Field Operations Manager Jobs in Ankeny, IA (NOW HIRING)

Job Description: Position Summary The Field Operations Manager is responsible for the performance, development, accountability, readiness, and overall employee experience of assigned F6 field personnel. This is a hybrid people-and-technical leadership role designed for an experienced leader who understands technical field-service environments and can translate business requirements into clear expectations for the workforce. The Field Operations Manager owns people outcomes. Project Managers own project outcomes, while Site Leads own daily field execution. The Field Operations Manager partners closely with both roles to ensure F6 has the right people, with the right capabilities, deployed to the right work and performing to established expectations. This role is responsible for performance management, coaching, disciplinary actions, hiring and interviewing, employee development, career progression, workforce planning, retention, culture, policy compliance, and leadership development. The Field Operations Manager must understand F6's business model and how workforce decisions affect safety, quality, customer experience, productivity, labor utilization, travel cost, and profitability. Candidates should bring demonstrated experience leading technical field-service personnel in HVAC, mechanical systems, commissioning, data centers, industrial equipment, critical infrastructure, or a comparable technical environment. Data center experience is preferred but not required when the candidate demonstrates strong technical leadership and people-management capability.People Performance & AccountabilityOwn the performance and accountability of assigned field employees.Establish clear expectations for performance, professionalism, attendance, communication, safety, productivity, and conduct.Conduct regular employee check-ins, performance discussions, and formal reviews.Gather performance feedback from Site Leads, Project Managers, customers, and other appropriate stakeholders.Recognize high performers and reinforce behaviors that support F6 standards.Identify performance concerns early and address them directly.Develop and administer coaching plans and performance improvement plans when appropriate.Document recurring or significant performance concerns accurately and consistently.Partner with HR on disciplinary actions, final warnings, and termination recommendations.Ensure performance standards are applied consistently across employees and projects.Follow up after corrective action to verify improvement and sustained performance. The Field Operations Manager's success is measured by the quality, performance, development, retention, and readiness of the people they lead.Hiring, Interviewing & Workforce QualityConduct and support interviews for Field Technicians, Senior Technicians, Site Leads, and other field roles as assigned.Assess technical aptitude, leadership capability, professionalism, communication, ownership, and culture fit.Partner with recruiting and leadership on candidate selection and hiring recommendations.Support appropriate technician leveling and compensation recommendations based on demonstrated capability.Ensure hiring decisions reflect F6's actual field requirements rather than resume tenure alone.Participate in technical and behavioral interview processes.Evaluate new-hire performance during onboarding and the first 30, 60, and 90 days.Identify early when a new employee is not meeting the expectations of the level for which they were hired.Provide clear direction and documented expectations when performance gaps are identified.Support hiring forecasts based on upcoming workforce demand.Technician Development & Career ProgressionMaintain awareness of the technical capability and development needs of assigned employees.Partner with Site Leads, L3 Senior Technicians, SMEs, and Training to identify skill gaps.Create development plans for employees requiring additional technical, professional, or leadership growth.Track progression through F6's technical career path.Support competency-based advancement from L1 to L2 and L2 to L3.Identify employees with potential for Site Leadership and other leadership roles.Ensure promotion recommendations are supported by demonstrated performance and competency.Provide employees with clear feedback regarding what is required to reach the next level.Build succession depth for critical field and leadership roles.Promote continuous learning and development across the field organization.Talent Calibration & Succession Planning Field Operations Managers are expected to know the strength of their organization and actively build the next generation of F6 field leadership.Regularly evaluate employees as high performers, solid performers, developing employees, performance concerns, or potentially mis-leveled/misassigned employees.Identify employees who are ready for greater responsibility.Maintain visibility of technicians approaching L2 or L3 competency.Identify future Site Leads and other leadership candidates.Identify employees requiring immediate coaching or intervention.Recognize retention risks among high-value employees.Develop succession plans for critical roles and sites.Partner with leadership to ensure F6 is developing talent ahead of business growth rather than reacting after needs arise.Site Lead Management & Development Site Leads report through Field Operations and are a critical extension of the Field Operations Manager in the field.Coach Site Leads on workforce leadership, accountability, communication, productivity, safety, and professionalism.Set expectations for Site Lead performance and leadership behavior.Evaluate Site Lead effectiveness using project results and feedback from Project Managers, Project Coordinators, technicians, and customers where appropriate.Help Site Leads develop stronger coaching and performance-management skills.Ensure Site Leads understand when field issues should be handled onsite and when escalation is required.Support Site Leads through difficult employee conversations and field personnel issues.Develop future Site Leads and maintain leadership depth across the organization.Workforce Planning, Staffing & DeploymentPartner with Project Managers and leadership to understand current and upcoming project resource requirements.Determine appropriate staffing and skill mix based on project needs.Coordinate deployment, reassignment, and redeployment of field personnel.Balance manpower across projects and programs.Anticipate staffing shortages and capability gaps before they affect execution.Maintain awareness of technician availability, rotations, time off, training, and deployment readiness.Consider employee capability, development needs, customer requirements, travel exposure, and business efficiency when making staffing decisions.Manage excess capacity and bench time responsibly.Support forecasting and long-range workforce planning.Communicate resource risks and constraints early. Project Managers define what the project requires and when. Field Operations determines how the workforce is staffed and deployed to meet those requirements.Employee Relations, Engagement & RetentionMaintain regular contact with assigned employees, including traveling field personnel.Build relationships that allow employees to raise concerns before issues become significant.Address employee conflicts, communication problems, and workplace concerns promptly.Partner with HR when employee-relations matters require additional support.Monitor morale and identify emerging retention risks.Conduct stay conversations with key employees when appropriate.Ensure high performers receive meaningful feedback and development opportunities.Support employees through changes in assignments, rotations, leadership, and organizational structure.Ensure field employees hear from management for development and recognition - not only when something goes wrong.Culture & Leadership Standards The Field Operations Manager is responsible for reinforcing the culture expected across F6's field organization.Model accountability, professionalism, ownership, urgency, and solutions-oriented leadership.Reinforce F6's expectation to work the problem and provide solutions.Set expectations for professional customer and stakeholder interaction.Address behaviors that undermine teamwork, accountability, safety, or customer confidence.Create an environment where employees can raise concerns while remaining accountable for performance.Promote consistent standards across sites and teams.Help employees understand how their individual performance contributes to F6's reputation, customer relationships, and growth.Business & Operational Understanding Field Operations Managers must understand that people decisions directly affect project execution and business performance.Understand F6's project-based field-service business model.Maintain awareness of labor utilization, overtime, travel exposure, staffing efficiency, and workforce cost.Understand how employee performance affects project labor and profitability.Recognize the cost of poor hiring, turnover, mis-leveling, excessive overtime, and inefficient deployment.Partner with Project Managers to understand field-performance issues affecting project outcomes.Balance employee development opportunities with customer and project requirements.Use business context when making staffing, performance, and development decisions.Support organizational growth without sacrificing field quality or culture.Partnership with Project Managers Project Managers own project outcomes. Field Operations Managers own people outcomes. The two roles must work closely without creating competing lines of authority.Project ManagerDefines project resource requirements and timing.Communicates field-performance concerns affecting project execution.Provides feedback regarding Site Lead and technician performance.Owns project schedule, scope, financial performance, stakeholder communication, and project outcome.Field Operations ManagerDetermines staffing and deployment in coordination with project requirements.Owns employee coaching, performance management, discipline, development, and personnel decisions.Investigates field-performance concerns and determines appropriate action.Ensures the workforce is capable and ready to meet project requirements. Project feedback is an important input into performance management, but personnel actions remain the responsibility of Field Operations in partnership with HR and leadership.Partnership with OEM Program Managers Field Operations Managers partner with OEM Program Managers to ensure each manufacturer program has the workforce capability required for successful execution.Understand program-specific staffing and competency requirements.Communicate workforce risks affecting OEM programs.Support deployment of appropriately skilled personnel.Identify recurring training or capability gaps.Coordinate development needs associated with new equipment or programs.Support program growth through proactive workforce planning.Partner on significant people issues affecting manufacturer or customer relationships. SMEs are expected to align primarily to OEM Program Managers as the organization develops sufficient program-specific technical coverage. Field Operations may support administrative or people-process needs when required by the current organizational structure, but SMEs are not intended to be a permanent direct-report population of the Field Operations Manager.Safety, Policy & ComplianceReinforce F6, customer, and site safety expectations through the field leadership structure.Partner with Site Leads and Safety on recurring employee safety concerns.Ensure required employee training and certifications remain current.Support investigation and follow-up of safety incidents and policy violations.Address recurring unsafe behaviors through appropriate coaching or disciplinary processes.Reinforce Stop-Work Authority.Ensure compliance with F6 attendance, travel, timekeeping, company property, conduct, and other field policies.Partner with HR and Safety when corrective action is required.Performance Tracking & ReportingMaintain accurate awareness of employee performance and development status.Track open coaching, performance improvement, and disciplinary actions.Maintain visibility of new-hire 30/60/90-day performance.Track promotion readiness and succession candidates.Provide leadership with meaningful workforce updates and emerging risks.Use available performance, utilization, attendance, safety, and project feedback to identify trends.Ensure significant people risks are communicated early rather than after they affect multiple projects.Technical Leadership Expectations The Field Operations Manager is not expected to function as F6's highest-level technical expert. However, the role requires enough technical experience and credibility to evaluate field performance, understand project environments, participate effectively in technical interviews, and recognize when advanced technical resources should be engaged. Relevant technical environments may include:Data center and mission-critical HVAC systemsDAHU / AHU equipmentCRAH / CRAC systemsChillers and cooling towersIRHX and liquid-cooling systemsHydronic systems, pumps, valves, and heat exchangersControls / BAS / BMSElectrical and mechanical troubleshootingEquipment startup and commissioningWhat Defines a Successful Field Operations ManagerBuilds strong, accountable field teams.Knows their people and understands their capabilities.Addresses performance issues early and consistently.Hires for both capability and culture.Develops technicians and future leaders.Retains high performers.Makes disciplined staffing and deployment decisions.Partners effectively with Project Managers and Site Leads.Understands the business impact of workforce decisions.Maintains credibility with technical field personnel.Communicates clearly and handles difficult conversations professionally.Creates consistency across a distributed traveling workforce.Builds the bench ahead of organizational growth.Required QualificationsDemonstrated experience leading technical field-service personnel in HVAC, mechanical systems, commissioning, industrial equipment, critical infrastructure, data centers, or a comparable technical environment.Demonstrated people-management experience including coaching, performance management, employee accountability, and difficult performance conversations.Experience interviewing, selecting, and developing technical employees.Strong understanding of technical field-service operations.Ability to evaluate employee performance using direct observation and stakeholder feedback.Strong written and verbal communication skills.Demonstrated ability to lead distributed or traveling field teams.Strong organizational, judgment, and problem-solving skills.Ability to balance employee needs with customer, project, and business requirements.Abi