Change Manager

Luster National•San Francisco, CA

About The Position

Luster is building a talent pool of Change Managers for future roles supporting large, complex heavy civil infrastructure programs, including highways, roads, bridges, transit, aviation, and water/wastewater projects delivered through traditional and alternative methods. These are not openings for a currently available opportunity; candidates may be contacted first when a project need arises. Assignments may range from a single contract package to a program-level change function, with scope and complexity varying by experience level. The Change Manager supports the change control process, independently evaluates submitted entitlement, cost, and time, maintains accurate and traceable scope, cost, schedule, and technical baselines, and provides program leadership with a defensible position before funds are committed. The role works with program decision-makers and teams across engineering, inspection, right of way, operations, estimating, scheduling, and analysis. Compensation is listed as $125,000–$200,000 per year ($60–$96 per hour), with the actual offer dependent on factors including experience, skills, education, credentials, and location.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in construction management, civil engineering, construction engineering, business administration, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
10+ years of construction change control, change order, or claims experience on large (greater than $500 million), complex heavy-civil infrastructure projects.
Experience leading change control on a construction contract package, including change identification, entitlement determination, pricing, executed change orders, and coordination of supporting estimators, schedulers, and analysts.
Experience evaluating change proposals, requests for equitable adjustment, or claims for entitlement, cost, and schedule impact and recommending a position to the owner.
Experience developing or reviewing independent cost estimates and time impact analyses to assess contractor-submitted pricing and delay claims.
Experience preparing change board or governance packages and presenting recommendations to owner decision-makers.
Working knowledge of public works contract provisions governing changes, differing site conditions, delays, and notice and claim requirements.
Experience with industry-standard PMIS, document management, and CPM scheduling software, such as MS Project, Unifier, Kahua, e-Builder, or Primavera P6.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite/Office 365, including tools such as Outlook, Teams, Word, and PowerPoint.
Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills.
Strong multitasking and organizational skills.
Collaborative mindset that fosters teamwork, trust, and positive relationships.
Curiosity, problem-solving ability, and commitment to continuous improvement.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in construction management, civil engineering, construction engineering, or business administration.
Active professional certifications such as CCM (CMAA), PMP (PMI), and/or CCP or CFCC (AACE).
Experience managing a program-level change control function across multiple contract packages, including supervising change analysts and standardizing package evaluations.
Experience negotiating individual change orders exceeding $10 million.
Experience leading the owner’s position on a claim through a dispute resolution board, mediation, or formal claims process.
Experience analyzing delay and schedule impacts on a CPM schedule, including concurrency and the distinction between excusable and compensable delay.
Experience with industry-standard estimating, cost analysis, and document markup software, such as HCSS HeavyBid, RSMeans, Bluebeam Revu, or ProjectWise.
Proficiency with Microsoft Power BI, Oracle Cloud Analytics, or other dashboard KPI reporting software.

Responsibilities

Support change control from early identification through entitlement determination, pricing, negotiation, and execution of change orders.
Track change notices and open change items to documented decisions within contract timeframes.
Evaluate change proposals, requests for equitable adjustment, and claims for contractual entitlement; recommend positions based on contract language and the factual record.
Develop and review independent cost estimates and time impact analyses to test contractor pricing and delay claims.
Coordinate estimators, schedulers, and analysts supporting change evaluation and apply consistent analysis, pricing, and documentation practices.
Prepare change board packages covering recommendations, independent analysis, funding sources, and the consequences of inaction, and present them to program decision-makers.
Support negotiations of change order value and time extensions with the contracting officer or contract administrator; document agreements and releases.
Process approved change orders and confirm they are reflected in contract value, baseline schedule, budget, drawings, and specifications.
Coordinate change evaluation with engineering, inspection, right of way, and operations groups.
Evaluate impacts to active operations and existing facilities before changes are approved.
Analyze differing site conditions, design changes, and third-party-driven changes involving bridges, underground work, and systems, distinguishing covered work from work outside the contract.
Report change trends, open change exposure, and pending time extensions to executive program leadership.
Maintain configuration control of change records and affected technical documents, including version control, revision history, and audit trails.
Keep entitlement decisions, pricing bases, and correspondence retrievable for audits, funding reviews, and dispute resolution.