Senior Design & Construction Project Manager

Job Description

Lead a flagship restaurant build and develop the team that builds the next ones.

COCOZZA is hiring a Senior Project Manager to run one major restaurant project from early planning through opening while mentoring and developing one to two Project Managers and an Assistant Project Manager. This role is ideal for a seasoned builder who thrives in complex environments, communicates with clarity, and elevates everyone around them.

As a Senior PM, you will lead using COCOZZA’s proprietary Budget/Lease/Design/Build system—the most operator-focused and reliable method for building restaurants in New York City. Your work will shape not only a single project, but also the capability and confidence of the PM team you support.

If you are a builder who takes ownership, coaches with empathy, and sets a high bar for quality, this is your seat.

Responsibilities

Lead one major restaurant project from preconstruction through final punch list

Train, coach, and support 1–2 Project Managers and an Assistant Project Manager

Oversee design coordination, schedule development, budgeting and procurement strategy

Drive proactive communication across clients, designers, landlords, engineers and subcontractors

Identify risks early, resolve conflicts before they hit the field and uphold process discipline

Run weekly team meetings, set priorities and ensure alignment across the entire project team

Review PM work product, offering guidance, corrections and structured professional development

Supervise on-site operations, ensuring safety, quality and schedule integrity

Manage permitting, inspections, sequencing and closeout with precision and ownership

Negotiate trade pricing with fairness, transparency and responsibility to the operator

Uphold COCOZZA’s hospitality mindset in all interactions

Deliver a finished product that reflects COCOZZA’s highest standards and your own

Qualifications

7 to 12 years experience running complex construction projects, preferably in restaurants or retail

Demonstrated success managing full project lifecycles in NYC

Strong capability in scheduling, budgeting, MEP coordination and design resolution

Experience mentoring junior team members or leading cross-functional teams

High-level written and verbal communication skills

Ability to anticipate problems and maintain a proactive, solutions-oriented posture

Skilled at negotiation and holding teams accountable while maintaining trust

Technically sharp, operationally disciplined and known for being dependable and likable

Familiarity with restaurant operations is a plus

Who Thrives In This Role

Builders who love both the work and the people

Leaders who coach through clarity, patience and high expectations

Operators who bring order upstream rather than fighting fires downstream

People who want to develop mastery in the best system for building restaurants in NYC

Those who want to shape both a flagship project and the next generation of PMs

If you want to lead with excellence, elevate others and build restaurants that open with confidence, we’d love to speak with you.

Company Description

COCOZZA is the restaurant construction company built to solve the biggest problem in the industry: most restaurants fail before they ever open. Our proprietary Budget/Lease/Design/Build process is the most reliable, efficient and operator-focused way to build restaurants in New York City. We believe it is the best method available, and we hire people who want to master it.

We build restaurants the way great hospitality teams operate: with clarity, preparation and genuine care. We take ownership early, eliminate surprises, and protect the capital and timeline of every operator we serve. That standard requires discipline, coordination and a mindset of hospitality with our clients, designers, landlords and trade partners.

Our focus is restaurants and bars across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. From our NoMad office, we operate a center of process excellence where project teams, architects and clients collaborate using modern software, upstream planning and a proven system that keeps projects aligned from concept through opening. Team members learn a methodology that removes chaos from construction and elevates the role of the Project Manager into a true strategic partner for chefs and operators.

COCOZZA is the employer of choice for construction professionals who want:

A clear path for growth into senior, principal and leadership roles

Training in a proprietary process that outperforms traditional construction

A collaborative environment where hospitality is a daily practice

A diverse, inclusive workplace where people support one another and take pride in their craft

The opportunity to help build the best restaurants in the best restaurant city in the world

If you take ownership, communicate clearly, bring a positive and solutions-oriented attitude, and want to be part of a high-performing team, you will thrive here. Apply today and help us raise the standard for how restaurants get built in New York City.

COCOZZA is the restaurant construction company built to solve the biggest problem in the industry: most restaurants fail before they ever open. Our proprietary Budget/Lease/Design/Build process is the most reliable, efficient and operator-focused way to build restaurants in New York City. We believe it is the best method available, and we hire people who want to master it. We build restaurants the way great hospitality teams operate: with clarity, preparation and genuine care. We take ownership early, eliminate surprises, and protect the capital and timeline of every operator we serve. That standard requires discipline, coordination and a mindset of hospitality with our clients, designers, landlords and trade partners. Our focus is restaurants and bars across Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. From our NoMad office, we operate a center of process excellence where project teams, architects and clients collaborate using modern software, upstream planning and a proven system that keeps projects aligned from concept through opening. Team members learn a methodology that removes chaos from construction and elevates the role of the Project Manager into a true strategic partner for chefs and operators. COCOZZA is the employer of choice for construction professionals who want: A clear path for growth into senior, principal and leadership roles Training in a proprietary process that outperforms traditional construction A collaborative environment where hospitality is a daily practice A diverse, inclusive workplace where people support one another and take pride in their craft The opportunity to help build the best restaurants in the best restaurant city in the world If you take ownership, communicate clearly, bring a positive and solutions-oriented attitude, and want to be part of a high-performing team, you will thrive here. Apply today and help us raise the standard for how restaurants get built in New York City.