Director of Project Management Office

Reports to: VP of Operations

At Meruelo Enterprises, we’re building more than infrastructure, we’re building communities, careers, and a better tomorrow.

Founded in 1986 and proudly minority-owned, we’ve grown into one of California’s leading construction and engineering firms, serving major utility, transportation, and telecom clients across the West Coast. With a talented team of over 2,500 professionals and a family of top-tier subsidiaries, we deliver innovative, high-impact solutions in gas, electric, water, and more.

From the ground up, we’re committed to safety, quality, and integrity. If you're looking to be part of a fast-growing, mission-driven company making a real difference, welcome to Meruelo Enterprises.

About the Role:

The PMO Director will build and lead an enterprise-wide Project Management Office that standardizes work procedures, governance, project controls, portfolio reporting, and project management system automation across the utility construction business (electric T&D, gas and oil T&D, water infrastructure, underground civil, substations, renewables, transportation infrastructure, commercial electrical, and related services). This leader will drive LEAN process improvement, visual management and dashboard level reporting, elevate schedule/cost performance, and ensure projects meet safety, quality, and regulatory requirements while improving predictability and margin.

Key Responsibilities:

² Enterprise Standards, Governance & Compliance

² Establish and maintain enterprise PM standards (PMBOK-aligned) including stage‑gate/phase‑gate governance, RACI matrices, document control, and change management.

² Create and enforce work procedures/SOPs for scope, schedule, cost, risk, change, quality, commissioning/closeout, and lessons learned.

² Implement and chair governance boards (project intake, prioritization, risk, change, and quarterly portfolio reviews).

² Align with safety, regulatory, and client requirements and ensure audit readiness.

² Project Controls (Cost, Schedule, Risk)

² Stand up enterprise project controls: WBS/CBS standards, cost coding, baseline & change control, EVM, earned schedule, forecasting (EAC), productivity tracking, and claims documentation.

² Oversee master scheduling (e.g., Primavera P6/MS Project), cost-loaded schedules, and integrated CPM logic with field execution reality.

² Build integrated risk management (qualitative/quantitative) with mitigation planning and ongoing risk burn‑down.

² Run the portfolio intake and prioritization process aligned to strategic objectives, capacity, and capital planning.

² Create executive dashboards (Power BI/embedded analytics) for health, risk, cost/schedule variance, change exposure, cash flow, margin-at-complete, and earned value.

² Lead monthly and quarterly Portfolio, Program, Project Reviews (PPRs) with actionable insights and decisions.

² Own enterprise PM tech stack: e.g., Primavera P6, MS Project, Power BI, SharePoint/Teams, Smartsheet Control Center, InEight / Procore, and Spectrum ERP integration.

² Deploy workflow automation for estimate and budget approvals, purchase orders and subcontracts, RFIs, submittals, change orders, time & quantity capture, and closeout.

² Establish data governance: master data, cost codes, naming conventions, metadata, retention, and a single source of truth across systems.

² Lead Lean initiatives (VSM, 5S, A3, Kaizen) to remove waste in estimating, mobilization, procurement, pay apps, change orders, and field reporting.

² Build continuous improvement playbooks and training; scale best practices across subsidiaries/regions.

² Quantify improvements with measurable outcomes (cycle-time reduction, throughput, WIP, rework, and cost per unit).

² Leadership, Change & Stakeholder Engagement

² Recruit, mentor, and lead a high-performing PMO & Project Controls team.

² Drive organizational change management (OCM) and adoption, partner with Operations, Finance, Safety, and IT.

² Engage with clients, subs, and JV partners to align expectations, reporting protocols, and dispute resolution.

² Commercial, Contracts & Vendor Management

² Support contracts and commercial management: change order strategy, claims support, schedule/time impact analyses, and cost substantiation.

² Oversee PM systems, vendors and implementation partners; manage SLAs, enhancements, and training roadmaps.

Qualifications:

² Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Construction Management, Business, or related field.

² 10+ years of project/program/portfolio leadership in utility construction (electric T&D, underground, gas distribution, substation, civil).

² PMP (Project Management Professional) in good standing.

² Strong project controls background: cost engineering, EVM, CPM scheduling (P6/MSP), forecasting, and risk management.

² Hands-on with PM tech & data: P6/MS Project, Power BI, SharePoint/Teams, Smartsheet, and ERP integration (e.g., Spectrum/SAP/Oracle).

² Proven success implementing stage‑gate governance, standard work, and scalable SOPs.

² Demonstrated Lean application (e.g., VSM, A3) to reduce cycle times and improve margin predictability.

² Excellent communication, executive reporting, and cross‑functional leadership skills.

² Valid driver’s license; ability to conduct site visits and travel as needed.

Preferred

² PgMP (Program Management), PfMP (Portfolio Management), or Six Sigma Green/Black Belt.

² Prosci/ACMP change management certification.

² Experience with Spectrum ERP System, InEight, Procore, Power Apps/Automate, and Power BI.

² Familiarity with utility client systems & requirements, union/prevailing wage environments, and public agency reporting.

² Knowledge of regulatory and industry standards applicable to utilities (e.g., CPUC, CalOSHA).

Success Metrics (First 12–18 Months)

² Standards & SOPs: Enterprise PM and Controls handbook and SOP set approved and adopted (>90% compliance).

² Governance: Stage‑gate operating and achieving on‑time decision cycles (>95% gate adherence).

² Schedule & Cost Performance: Reduction in schedule variance and cost variance (e.g., >20% reduction in SV/CV across top programs).

² Change Order Velocity: >30% decrease in cycle time from initiation to approval; improved recovery rate.

² Forecast Accuracy: EAC within ±1% on aggregate by quarter 3.

² Automation: Deploy 5–10 automated workflows; reduce manual touchpoints by >40% in targeted processes.

² Safety & Quality Enablement: PMO supports field in meeting Safety/QA metrics (e.g., punchlist aging down >25%).

² Adoption & Training: 100% of PMs/PCs trained; >85% system adoption measured by usage KPIs.

² Strategic Portfolio Management | Project Controls & EVM | CPM Scheduling

² Lean / Continuous Improvement | Process Design & SOPs | Data & Analytics

² Systems Implementation & Automation | Change Leadership | Stakeholder Management

² Commercial Acumen (Contracts/Claims) | Communication & Executive Presence

² ONISTE office with site/yard visits to active projects (PPE required) across southern Ca.

² Will involve travel to regional offices, client meetings, and job sites.

At Meruelo, we believe that diverse teams drive innovation and better business outcomes. We are dedicated to fostering a culture where everyone feels respected, valued, and empowered to bring their whole selves to work. We actively encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.