Utility Planner Remote Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

NV5 is a provider of engineering and consulting services to public and private sector clients, delivering solutions through six business verticals: Testing, Inspection & Consulting; Infrastructure; Utility Services; Environmental Health Sciences; Buildings & Program Management; and Geospatial Technology. With offices nationwide and abroad, NV5 helps clients plan, design, build, test, certify, and operate projects that improve the communities where we live and work.

As engineers, architects, construction/program managers, environmental professionals and beyond, we play a significant role in shaping our communities through the services we provide. We are looking for passionate, driven individuals to join our team focused on Delivering Solutions and Improving Lives.

Senior Project Manager – Utility Infrastructure & Technical Delivery

Position Summary

The Senior Project Manager is responsible for leading the engineering execution, turnkey procurement lifecycles, and delivery of complex utility infrastructure, capital expansion, and technical modernization projects. This role drives multi-site projects from initial feasibility through design, full-lifecycle material sourcing, remote logistics, and final delivery.

Serving as the primary client interface, the Senior Project Manager implements schedule and scope controls, manages complex supply chains for geographically diverse sites, and leads the development of engineering deliverables. The ideal candidate excels at managing full-lifecycle turnkey deployments, scaling standardized frameworks, driving procurement accountability, and translating highly complex technical processes into structured, field-ready deliverables.

Key Responsibilities

Engineering Team Leadership & Program Scaling

• Lead engineering delivery for complex utility infrastructure programs, multi-site system expansions, and turnkey technical asset rollouts.
• Direct cross-functional design teams across various disciplines (electrical, civil, structural, environmental, land/real estate) to deliver complete, integrated packages.
• Provide direction, coaching, and leadership to project teams and technical coordinators across multiple office locations.
• Establish project frameworks for consistent, repeatable execution across multiple geographic locations while avoiding scope fragmentation.
• Direct design quality reviews and interdisciplinary coordination to ensure all engineering deliverables meet quality, accuracy, and consistency standards.

Turnkey Procurement & Supply Chain Management

• Oversee full procurement lifecycles for major utility assets, specialized hardware packages, and multi-site installation deployments.
• Manage comprehensive Bills of Materials (BOM), ensuring the strategic sourcing, packing, and validation of complete installation packages.
• Lead the development of technical and commercial documents, request-for-proposal (RFP) packages, equipment requisitions, and vendor scoring matrices.
• Drive contract negotiations and vendor selection, managing trade ally performance and holding suppliers contractually accountable to quality and deployment schedules.

Client Interface & Public-Sector Stakeholder Management

• Serve as the primary point of contact for investor-owned utilities, municipal utilities, and public-sector infrastructure clients (e.g., federal/state agencies).
• Build and maintain robust relationships with utility clients, executive leadership teams, and public decision-makers.
• Lead project status meetings, executive reviews, and formal stakeholder engagements to clearly communicate complex engineering recommendations, progress, and risk mitigation strategies.
• Manage client expectations while driving accountability to ensure, and project milestones are met within turnaround windows.

Schedule, Scope, and Remote Logistics Management

• Develop and manage detailed project scopes, schedules critical path, resource plans.
• Monitor project performance KPIs, engineering productivity, and schedule milestones across concurrent projects to ensure timely delivery.
• Mitigate environmental and seasonal risks by embedding contingency planning directly into the master program schedule.
• Implement change management processes, evaluating and managing impacts to engineering scope, procurement budgets, and project baselines.
• Coordinate turnkey logistical planning for shipping critical materials, tools, and consumables to domestic and remote locations, including oversight of customs clearances and final job-site transportation.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Construction Management or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum 10 years of progressively responsible engineering project management, program delivery, or owner's engineering experience overseeing Turnkey/EPC projects within the utility, energy infrastructure, or public infrastructure sectors.
• Hands-on experience developing project scopes, managing critical path schedules, and resource loading.
• Proven track record leading multi-site program deployment, managing full-lifecycle vendor procurement, or acting as the primary client interface for large-scale public or utility infrastructure programs.
• Self-starter with the experience of managing complex portfolios with complete autonomy, minimal supervision, and high independent decision-making authority.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, facilitation, leadership, and presentation skills, with a proven ability to convey highly technical data to senior stakeholders and non-technical audiences.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's Degree in Engineering, Business Administration (MBA), or Construction Management
• Direct experience managing or oversight of EPC/Turnkey delivery for utility infrastructure projects, including working alongside investor-owned utilities (IOUs), municipal utilities, or federal infrastructure clients.
• Experience applying advanced project management practices within a Tier-1 global infrastructure consulting or AEC organization

The pay range for this California position is $160,000- $180,000 per year; however, base pay offered may be higher or lower depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience of the candidate. Full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the position offered. This information is provided per California Senate Bill 1162. Base pay information is based on market location. Applicants should apply via the NV5 careers site.

NV5 offers a competitive compensation and benefits package including medical, dental, life insurance, PTO, 401(k) and professional development/advancement opportunities.

NV5 provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty, or status as a covered veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws. NV5 complies with applicable state and local laws governing non-discrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.