Manager, Project Controls

Xcel Energy•Denver, CO

8d•$112,200 - $159,400•Hybrid

About The Position

The Manager, Project Controls provides strategic leadership and direction for program and project management activities across selected, highly complex projects that may affect operations, business systems, or customer-facing elements. The role balances customer needs with Xcel Energy standards and guidelines, ensuring consistent use of design and work-management tools and processes. It coordinates multidisciplinary teams and navigates business and regulatory processes while supporting innovative, cost-effective designs and providing technical expertise to design, construction, and operations teams. The manager leads highly skilled technical groups, establishes work priorities, and oversees quality and schedule performance. The role also supports planning and budgeting for distribution capital projects and construction and operations departments. It develops employees through performance evaluations, training, coaching, and feedback. This position manages project structures and controls—including financial controls, estimates, schedules, contracts, requests for proposals, and work plans—and leads governance meetings. It aligns business plans and project delivery with corporate and business-unit objectives, manages scope, cost, change, and risk, and promotes safe, timely, cost-effective, compliant, and customer-focused use of resources. The manager builds collaborative relationships across internal organizations and external entities and serves as a change leader.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in engineering, construction management, project management, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
At least 7 years of experience in the theory and practice of project management techniques.
At least 5 years of experience in operations, process management, and process improvement.
Experience in process improvement, including process optimization and process mapping.
Experience managing multiple workstreams and matrixed work teams with full- and part-time resources.
Strong change leadership, communication, and collaboration skills.

Nice To Haves

Seven or more years of progressive project controls experience supporting complex capital, construction, utility, or infrastructure projects, with significant responsibility for scheduling and cost controls.
Proficiency developing, maintaining, and analyzing integrated project schedules using Oracle Primavera P6, Microsoft Project, or comparable tools, including critical-path analysis, baselining, forecasting, progress measurement, and schedule recovery.
Strong experience with project budgeting, commitments, actuals, accruals, forecasting, Estimate at Completion (EAC), variance analysis, and change management.
Experience integrating cost and schedule information to assess performance, identify trends and risks, and support data-driven decisions.
Familiarity with Earned Value Management (EVM), cash-flow forecasting, and performance measurement techniques.
Experience establishing project controls standards, coordinating cost and schedule activities across multidisciplinary teams, and developing executive-level reporting, dashboards, and performance metrics.

Responsibilities

Implement and manage project structures, financial controls, detailed estimates, schedules, contracts, RFPs, and work plans for selected projects.
Provide ownership and leadership for key program governance meetings.
Establish and champion business plans, goals, and objectives aligned with corporate and business-unit strategies.
Manage teams to deliver approved project scope, optimal sequencing, milestone schedules, project-level cost tracking, project controls, and reconciliation processes.
Manage resources with emphasis on safety, timeliness, cost containment, system reliability, customer satisfaction, asset utilization, and regulatory compliance.
Develop, select, and retain a diverse, trained, motivated, and empowered workforce.
Develop strategies for complex issues and manage scope, cost control, change management, and risk mitigation.
Participate in company efforts to streamline processes, improve safety, meet customer expectations, and reduce costs.
Recruit employees, set performance expectations, manage performance, and provide training, coaching, feedback, and engagement oversight.
Provide input and leadership on bargaining-unit issues, grievances, corrective actions, and employee development.
Promote continuous learning and improvement of employees' job and industry knowledge and skills.
Build collaborative relationships with internal organizations and external entities to improve project efficiency, responsiveness, and resource allocation.
Lead change efforts and maintain strategic partnerships with business units and departments.
Oversee planning and budgeting for distribution capital projects and support construction and operations departments.