Change Manager

Luster National•Los Angeles, CA

7d•$125,000 - $200,000

About The Position

Luster is seeking Change Managers for future roles supporting large, complex heavy civil infrastructure programs, including highways, roads, bridges, bus and rail transit, international airports, and water/wastewater projects delivered through traditional and alternative delivery methods. The role supports change control, independently evaluates entitlement, cost, and time submissions, maintains accurate and traceable scope, cost, schedule, and technical baselines, and provides program leadership with a defensible position before funds are committed. Assignments may range from a single contract package to a program-level change function. The posting is for anticipated future hiring needs, not a currently available specific opportunity; selected candidates may be activated in Luster’s talent pool and notified first when a project need arises. The position supports changes from early identification through entitlement determination, pricing, negotiation, and execution. It includes evaluating proposals and claims, developing or reviewing independent cost estimates and time impact analyses, preparing and presenting governance packages, supporting negotiations, processing approved change orders, coordinating with program disciplines, assessing operational impacts, reporting exposure and trends, and maintaining the change record and related technical documentation for audit and dispute resolution. Responsibilities and scope vary with experience level.

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 (over $500 million), complex heavy-civil infrastructure projects.
Experience leading change control on a construction contract package, including change identification, entitlement determination, pricing, execution of 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 that test 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 or Office 365, including tools such as Outlook, Teams, Word, and PowerPoint.
Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills.
Excellent multitasking and organizational skills.
Collaborative mindset that fosters teamwork, trust, and positive relationships.
Curiosity, problem-solving abilities, and a 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 in value.
Experience leading the owner’s position on a claim through a dispute resolution board, mediation, or a formal claims process.
Experience analyzing delay and schedule impact 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 the program’s change control process from early identification through entitlement determination, pricing, negotiation, and executed change order.
Track change notices and open change items to a documented decision within contractually allowed timeframes.
Evaluate change proposals, requests for equitable adjustment, and claims for contractual entitlement; recommend a position supported by contract language and the factual record.
Develop and review independent cost estimates and time impact analyses to assess contractor-submitted pricing and delay claims.
Coordinate with estimators, schedulers, and analysts supporting change evaluation, applying consistent analysis, pricing, and documentation methods.
Prepare change board packages that include the recommendation, independent analysis, funding source, and consequences of not acting; present them to program decision-makers.
Support negotiation of change order value and time extensions with the contracting officer or contract administrator, and document agreements and releases.
Process approved change orders and confirm that they are reflected in contract value, baseline schedule, budget, and affected drawings and specifications.
Coordinate change evaluation with engineering, inspection, right of way, and operations groups.
Evaluate impacts to active operations and existing facilities before a change is approved.
Analyze differing site conditions, design changes, and third-party-driven changes on bridges, underground work, and systems, distinguishing covered work from work not covered by 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 documentation, including version control, revision history, and audit trails.
Keep entitlement decisions, pricing basis, and correspondence retrievable for audit, funding review, and dispute resolution.