Principal Operations Manager Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Company Description

Join us and make YOUR mark on the World!

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has turned bold ideas into world-changing impact advancing science and technology to strengthen U.S. security and promote global stability. 

Our mission spans four critical national security areas nuclear deterrence, threat preparedness, energy security, and multi-domain defense empowering teams to take on the toughest challenges of today and tomorrow. With a culture built on innovation and operational excellence, LLNL is a place where your expertise can make a real impact.

Job Description

Operations & Business Principal Directorate has an opening for a Technical Operations Manager. As the Technical Operations Manager, you will provide strategic and operational leadership for the Project Management Office (PMO) technical delivery organizations, including Estimating, Design and Engineering, and Construction Management. These organizations provide the technical capabilities necessary to plan and deliver the institution's portfolio of more than 200 construction projects representing over $800M in estimated Total Project Cost (TPC).

In this role, you will be responsible for aligning functional capabilities, workforce capacity, and technical resources with current and future project delivery requirements. You will partner with program, facility, and PMO leadership to anticipate portfolio demand, resolve cross-functional challenges, strengthen project delivery, and support the Laboratory's infrastructure improvement commitments. You will also provide leadership for the continued development and integration of technical operations within the PMO's project delivery and governance framework.

This position reports directly to the Deputy Principal Associate Director (DPAD) for Projects and serves as an integral member of the PMO Leadership Team.

The Project Management Office provides LLNL with integrated project management, estimating, engineering and design, project controls, construction management, and portfolio management services supporting the Laboratory's infrastructure mission. PMO enables the facilities and infrastructure necessary to support LLNL's cutting-edge research and national security missions, with an emphasis on safe, reliable, and collaborative project delivery.

This position requires full-time on-site presence due to the nature of the work.

You will 

• Provide strategic and operational leadership for the Construction Management, Estimating, and Design & Engineering organizations, ensuring safe, secure, and effective support to Project Management and timely project delivery.
• Lead integration across assigned functional organizations, establishing priorities, performance expectations, and accountability for service quality, technical excellence, safety, workforce performance, and continuous improvement.
• Develop and execute workforce strategies, including resource planning, succession planning, recruitment, capability development, and deployment of personnel to meet evolving project demands.
• Oversee the financial and operational management of assigned organizations, including fiscal management, budget planning, funding control, cash flow management, staffing, resource allocation, workforce utilization, and organizational performance.
• Establish and maintain collaborative relationships with institutional partner organizations to ensure coordinated, timely, and effective project execution.
• Lead operational execution across the assigned functional organizations by effectively managing people, schedules, financial resources, and technical execution to deliver safe, timely, and high-quality project outcomes.
• Implement and reinforce the PMO Project Management System within the assigned functional organizations, ensuring operational alignment with governance, policies, standards, procedures, and organizational expectations established by the PMO Governance Department Head.
• Serve as a member of the PMO Leadership Team, advising leadership on organizational capability, workforce capacity, project execution risks, and opportunities for operational improvement while balancing customer needs with organizational priorities and governance expectations.
• Develop high-performing leaders and organizations capable of supporting a diverse and complex portfolio of capital projects.

Qualifications

• Ability to secure and maintain a U.S. DOE Q-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship.
• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Construction Management, Architecture, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• Significant experience leading multiple, multidisciplinary technical or project-delivery functions, such as Construction Management, Design and Engineering, Estimating, Project Controls, Risk Management, or related disciplines.
• Significant experience supporting a complex portfolio of capital projects through strategic, operational, and technical leadership.
• Demonstrated experience in workforce and organizational management, including workforce and succession planning, recruitment, capability development, workload forecasting, resource allocation, personnel deployment, and performance management.
• Extensive experience in fiscal and operational management, including budget development and execution, funding control, cash-flow management, financial forecasting, and stewardship of organizational resources.
• Successful track record leading organizational integration, change, and continuous-improvement initiatives that strengthen accountability, improve performance, and support reliable project delivery.
• Demonstrated critical thinking, sound judgment, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to evaluate complex operational challenges, identify and mitigate organizational and project-execution risks, develop practical solutions, make timely decisions, build partnerships, influence outcomes, and drive measurable operational results in a complex matrixed environment.

Desired Qualifications

• Advanced degree in engineering, construction management, business administration, project management, or a related discipline, and/or professional certification such as PMP, PE, CCM, CCP, or equivalent.
• Experience applying Earned Value Management, project controls, performance measurement, forecasting, and organizational performance-management systems, including metrics, dashboards, and key performance indicators, to support informed decision-making and effective project execution.
• Experience with contract and contractor management, as well as procurement, supply chain, logistics, material management, and project coordination in a complex project environment.
• Experience with asset lifecycle management and capital-project turnover, including lifecycle planning, commissioning, startup, testing, acceptance, transition to operations, and long-term asset stewardship.
• Experience developing, implementing, or overseeing quality assurance and quality control programs, inspection processes, corrective-action programs, continuous quality-improvement initiatives, or related governance processes.
• Successful record of leading operational transformation, organizational integration, or cultural change while sustaining project execution and customer service, and building collaborative relationships across engineering, construction, project management, project controls, operations, maintenance, procurement, and institutional support organizations.
• Recent leadership experience in a U.S. national laboratory, DOE contractor environment, federal project organization, or comparable complex technical institution, with familiarity with Laboratory policies, organizational processes, mission areas, project-delivery practices, and institutional governance.

Pay Range

$282,210 - $359,700 Annually

This is the lowest to highest salary range in good faith we believe would pay for this role at the time of this posting.  An employee's position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, and business or organizational needs.

Additional Information

#LI-Onsite

Position Information

This is a Career Indefinite position, open to Lab employees and external candidates.

Why Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory?

• Included in 2026 Best Places to Work by Glassdoor!
• Flexible Benefits Package
• 401(k)
• Relocation Assistance
• Education Reimbursement Program
• Flexible schedules (*depending on project needs)
• Our values - visit https://www.llnl.gov/inclusion/our-values

Security Clearance

This position requires a Department of Energy (DOE) Q-level clearance.  If you are selected, we will initiate a Federal background investigation to determine if you meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information or matter. Also, all L or Q cleared employees are subject to random drug testing.  Q-level clearance requires U.S. citizenship. 

Pre-Employment Drug Test

External applicant(s) selected for this position must pass a post-offer, pre-employment drug test. This includes testing for use of marijuana as Federal Law applies to us as a Federal Contractor.

Wireless and Medical Devices

Per the Department of Energy (DOE), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory must meet certain restrictions with the use and/or possession of mobile devices in Limited Areas. Depending on your job duties, you may be required to work in a Limited Area where you are not permitted to have a personal and/or laboratory mobile device in your possession.  This includes, but not limited to cell phones, tablets, fitness devices, wireless headphones, and other Bluetooth/wireless enabled devices.  

If you use a medical device, which pairs with a mobile device, you must still follow the rules concerning the mobile device in individual sections within Limited Areas.  Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities require separate approval. Hearing aids without wireless capabilities or wireless that has been disabled are allowed in Limited Areas, Secure Space and Transit/Buffer Space within buildings.

How to identify fake job advertisements

Please be aware of recruitment scams where people or entities are misusing the name of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to post fake job advertisements. LLNL never extends an offer without a personal interview and will never charge a fee for joining our company. All current job openings are displayed on the Career Page under "Find Your Job" of our website. If you have encountered a job posting or have been approached with a job offer that you suspect may be fraudulent, we strongly recommend you do not respond.

To learn more about recruitment scams: https://www.llnl.gov/sites/www/files/2023-05/LLNL-Job-Fraud-Statement-Updated-4.26.23.pdf

Equal Employment Opportunity

We are an equal opportunity employer that is committed to providing all with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, medical condition, pregnancy, protected veteran status, age, citizenship, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws.

Reasonable Accommodation

Our goal is to create an accessible and inclusive experience for all candidates applying and interviewing at the Laboratory.  If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application or the recruiting process, please use our online form to submit a request. 

California Privacy Notice

The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) grants privacy rights to all California residents. The law also entitles job applicants, employees, and non-employee workers to be notified of what personal information LLNL collects and for what purpose. The Employee Privacy Notice can be accessed here.