Senior Design Manager

As a national leader in the construction industry, Suffolk is redefining what it means to build. We challenge the status quo every day by gathering the people, innovations, and partnerships that can explore and go after new ways to do our jobs. Our focus on high-performing teams and technology translates to groundbreaking solutions for all industry sectors and phases of building. We provide value throughout the entire project lifecycle by leveraging our core construction management services alongside vertical service lines, an approach that is revolutionizing the industry and making a permanent mark on the world of business. Join us for a thrilling experience that will energize you, challenge you, and propel your career.

About Suffolk

Suffolk is a national enterprise that invests, innovates, and builds. We provide value throughout the entire project lifecycle by leveraging our core construction management services with vertical service lines that include real estate capital investment, design, self-perform construction services, technology start-up investment and innovation research and development. We have $4.5 billion in annual revenue, 2,400 employees, and main offices in Boston (headquarters), New York, Miami, West Palm Beach, Tampa, Estero, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego. We serve clients in every major industry sector, including health care, science and technology, education, gaming, transportation and aviation, and commercial. Suffolk is privately held and is led by founder, chairman and CEO John Fish. We’re ranked #23 on the Engineering News Record list of “Top 400 Contractors.” And we’re proud to be a certified 2021 “Great Place to Work.” For more information, visit www.suffolk.com and follow Suffolk on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram. 

The Role

Suffolk’s newly created design vertical, Suffolk Design, aims to disrupt the traditional design delivery process through a proprietary, collaborative, and fully integrated design-build service offering. Suffolk Design promises to leverage Suffolk’s core construction capabilities, along with innovative technologies and processes to create world-class design-build and design-management services delivering to its clients design excellence with unprecedented levels of efficiency and predictability. 

The Senior Design Manager will proactively and collaboratively lead integrated teams, made up of both internal and external design and construction professionals, through Suffolk Design's optimized, end-to-end design-build management process from design inception to building completion. The ideal candidate will commit themselves to substantially enhancing the efficiency, accuracy, completeness, and speed of the design, documentation, and construction process, and will enthusiastically leverage innovative procedures, tools, and technologies to exceed our client’s expectations.

The Senior Design Manager will be responsible for implementing and executing Suffolk Design's design-build management process across multiple concurrent projects throughout Florida.  The successful candidate should expect a fast-pace, flexible, and highly collaborative working environment

Core Design Management

• Responsible for the successful realization of client’s project vision, including performance, programming, cost, and schedule objectives.
• Lead the interface between the Suffolk Design team, Suffolk operations, external design and industry professionals, trade partners, regulatory agencies, and other project stakeholders to achieve project goals, all the while embracing culture of authentic collaboration and technical competence.
• Maintain and support client relationships during all project phases, ensuring a client-first mentality that encourages both active engagement in and ownership of all design decisions.
• Lead project team meetings, workshops, and other collaborative communications throughout a project’s life cycle.
• Hold self, and teams, accountable for meeting deadlines and trouble-shoot challenges by leveraging the full capacity of interdisciplinary project teams.

Design Process Management

• Lead the development and management of optimized design processes for each project, supporting the efficient, linear delivery of fully coordinated and buildable drawings prior to the start of construction.
• Build upon Suffolk’s world-class construction planning and execution capabilities by strategically aligning documentation development with construction sequencing, supporting streamlined workflows.
• In association with Suffolk preconstruction experts, lead the execution of rigorous, ‘real-time’, project constructability reviews during design process, ensuring that all documentation is complete, coordinated, and buildable prior to the start of construction.
• At key project design milestones, liaise with preconstruction teams to evaluate and validate that cost and schedule align with project objectives.

Illuminate Operations

• Track and report progress towards project milestone completion, staffing allocations, and project financial health.
• In collaboration with Suffolk Design leadership and the project team, analyze, refine, and test design-construction workflow assumptions in real-time to optimize Suffolk Design's process moving forward.
• Leverage and grow Suffolk’s proprietary constructability knowledge database, which serves as a critical input to a proactive QA/QC process throughout design.
• Support Suffolk Design's design technology staff in the introduction of automated design and documentation processes and workflows.

• Certification as licensed architect or professional engineer is strongly preferred.
• 8-10 years’ experience in the professional design services industry, with a background in design project management.
• Desire to be part of something bigger than oneself and appreciate the opportunity that Suffolk and Suffolk Design bring to radically transform the design and construction industry.
• Genuinely collaborative and open to the expert opinions of leading construction and technology industry experts, all the while able to confidently bring technical design knowledge to the discussion.
• Deep awareness and sensitivity to the workings of the design and construction processes, and the ability to interpret and develop creative, technically competent, and constructible solutions to design challenges.
• Demonstrates value-driven design philosophy that incorporates sound business judgement, community benefit and aesthetic excellence.
• Possess a strong design sensibility and promotes a collaborative design mentality, assuring productive working relationships with both internal and external resources and disciplines.
• Strong management capabilities and proactive leadership qualities that allow for systematic and consistent implementation of standard processes, procedures, and systems across Suffolk Design and Suffolk’s broader design-build delivery business.
• Self-motivated and able to work as part of a team or independently, depending on the situation.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills
• Inquisitive with a passion for excellence and continual improvement.
• Able to travel, as needed.
• Ability to work and thrive in a fast-paced environment.
• Candidate must possess Suffolk’s Core Values: Passion, Integrity, Hard Work, Professionalism, and Caring

Suffolk provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy or maternity, national origin, citizenship, genetic information, disability, protected veteran, gender identity, age or any other status protected by law.  This policy applies to recruiting, hiring, transfers, promotions, terminations, compensation, benefits, and all other terms and conditions of employment.  Suffolk will not tolerate any unlawful discrimination toward, or harassment of, applicants or employees by anyone at Suffolk, or anyone working on behalf of Suffolk.