Director of Business Operations & Projects

Description

Position Summary

Director of Business Operations & Projects is responsible for the overall performance, leadership, and profitability of WW Industries, a fabrication business specializing in large structural, piping, skid, vessel, and custom fabricated equipment.

Reporting directly to the President, Director of Business & Projects has overall accountability for business performance, including project execution, estimating and quoting, operational performance, customer relationships, financial results, and organizational leadership.

Director of Business Operations & Projects will lead and coordinate the activities of the Operations Manager, Project Manager, Estimator/Planner, and administrative functions. The Operations Manager is responsible for the direct supervision and execution of shop production activities, while Director of Business Operations & Projects is accountable for ensuring the overall business operates safely, efficiently, profitably, and in accordance with customer requirements.

A key focus of this position is converting quoted work into profitable execution by ensuring accurate estimating, disciplined project management, effective production planning, strong cost control, and timely corrective action when projects deviate from plan.

Direct Reports

• Operations Manager
• Project Manager(s)
• Estimator / Planner
• Administrative Support

Requirements

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Business and Financial Leadership

• Maintain overall responsibility for the financial and operational performance of WW Industries.
• Manage the business to established revenue, gross margin, EBIT, cash flow, and operational performance targets.
• Review financial results regularly and identify corrective actions when performance deviates from plan.
• Maintain visibility of backlog, revenue forecast, project margins, labor requirements, shop loading, and business capacity.
• Provide weekly operating and financial reporting to the President, including key risks, opportunities, project performance, and required management actions.
• Develop annual operating plans, budgets, staffing requirements, and capital expenditure recommendations.
• Identify and implement opportunities to improve profitability, productivity, utilization, and operating efficiency.

Estimating and Commercial Management

• Maintain overall responsibility for the accuracy and commercial quality of quotations and estimates.
• Review labor hours, material requirements, subcontract costs, schedule assumptions, risk allowances, and proposed margins before quotations are issued.
• Ensure appropriate estimating discipline and approval processes are followed.
• Evaluate commercial and execution risks associated with new opportunities.
• Support customer negotiations and major quotation reviews.
• Ensure lessons learned from completed projects are incorporated into future estimates.
• Monitor quoted versus actual labor, material, subcontract, and margin performance to continuously improve estimating accuracy.

Project Execution

• Provide leadership and oversight of all active projects from purchase order through final delivery and closeout.
• Ensure projects are executed in accordance with customer specifications, schedule requirements, budgets, and quality requirements.
• Review project performance against original estimate and budget, including labor hours, material costs, subcontract costs, schedule, billing, and gross margin.
• Ensure deviations from budget or schedule are identified early and corrective actions are implemented.
• Support the Project Manager in resolving customer, commercial, technical, and execution issues.
• Maintain appropriate communication with customers regarding project status, schedule, changes, and execution concerns.
• Ensure change orders and out-of-scope work are identified, documented, priced, and recovered.

Operations Oversight

• Provide leadership and direction to the Operations Manager responsible for day-to-day shop production.
• Ensure shop manpower, equipment, materials, and production priorities are aligned with project schedules and business requirements.
• Monitor shop utilization, labor efficiency & productivity, overtime, throughput, and schedule performance.
• Ensure appropriate manpower planning based on backlog, workload, and capacity.
• Work with the Operations Manager to identify production constraints and implement practical improvements.
• Ensure the business maintains appropriate equipment, tooling, facility capability, and capital resources to support operations.
• Evaluate capital expenditure requests based on demonstrated operational need, return on investment, productivity improvement, and business requirements. 

Customer and Business Development

• Maintain strong relationships with key customers and serve as a senior point of contact when required.
• Support business development efforts focused on work that aligns with WW Industries' fabrication capabilities and target markets.
• Help grow the customer base while maintaining disciplined commercial and margin expectations.
• Evaluate potential opportunities based on strategic fit, shop capability, available capacity, execution risk, and expected profitability.
• Work with the President and commercial team on significant customer opportunities and strategic accounts.

Leadership and Organization

• Provide clear leadership, accountability, and direction to the WW management and administrative team.
• Establish performance expectations for direct reports and hold team members accountable for results.
• Develop the capabilities of the Operations Manager, Project Manager, Estimator/Planner, and administrative personnel.
• Promote effective communication between estimating, project management, planning, operations, quality, and administration.
• Build processes and operating discipline appropriate for a lean, entrepreneurial fabrication business.
• Identify organizational or staffing gaps and recommend changes when appropriate.

Quality, Safety, and Compliance

• Ensure operations are conducted safely and in accordance with company policies and applicable regulatory requirements.
• Work closely with the Quality organization to maintain compliance with applicable ASME, AWS, customer, and company quality requirements.
• Support maintenance of applicable ASME and other certifications.
• Ensure quality issues, NCRs, rework, and customer concerns are addressed promptly and corrective actions are implemented.
• Promote a culture of safety, quality, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, Operations Management, or a related field preferred.
• MBA or advanced business education is beneficial but not required.
• Minimum 10 years of relevant manufacturing or fabrication industry experience.
• Minimum 5 years in a leadership role with responsibility for operations, project execution, estimating, or business performance.
• Significant experience in a fabrication environment producing large structural, piping, skid, vessel, or custom engineered equipment.
• Experience managing a fabrication or manufacturing business, business unit, or operating department with financial responsibility strongly preferred.
• Experience supporting customers in oil and gas, offshore, petrochemical, industrial, infrastructure, or similar markets preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strong working knowledge of fabrication operations, including structural steel, piping, welding, fitting, assembly, testing, and related manufacturing processes.
• Strong understanding of fabrication estimating, including labor-hour development, material takeoffs, subcontracting, production planning, and margin development.
• Ability to understand and manage project financial performance from estimate through completion.
• Strong commercial judgment and ability to balance customer requirements with profitability and execution risk.
• Ability to analyze operational and financial data and convert findings into corrective actions.
• Strong understanding of shop capacity, utilization, productivity, labor efficiency, and manpower planning.
• Ability to read and understand engineering drawings, fabrication drawings, specifications, and customer requirements.
• Working knowledge of ASME Section IX and applicable AWS welding requirements.
• Familiarity with ASME U and R Stamp requirements preferred.
• Strong leadership, communication, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to operate effectively in a small, fast-paced organization where leaders are expected to be hands-on and directly involved in problem solving.
• Strong customer-facing skills and ability to manage difficult commercial or execution discussions professionally.

Key Measures of Success

Performance will be measured against a combination of financial, operational, customer, and organizational objectives, including:

• Revenue and profitability
• Actual project margin versus quoted margin
• Labor-hour performance versus estimate
• On-time delivery
• Shop utilization and labor efficiency
• Backlog and capacity management
• Estimating accuracy
• Customer satisfaction
• Quality and rework performance
• Safety performance

Physical Demands

Physical requirements are generally consistent with an office and manufacturing environment. The position requires regular presence within fabrication and production areas.

Personal Protective Equipment

Appropriate personal protective equipment, including safety glasses, safety footwear, and other required PPE, must be worn while entering designated manufacturing or shop areas.

Work Environment

This position is based at WW Industries' Northwest Houston fabrication facility and requires regular interaction with production personnel, customers, vendors, subcontractors, and company leadership.