Vice President, Underground Utilities

For more than five decades, our client has built its reputation on one thing: showing up to every project — whether competitively bid or repeat work — with preparation, professionalism, and a team that knows how to execute. They are a well-established Southern California general engineering and underground utilities contractor with a deep roster of public agency clients, major utility relationships, and a track record that speaks for itself. As the organization looks to strengthen its leadership bench, they're bringing on a Vice President of Operations to carry that legacy forward and help shape what comes next. This is a seat at the table for someone who has earned it.

What You'll Own

• Lead day-to-day operations across active underground utility and general engineering projects, ensuring execution meets schedule, budget, safety, and quality benchmarks
• Serve as the senior operational voice on public works pursuits — from preconstruction strategy through project closeout
• Build and maintain strong relationships with public agencies, municipal clients, and Southern California utility partners
• Oversee estimating, project management, and field supervision functions with clear accountability structures
• Drive continuous improvement in project delivery methods, safety protocols, and equipment utilization across the field
• Partner with ownership and senior leadership on business development, contract strategy, and long-range operational planning
• Mentor and develop project managers and field leaders, building the next tier of organizational capability

Requirements

What You Bring

• Significant experience in underground utilities construction — sewers, storm drains, waterlines, vaults, conduit, and related substructure scopes
• A career rooted in California, with deep familiarity with California public works regulations, prevailing wage requirements, and municipal contracting environments
• Strong public agency relationships and a genuine track record delivering public works projects from award through closeout
• Experience operating at a senior leadership level with direct P&L accountability or equivalent operational ownership
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams — estimating, field, PM — with clarity and credibility
• California-based throughout career; candidates without California public works experience are unlikely to be a fit for this role

Benefits

• Competitive compensation commensurate with experience (to be disclosed to qualified candidates)
• Consistent workload backed by long-term, multi-year on-call contracts with major public agencies across Southern California
• Owner-led organization where the work is steady, the culture is no-nonsense, and strong performance gets recognized
• The opportunity to bring real leadership to the field on infrastructure projects that matter to the communities they serve