Director of Project Controls

HFW Companies•St. Louis, MO

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Join HFW Companies as the Director of Project Controls, providing enterprise-wide leadership and oversight of project controls operations across HFW and its member firms. Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer, this role will strengthen project financial performance, establish consistent project controls practices, and provide leadership with clear insight into project health, profitability, and performance. The Director will lead the development and implementation of project controls policies, procedures, systems, and best practices while partnering with Finance, Operations, project management teams, and member firm leadership. Key areas of focus include project setup, pricing, forecasting, earned value reporting, budgeting, financial analysis, and monitoring challenged projects. The ideal candidate will bring strong project controls and financial acumen, AEC industry experience, and the ability to translate complex project and financial data into actionable business insights. This individual will also lead project controls training and support the development of project controls capabilities across HFW's member firms.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Business, Finance, Accounting, Engineering, Construction Management, Project Management, or a related field; equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.
8–10+ years of progressive experience in project controls, project management, financial analysis, or a related discipline, preferably within the AEC or professional services industry.
Demonstrated experience leading project controls functions across multiple projects, offices, business units, or organizations.
Strong understanding of AEC project financial management, including project budgets, forecasting, profitability, gross margin, variance analysis, earned value, pricing, and project performance metrics.
Demonstrated experience developing and implementing project controls policies, procedures, processes, and performance standards.
Experience working with ERP, project controls, financial planning, and reporting systems; experience with Adaptive Insights or similar FP&A platforms preferred.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to evaluate complex project and financial data, identify trends and risks, and develop actionable recommendations.
Demonstrated ability to establish and monitor KPIs, benchmarks, and performance metrics to evaluate project and business performance.
Experience identifying and managing challenged or underperforming projects and partnering with project teams to develop corrective action plans.
Proven ability to train, coach, and support project controls and project management professionals across multiple teams or business units.
Strong leadership and interpersonal skills with the ability to influence and collaborate effectively with executive leadership, member firm leaders, project managers, Finance, Accounting, and other stakeholders.
Strong business acumen with an understanding of profitability, operational performance, and how project-level decisions impact overall business results.
Excellent organizational and time management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, growth-oriented environment.
Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate complex financial and project information clearly to both technical and executive audiences.
Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills with the ability to define problems, analyze data, establish facts, and develop effective solutions.
Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel, and project controls/ERP software.
Ability to work independently while maintaining strong collaboration across a geographically dispersed organization.

Responsibilities

Lead, manage, and provide strategic oversight of the enterprise project controls function across HFW and its member firms.
Oversee project controls operations, ensuring consistent processes, policies, procedures, and performance standards across the organization.
Lead and provide oversight, direction, and support to project controls team members, including outsourced and geographically dispersed resources, ensuring work quality, accountability, consistency, and alignment with HFW standards.
Consolidate and deliver monthly project performance reporting for HFW and its member firms, providing leadership with clear visibility into project health, profitability, and performance trends.
Monitor and maintain a consolidated list of challenged and high-risk projects, partnering with project and operational leaders to identify risks and develop appropriate corrective actions.
Develop, implement, and continuously improve project controls policies, procedures, tools, and best practices.
Establish and recommend standardized approaches for project setup, budgeting, forecasting, pricing, earned value management, and project performance monitoring.
Oversee earned value reporting and project performance metrics across member firms, ensuring consistent and accurate reporting.
Establish project performance benchmarks and KPIs to evaluate project and member firm performance and identify opportunities for improvement.
Partner with Finance, Accounting, Operations, and project leadership to analyze project financial performance, with particular emphasis on gross margin, profitability, forecasting, and variance analysis.
Support the preparation of annual budgets, forecasts, and periodic financial reporting and communicate significant variances and trends to leadership.
Assist with maintaining accurate project and financial data within the organization's Financial Planning & Analysis system and ERP systems.
Partner with member firm leadership to identify opportunities to improve project profitability, financial performance, and project controls practices.
Lead the development and delivery of project controls training programs and identify ongoing training and development needs.
Identify, train, and provide ongoing support to employees responsible for project controls functions within member firms.
Provide guidance and support for project management training initiatives and promote consistent financial and project management practices.
Serve as a subject matter expert and resource to member firms regarding project controls, financial performance, project setup, pricing, forecasting, and reporting.
Provide regular reports and recommendations to executive leadership regarding project performance, financial trends, risks, and opportunities.
Evaluate existing project controls practices and recommend improvements that support scalability, operational efficiency, and the organization's strategic goals.
Enforce company policies and established project controls standards consistently and fairly across the organization.
Performs other related duties as necessary or assigned.
Travel is required to fulfill this position's essential duties and responsibilities.