifications/Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, Construction Management or related field preferred

• 7-10+ years of experience

• Experience working in the K-12, Municipal, Healthcare, or other institutional clients strongly preferred; candidates should be comfortable working in public-sector and stakeholder-driven environments.

• Experience with Capital Programs and Construction Project Management required

• Proven experience in Owner Representation services preferred

• Ability to communicate complex project issues clearly to clients, boards, and stakeholders with varying levels of design and construction experience

• Hybrid schedule to be expected, with regular travel to client offices and project sites as required

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and familiarity with project management, document-control, and scheduling platforms such as Microsoft Project; P6 or equivalent scheduling experience is a plus

• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment while producing complete, accurate, timely, and well-organized work

Pay

$90,000 - $120,000 full-time position.