Director, Project Controls

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Job Function:

Project/Program Management Group

Job Sub Function:

Project/Program Management

Job Category:

People Leader

All Job Posting Locations:

Malvern, Pennsylvania, United States of America, New Brunswick, New Jersey, United States of America

Job Description:

Engineering & Property Services (E&PS) is recruiting for a Director, Project Controls located in Malvern, PA or New Brunswick, NJ.

An internal pre-identified candidate for consideration has been identified. However, all applications will be considered.

The Director, Project Controls, is accountable for leading the development, governance, validation and continuous improvement of capital project estimating practices across the project lifecycle. This role ensures estimates are robust, transparent, benchmarked and aligned with J&J Worldwide Procedures, E&PS delivery requirements, internal cost structures and applicable industry best practices. The candidate will require deep expertise in preconstruction planning, conceptual estimating, detailed construction estimating, cost validation, procurement strategy, contractor engagement and risk-based contingency development. This role will be part of the Global Project Controls & Assurance team.

This role is responsible for driving consistent estimating standards from early ideation through definition, execution and assessment phases. Responsibilities include establishing estimating strategies, supporting business case development, aligning scope and cost assumptions, leading estimate reviews, validating external partner deliverables, supporting target value design / delivery, integrating procurement and construction market intelligence, and ensuring estimate basis, exclusions, allowances, escalation, contingency and risk assumptions are clearly documented and defensible.

An ideal candidate for this role will have strong leadership experience with demonstrated competency engaging senior leaders, project executives, project delivery teams, design professionals, construction managers and external estimating partners. The candidate must be able to influence decision-making, challenge assumptions, drive alignment under ambiguity, and provide clear, data-driven recommendations that improve cost certainty and protect owner value on complex capital programs.

Key relationships include collaborative working relationships with J&J Project Delivery, Project Controls, Engineering, Procurement, Finance, Design, Construction Management, Facilities Management, external estimating partners, contractors, key stakeholders and business leaders. This role will also ensure alignment with E&PS functional partners and support consistent application of estimating governance, estimating practices and capital cost reporting expectations.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead estimating governance for all projects (most specifically major capital projects), ensuring early cost strategies are aligned with project scope, business objectives, funding requirements and decision milestones.
• Provide guidance on Front End Loading / early estimating by aligning project definitions, scope assumptions, basis of estimate, key quantities, procurement strategy, execution approach and estimating methodology.
• Support the implementation of the IDEA Project Delivery Process with a focus on cost predictability, estimate maturity, risk-informed contingency, scope alignment, and compliance with key financial procedures.
• Work with project teams to develop and align Capital Appropriation Request estimates, estimate basis documentation, cost breakdown structures and estimating deliverables to support seamless project approval.
• Establish estimating tools, templates, checklists and review processes that support consistent deliverables, transparent assumptions, benchmark validation, and clear alignment to the 21-Tab / ESR structure.
• Create and manage estimating methods, techniques and supporting guidance that add depth, consistency and defensibility across all 21-Tab / ESR categories, ensuring estimates address the full capital cost structure beyond Tabs 1 through 3, including indirect costs, owner costs, contingency, escalation, allowances, project delivery costs and other required funding elements.
• Oversee and manage all benchmarking activities, including internal J&J historical cost data, project performance metrics, estimate outcomes, cost drivers and lessons learned, as well as external industry, market, regional, contractor and third-party benchmarking sources.
• Establish benchmarking governance to ensure benchmark data is current, normalized, comparable, documented and appropriately applied to estimate validation, cost challenge sessions, funding recommendations and leadership decision support.
• Lead independent estimate reviews, reconciliations and challenge sessions to validate scope coverage, inclusions and exclusions, quantities, labor assumptions, productivity, unit rates, escalation, markups, indirect costs and contingency.
• Evaluate external estimating, AE, Construction Management and contractor deliverables for completeness, accuracy, alignment to J&J requirements, and adherence to agreed estimating standards.
• Support project teams in evaluating cost trends, change impacts, market conditions, constructability considerations, procurement packages and forecast implications during preconstruction and execution.
• Create and manage procedures for change order review, using estimating techniques to validate pricing, quantities, labor productivity, unit rates, markups, indirect costs, schedule impacts, supporting documentation and overall commercial reasonableness before approval or negotiation.
• Review construction estimate trend reports, bid packages, subcontractor pricing strategies and cost validation documents prior to major commercial commitments or contract award recommendations.
• Lead development and review of project estimates across estimate classes, including analysis of scope definition, design maturity, assumptions, unit rates, subcontractor costs, fees, markups, indirect costs, general conditions and escalation.
• Partner with Procurement and Project Delivery to evaluate subcontract procurement plans, package strategy, bid coverage, market capacity, long-lead equipment considerations and alignment with target dates.
• Review costs and schedules for major subcontracts prior to award and validate alignment with approved budgets, estimate assumptions, commercial strategy and project risk profile.
• Develop and evaluate contingency strategies using estimate maturity, risk exposure, market uncertainty, scope definition and execution complexity; monitor contingency usage and provide guidance on drawdown governance.
• Support payment application and cost validation reviews when required to confirm progress alignment, commercial compliance and consistency with approved estimate assumptions.
• Maintain and support 21-Tab / ESR estimate information that accurately:
  • Reflects approved funding, current estimate position and target schedule assumptions.
  • Identifies key estimate drivers, cost risks, opportunities, assumptions and areas requiring leadership attention.
  • Tracks forecasted cash flow, escalation, procurement timing and major cost movements against plan.
  • Supports transparent communication of estimate confidence, contingency position and cost exposure.

• Lead DTV process to align with internal engineering processes.
• Integrate estimating planning with engineering, design deliverables, procurement strategy, construction management planning, IT / automation scope, commissioning and qualification, operational readiness, process validation and technology transfer requirements.
• Ensure cost and schedule assumptions are integrated, with clear identification of critical cost drivers, long-lead items, phasing constraints, constructability risks and mitigation strategies required to support reliable capital decisions.
• Support teams in developing programmatic and project-specific preconstruction and procurement strategies that improve cost certainty, schedule confidence, market competitiveness and owner value.
• Identify cost opportunities, estimate risks and commercial exposures, and recommend courses of action that enable project teams and business leaders to make timely, informed and value-focused decisions.

Qualifications

Education:

• B.S. in Engineering, Construction Management, Architecture, Quantity Surveying, Business or related discipline from an accredited institution or equivalent required

Experience and Skills:

Required:

• Minimum 15+ years of estimating, project controls, construction management or related capital project experience supporting major capital programs.
• Extensive knowledge of capital project preconstruction, estimating, cost validation, procurement strategy, construction execution and project controls integration.
• Prior experience leading or supporting complex capital projects greater than $100MM in Supply Chain, R&D, Pharma, MedTech, advanced manufacturing or similarly regulated environments.
• Demonstrated ability to translate business needs, design intent and project scope into clear estimate strategies, cost assumptions, basis of estimate documentation and capital funding recommendations.
• Track record of developing and maintaining highly collaborative partnerships with project delivery, engineering, finance, procurement, contractors, design partners and senior stakeholders.
• Strong listening, facilitation and problem-solving skills when aligning scope, cost, schedule, risk and commercial assumptions across diverse project teams.
• Full working knowledge of estimate classification, estimate development, benchmarking, cost breakdown structures, escalation, contingency, risk-based cost analysis and change impact evaluation.
• Familiarity with multiple contract types, procurement models, construction delivery strategies and commercial risk allocation approaches.
• Experience leading estimate reviews, contractor reconciliations, bid analysis, value engineering, target value design / delivery and preconstruction decision support.
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, estimating platforms, benchmarking tools, cost databases, project controls systems, and risk / Monte Carlo analysis tools.

Preferred:

• Familiarity with J&J Project Management approaches, including FPX and the IDEA Project Delivery Process.
• Professional certification such as CEP, CCP, CPE, PMP, RICS, or equivalent preferred
• Experience with web-based project management systems, estimating databases, cost benchmarking platforms, Autodesk construction cloud and Planswift
• Experience in an FDA regulated industry or similarly complex regulated capital project environment.

Other:

• Fluency in written and spoken English is required.
• This position will require up to 50% domestic travel during preconstruction, design and key project execution phases.

Johnson & Johnson is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by federal, state or local law. We actively seek qualified candidates who are protected veterans and individuals with disabilities as defined under VEVRAA and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act.

Johnson & Johnson is committed to providing an interview process that is inclusive of our applicants’ needs. If you are an individual with a disability and would like to request an accommodation, external applicants please contact us via https://www.jnj.com/contact-us/careers. Internal employees contact AskGS to be directed to your accommodation resource.

Required Skills:

 

 

Preferred Skills:

Agile Decision Making, Analytics Insights, Budget Management, Business Savvy, Developing Others, Give Feedback, Inclusive Leadership, Leadership, Organizational Project Management, Performance Measurement, Program Management, Project Management Methodology (PMM), Project Management Office (PMO), Project Management Tools, Project Reporting, Regulatory Compliance, Statement of Work (SOW)

 

 

The anticipated base pay range for this position is :

$150,000.00 - $258,750.00

Additional Description for Pay Transparency:

Subject to the terms of their respective plans, employees are eligible to participate in the Company’s consolidated retirement plan (pension) and savings plan (401(k)).

This position is eligible to participate in the Company’s long-term incentive program.

Subject to the terms of their respective policies and date of hire, employees are eligible for the following time off benefits:

Vacation –120 hours per calendar year

Sick time - 40 hours per calendar year; for employees who reside in the State of Colorado –48 hours per calendar year; for employees who reside in the State of Washington –56 hours per calendar year

Holiday pay, including Floating Holidays –13 days per calendar year

Work, Personal and Family Time - up to 40 hours per calendar year

Parental Leave – 480 hours within one year of the birth/adoption/foster care of a child

Bereavement Leave – 240 hours for an immediate family member: 40 hours for an extended family member per calendar year

Caregiver Leave – 80 hours in a 52-week rolling period10 days

Volunteer Leave – 32 hours per calendar year

Military Spouse Time-Off – 80 hours per calendar year

For additional general information on Company benefits, please go to: - https://www.careers.jnj.com/employee-benefits