Senior Estimator

Job Overview:

We are looking for an experienced Senior Estimator to support the preconstruction and estimating operations of a U.S.-based commercial construction company.

This is a senior-level construction estimating role focused primarily on full-cycle estimating, while also contributing to trade partner development and AI-enabled process improvement. The successful candidate will take ownership of estimating work from bid intake and document review through quantity takeoffs, pricing, subcontractor solicitation, bid leveling, estimate assembly, and internal review.

The ideal candidate is a construction professional with strong estimating judgment, mathematical accuracy, excellent attention to detail, and the confidence to communicate directly with U.S.-based subcontractors and trade partners.

Job Details:

• Work set up: Work from Home
• Schedule: Monday to Friday | 8:00 AM-5:00 PM Central Time | 9:00 PM-6:00 AM Manila Time
• Holiday: Will follow US holiday calendar

Responsibilities:

Estimating & Preconstruction – 70%

• Manage assigned projects through the full-cycle estimating process, from bid intake through internal review and handoff.
• Review invitations to bid, drawings, specifications, addenda, bid forms, schedules, alternates, allowances, and submission requirements.
• Maintain organized bid documentation, including bid calendars, document registers, addenda logs, and estimate status trackers.
• Read and interpret architectural, structural, civil, MEP, specialty, and vendor documents and translate project requirements into scopes, quantities, and cost components.
• Identify scope gaps, drawing conflicts, missing information, constructability concerns, long-lead items, and other project risks.
• Perform detailed and auditable quantity takeoffs using consistent measurement methods, plan references, units, assemblies, waste factors, and revision controls.
• Develop labor, material, equipment, subcontractor, general conditions, permits, freight, taxes, escalation, allowances, and contingency components as applicable.
• Prepare trade-specific scopes and solicit competitive bids from qualified subcontractors and suppliers.
• Analyze and level subcontractor proposals by reviewing inclusions, exclusions, qualifications, alternates, unit rates, schedules, lead times, and commercial risks.
• Prepare clear assumptions, clarifications, exclusions, RFIs, and risk items for management review.
• Develop a clear Basis of Estimate documenting the project basis, scope, methodology, pricing, quotes, assumptions, allowances, exclusions, and risks.
• Reconcile quantities, formulas, units, extensions, markups, and estimate totals and perform thorough quality checks before review.
• Support conceptual, schematic, budget, negotiated, hard-bid, change-order, and value-engineering estimates as applicable.
• Prepare estimates for internal review and clearly communicate the cost rationale, assumptions, and outstanding risks.
• Support the conversion of awarded estimates into useful turnover information for project execution and procurement.
• Capture bid results and estimate-to-actual feedback to improve future estimating accuracy.

Trade Partner Development – 20%

• Build and maintain a strong network of qualified subcontractors and suppliers across relevant markets.
• Identify potential trade partners based on trade specialty, geography, project type, capacity, and project requirements.
• Conduct professional outbound calls and email outreach to U.S.-based subcontractors and suppliers.
• Introduce qualified trade partners to bidding opportunities and maintain ongoing professional relationships.
• Learn each trade partner's capabilities, service areas, capacity, and project preferences.
• Prepare targeted invitations to bid rather than relying on mass outreach.
• Maintain accurate relationship records, including contact history, bidding participation, quote quality, and follow-up actions.
• Support the qualification process by gathering relevant company, licensing, insurance, safety, capacity, and project experience information.
• Help re-engage inactive or high-potential trade partners.
• Monitor trade partner participation, responsiveness, reliability, and overall performance.

AI & Process Improvement – 10%

• Identify opportunities to improve estimating efficiency, accuracy, and consistency through AI, automation, data, and workflow improvements.
• Explore practical applications of AI for document review, addenda comparison, RFI drafting, proposal analysis, data organization, and repetitive estimating tasks.
• Identify opportunities to improve subcontractor sourcing, follow-ups, relationship management, and bid coverage through technology.
• Support the development of repeatable workflows, checklists, SOPs, templates, and reporting tools.
• Test proposed improvements against known results and maintain appropriate human review and quality controls.
• Ensure AI-assisted outputs are verified against source documents and do not replace professional estimating judgment.
• Document successful process improvements so they can be consistently adopted by the broader team.

Qualifications:

Required

• At least 5 years of experience in construction estimating, quantity surveying, or preconstruction.
• Experience supporting U.S.-based construction projects or projects with comparable construction standards and estimating practices.
• Strong full-cycle estimating experience, beyond quantity takeoff, including bid planning, scope development, subcontractor solicitation, quote analysis, bid leveling, estimate documentation, internal review, and handoff.
• Ability to confidently read and interpret architectural, structural, civil, MEP, and specialty construction documents.
• Strong mathematical and analytical reasoning skills, including dimensions, conversions, production rates, labor assumptions, waste, freight, taxes, escalation, markups, and reconciliation.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills and the ability to work with structured tables, formulas, lookups, pivot tables, validation, and error checks.
• Strong document control and attention to detail.
• Strong written and spoken English communication skills.
• Comfortable making outbound calls to U.S.-based subcontractors and trade partners, asking scope-related questions, following up on bids, and building professional relationships.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple estimates, deadlines, and follow-ups.
• Ability to work independently while maintaining clear communication and escalating issues early.
• Reliable internet connection, backup connectivity/power, and a professional remote work environment.

Preferred / Nice-to-Have:

• 5+ years of construction estimating or preconstruction experience.
• Experience with commercial construction, particularly commercial buildouts.
• Experience across multiple construction sectors such as residential remodeling, civil/site work, structural steel or fabrication, or pre-engineered metal buildings.
• Knowledge of CSI MasterFormat.
• Experience with conceptual and detailed estimating, design-build preconstruction, value engineering, procurement strategy, or estimate-to-actual analysis.
• Experience developing or managing a subcontractor sourcing, qualification, CRM, bid participation, or performance management program.
• Experience with takeoff and construction platforms such as Bluebeam Revu, PlanSwift, STACK, On-Screen Takeoff, Procore, or comparable tools.
• Experience with construction management, ERP, CRM, or document management platforms.
• Exposure to AI tools, automation, workflow orchestration, Power Automate, Make, Zapier, n8n, Python, APIs, Power BI, or similar technologies.
• Demonstrated experience using AI or automation to improve a real business workflow is a strong advantage.
• Degree or formal training in construction management, civil engineering, architecture, quantity surveying, cost engineering, mathematics, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Professional training or certification through organizations such as ASPE, AACE, or RICS is a plus.

Originally posted on Himalayas