Associate, Project Controls Cost & Schedule

Invenergy•Chicago, IL

4d•$95,000 - $110,000

About The Position

As the Associate, Project Controls Cost, you will be heavily focused on project execution – developing construction plans, analyzing expenditures, cost forecasting, managing contingency, variance analysis reporting, tariff impact analysis, and creating detailed reports and dashboards to improve the execution of renewable energy projects.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering, construction management, finance, accounting, or a related analytical discipline.
5+ years of experience in project cost control, project accounting, financial analysis, or related project controls functions.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to develop forecasts, analyze variances, assess trends, and interpret cost, schedule, and commercial data.
Experience reviewing invoices, change orders, commercial proposals, or contract terms for accuracy and compliance.
Proficiency in project coordination across engineering, procurement, finance, and construction stakeholders.
Advanced attention to detail, problem-solving capability, and ability to complete tasks with minimal guidance.
3+ years of experience with construction project cost & schedule integration
Strong communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to synthesize cost information for both technical and non-technical audiences.
Ability to travel up to 10% of the time and work occasionally on active construction sites.

Nice To Haves

Construction or EPC project experience (internship or professional role highly desirable).
Experience with Earned Value Management (EVM), cost breakdown structures (CBS), and other project monitoring such as Cost Performance Index (CPI) monitoring
Experience with Primavera P6 or Oracle Primavera Cloud.
Experience with cost management or ERP systems such as EcoSys and Oracle Fusion.
Experience developing dashboards or data visualizations in Power BI or similar tools.
Relevant industry certifications such as AACE (CCP/CEP/EVP), PMI (PMP), or comparable project controls credentials.

Responsibilities

Conduct portfolio cost analysis and deliver monthly cost performance reports to leadership.
Provide mentorship and oversight of Analysts to ensure execution of all project responsibilities and reporting.
Support Project Managers in the full lifecycle of project cost management, ensuring all actuals, commitments, and forecasts are accurately captured, validated, and recorded in alignment with corporate standards.
Provide cost input to project planning activities such as construction execution plans, estimate updates, procurement strategies, and risk-adjusted forecasting.
Conduct commercial evaluations of vendor and contractor proposals to support change management, contract negotiations, and service agreement development.
Review and validate supplier and contractor invoices, change orders, and claims; ensure alignment with contract terms and project budgets.
Develop, maintain, and analyze project cost forecasts—including cash flow, contingency usage, committed cost tracking, and variance analysis—and clearly articulate drivers behind deviations.
Maintain the project cost control framework, including the cost breakdown structure (CBS), budget allocations, work package tracking, and integration with schedule and procurement updates.
Prepare both project and portfolio level reporting, which includes but is not limited to monthly cost reports, progress summaries, dashboards, and KPI updates for management review.
Monitor project risks, trends, and potential deviations; collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to recommend mitigation actions and communicate cost impacts proactively.
Manage financial controls processes—purchase requisitions, purchase orders, budget transfers, and commitment management—and ensure alignment across cost systems, accounting, and procurement.
Ability to innovate our cost management system by piloting new concepts, scaling to the construction business group, and facilitate change management/training to have sustained process adherence.
Provide ad-hoc cost studies, scenario analyses, and decision-support reporting as needed.
Drive consistency and continuous improvement of cost control practices, tools, and reporting standards across projects.