Tower and Civil Construction Lead

American Electric Power•New Albany, OH

1d•$116,255 - $151,133•Onsite

About The Position

The power of AEP comes from our valued team of unique employees….the best in the business! We’re proud to be one of the largest electric energy companies in the U.S., powering over 5 million homes and businesses, spanning across 11 states. We’re passionate about making an innovative difference in the communities we serve. We’re powering the future – today! Are you a skilled and motivated Tower and Civil Construction Lead Principal in New Albany Ohio, seeking a new opportunity? Join our team today! This position will be fully onsite effective June 1, 2025.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Construction Management, Safety, or a related field and 8 years of experience overseeing or directing telecommunication tower construction, antenna system installations, or related wireless infrastructure projects, or an ABET‑accredited equivalent.
Associate degree in Electrical Technology, Construction Management, Safety, Civil Engineering Technology, or a related field and 10 years of experience overseeing or directing telecommunication tower construction, antenna system installations, or wireless site development work.
High school diploma or equivalent with 12 years of direct experience working in telecommunication tower construction, antenna system installation, wireless field operations, or as a construction representative for a carrier or contractor.
Related experience is defined as overseeing or directing telecommunication tower construction, antenna and line system installations, structural modifications, civil site development, or other wireless infrastructure construction activities.
A thorough working knowledge of telecommunication tower structures, antenna and line systems, civil site construction practices, grounding systems, and overall wireless site development is required.
Experience in telecom engineering, construction management, or wireless infrastructure deployment is strongly preferred.
This position requires approximately 50% travel to project sites and regional field locations.
Demonstrated ability to lead, coach, mentor, and support field construction representatives and collaborate effectively with project stakeholders.
Must be a team‑oriented, inquisitive, and analytical individual capable of maintaining strong working relationships with engineering, safety, contractors, and cross‑functional project teams.
Ability to read and interpret tower structural drawings, rigging plans, civil site plans, grounding diagrams, RF equipment installation specifications, and carrier‑specific construction standards.
Familiarity with industry standards and installation practices, including ANSI/TIA‑222, ANSI/TIA‑322, ANSI 10.48, ASME B30, grounding/bonding requirements, and other applicable telecom construction guidelines.
Experience with rigging operations, including gin pole setup, operation, load calculations, lift planning, and safe hoisting procedures for tower erection, modification, and antenna system installation.
Understanding of concrete testing procedures (such as slump tests, cylinder breaks, and field verification) and the ability to review and interpret geotechnical reports to ensure proper foundation design, soil suitability, and site preparation.
Aptitude to understand and visualize the safest and most efficient construction methods, and identify potential risks or hazards to be mitigated.
Ability to develop, communicate, and support complex construction sequencing, including tower stacking, antenna swaps, civil site preparation, equipment integration, and commissioning support.
Strong computer skills and the ability to quickly learn and apply new construction management tools, field data‑collection platforms, and emerging technologies.
Strong analytical skills to visualize a project from concept to completion, anticipate construction challenges, and plan for risks associated with tower work, civil construction, or equipment installation.
Ability to conduct tower site visits, civil site inspections, and field assessments, including traveling long distances as needed.
Ability to work effectively in environments with pressure and deadlines, while remaining efficient in self‑management and maintaining a high level of self‑motivation.

Nice To Haves

Experience in telecom engineering, construction management, or wireless infrastructure deployment is strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Demonstrate the capacity to relate and communicate expert tower construction-related knowledge to others by creating, reviewing, and vetting project Constructability Scoping Reports in a highly collaborative fashion and managing Tower Construction projects while ensuring safety and standard compliance.
Advance AEP's goal to integrate construction methodology and planning into scoping activities from project inception to reduce costs and construct Telecommunication facilities safer and more efficiently.
Maintain highly effective relationships and communications with various project stakeholders.
Exhibit an advanced level of knowledge and proficiency in construction management by effectively communicating and innovating throughout all phases, from conceptualization to completion.
Develop comprehensive project plans that outline goals, timelines, and budgets to ensure alignment with stakeholder expectations, optimizing scheduling resources and forecasting to guarantee the availability of personnel, equipment, and materials.
Implement robust material logistics planning to manage the procurement and transportation of materials, minimizing delays and cost overruns.
Conduct thorough construction plan reviews, including detailed evaluations of lift plans and rigging plans to ensure safety and compliance with industry standards.
Review system test results and material testing reports to confirm that all components meet specified quality standards and perform as intended.
Efficiently schedule and manage contractors to foster collaboration and ensure that work is completed on time and within budget.
Provide ongoing education for FCRs to promote a culture of safety and compliance among all team members.
Ensure that a consistent direction for managing tower site construction is maintained throughout AEP to improve the quality of logistics, processes, procedures, format, documentation, and timeliness into a standardized or best-practice format, which includes continuous process improvement initiatives in collaboration with all Construction Leads.
Stakeholder collaboration management and feedback from Project Management, Wireless Engineering, Transport Engineering, and Telecom Field Services.
Ensure that ALL Constructability Scoping Reports are created with safety, efficiency, and economics in mind.
Develop and maintain an improved relationship and communications with strategic contractor partners.
Conduct lessons learned meetings on completed projects evaluating how well the constructability plan worked and improvements to be made going forward.
Stay up to date on current industry construction practices and standards including methodologies and technological advancements AEP Tower Construction can implement.
Review Capital Project P6 schedules to ensure Constructability Scoping Reports are developed in a timely manner to support regional scoping goals.
Conduct site visits as needed with scoping teams or on your own to identify potential constructability challenges, review construction progress, and ensure quality control and standard compliance.
Work closely with Project Management and Telecom Field Services to identify potential hazards and bottlenecks and create plans to remove them or add to risk register for project outages.
Mentor and continuously educate Execution Project Managers on the overall construction planning process as well as FCR's.
Take on special leadership responsibilities and assignments such as process improvements, Kaizen events, Lean Initiatives, etc.
Attend/call in to the monthly construction meeting to coordinate best practices and keep in touch with what is happening in the field and identify any issues that could be avoided by adding to constructability plan.
Work with regional material management leaders to identify potential constraints in material flows to a particular project and include in Constructability Scoping Reports.
Support and promote ZERO Harm working with all AEP departments and contractors both in the office and in the field.
Evaluate contractor submissions for work plans, lift plans, and rigging plans to ensure compliance with industry standards.
Analyze material testing reports for concrete, soil density, moisture content, resistivity, and other pertinent aspects.
Review contractor system test results including SWEEP tests.
Review and distribute Radio Frequency (RF) considerations and educate onsite personnel about RF safety.
Collaborate with Wireless Engineering, Transport Engineering, Civil Engineering, and Project Management to review and revise construction drawings and project specification documents.
Coordinate and attend pre-construction bid walks.
Provide feedback to project management team for contractor bid awards.
Support Outage Planning and Constructability with Project Management and local Telecom TFS Field Services.
Work closely with Project Management to help facilitate project labor coverage, FCR coverage, and Safety Representation for all projects.
Provide coordination of daily/weekly Region work plans and keep of project high level to meet construction schedules.
Attend regularly scheduled Region construction project status and scheduling meetings.
Attend/call in to the monthly Engineering meetings to address issues, improvements, etc.
Collaborate with all stakeholders to ensure successful project completions.
Supervise Company and contract FCR's, assign FCR's to projects, coordinate/implement FCR training, coordinate FCR requests for paid overtime.
Assist FCR's in, but not limited to, change order process, project lifecycle process, attestation adherence, FMP process, etc.
Educate and develop FCRs.
Manage compliance in accordance with AEP Regulations.
Support Regional Storm Restoration efforts that require CM and contractor labor support.
Support extra duties and committees as assigned by Manager.
Coordinate outage planning efforts for the assigned region(s).
Manage, coach, mentor, and train Construction Outage Planners within a specific region.
Ensure that a consistent direction of Construction Outage Planning is communicated and maintained throughout AEP Energy Delivery to include best practices and periodic review for process improvement.
Ensure that ALL Outage Plans are created with safety, efficiency, and economics in mind.
Develop capital project outage plans for a limited number of projects to maintain proficiency.
Communicate with Energy Delivery Leadership regarding regional outage planning improvements, updates, and initiatives.
Provide reports on overall Outage Plan development to Energy Delivery Leadership as required.
Conduct lessons learned meetings on completed projects that required outage planning.
Develop and maintain an audit process to ensure Outage Plans are consistent and effective.
Recommend improvements to the outage planning process as an output of the audit process.
Review Capital Project schedules to ensure outage dates are current in accordance with the Outage Plan.
Participate in periodic reviews with TFS Work Scheduling Teams to ensure outage optimization between Capital Projects and Non-Capital Projects/Maintenance.
Facilitate the continuous learning of Construction Outage Planners within the assigned region.
Mentor and continuously educate Construction Outage Planning stakeholders on the overall outage planning process.
Take on special leadership responsibilities and assignments to improve the Outage Planning team and Construction Management overall.
As necessary, coordinate with Special Project Teams regarding outage planning and associated projects, issues, and improvements.