Senior Manager, Project Administration & Systems

VEC•San Francisco, CA

14h•$120,000 - $140,000•Hybrid

About The Position

This is an execution-focused role for someone who has done this work before — not someone who wants to move into it. You will inherit a lean, well-documented process library and a functional team. Your job is not to invent from scratch. It is to take what works, make it better, and rebuild it for a more complex ERP environment we are currently implementing. You will manage two working PA leads, own billing integrity review, serve as the functional voice from operations to the integrations engineer, and ensure the new system is built to support our real workflows — not the other way around. If you are looking for a strategic oversight role, this is not it. If you have been the person who actually knew the system, trained the team, caught the billing gap, and fixed the workflow — we want to talk.

Requirements

6+ years of hands-on experience in project administration, project controls, or commercial operations in a project-based business — construction, engineering, environmental consulting, or professional services. Not project management. Not corporate operations.
Direct functional experience with a complex, project-based system (Kantata/Mavenlink, Deltek, Unanet, Ajera, or equivalent) at a power-user or functional lead level — you must be able to describe how project setup, billing term configuration, rate table management, and workflow logic worked in that system, and what you personally owned within it
Proven experience supporting or leading an ERP implementation or major system migration from the operations side — communicating functional requirements, validating that configuration matches operational reality, and training end users
Direct ownership of billing operations in a T&M and/or Fixed Fee environment: you have personally identified billing gaps, traced them to root cause, and driven resolution
Experience managing or leading administrative or project controls staff, including holding people accountable for data quality and workflow compliance
Demonstrated ability to build and maintain system-specific SOPs and work instructions — not conceptual process maps, but step-by-step documentation tied to actual system behavior and fields
Comfortable working without direct authority over Project Managers: your track record shows examples of influencing compliance and driving accountability through communication, documentation, and escalation — not positional power
Strong written communication skills; a significant portion of this role’s output is documentation that others execute and that engineers build from

Nice To Haves

Prior experience with Kantata (Mavenlink) — familiarity with its project accounting logic, billing configuration, and reporting infrastructure is a meaningful advantage
Experience in a lean administrative structure where you were simultaneously doing, building, and enforcing — not delegating all execution to a large team
Background in a firm that operates both T&M and Fixed Fee/Lump Sum project types with distinct billing and revenue recognition treatment

Responsibilities

ERP Transition: Operational Implementation
Absorb and master our existing process library (ClickUp-based SOPs and work instructions) within your first 30 days
Partner with the integrations engineer to communicate how our workflows must be reflected in the new system — project setup, billing terms, change orders, COI compliance, rate tables, labor categories, revenue recognition logic
Validate that configuration decisions match operational reality before they are built; flag gaps or misalignments early
Ensure the new ERP preserves and improves the operational sophistication currently built into Kantata, including multi-phase project structures, billing term configuration at the project level, rate table management, custom field logic, and revenue recognition rules
Design and build ERP-native SOPs and work instructions tied to actual system screens, fields, and sequences — not conceptual process descriptions
Own end-user training for PA leads on all new system processes
Billing Integrity
Conduct monthly review of billable fees versus invoiced amounts across the project portfolio
Identify and root-cause billing gaps: PA execution failure, missing or incorrect data entry, workflow breakdown, or PM non-compliance
Distinguish between what requires training, what requires a process or SOP change, and what requires PM escalation
Report findings to VP with clear pattern analysis and recommended corrective action
PA Lead Management
Directly manage two working PA leads, each overseeing a team of two Project Administrators
Hold leads accountable for data accuracy, workflow compliance, and team output quality
Ensure leads understand not just how to enter data but why it matters — the downstream billing and revenue consequences of errors or omissions
Serve as the escalation point for issues leads cannot resolve independently
Train leads on new ERP processes and ensure they can effectively train their teams
Process Library Ownership
Maintain, organize, and improve the existing SOP library — audit for gaps, outdated content, and process inconsistencies
Update all current processes for the new ERP environment as configuration progresses
Own workflow documentation standards across the PA function; all work instructions must be system-specific and actionable
Cross-Functional Operations
Communicate with Project Managers regarding documentation, compliance, and billing requirements
Document non-compliance and escalate through appropriate channels (PX leadership) with a clear paper trail
Coordinate with Accounting on billing and AR-related operational issues