A vice president (VP) of construction typically oversees many departments, including accounting, workforce management, and communications. Keep reading to learn more about these responsibilities and how they shape a day in the life of a VP of construction.
Table of Contents
VP of construction job description
Here’s a sample vice president of construction job description based on real-world listings.
Company A is looking to hire a VP of construction with 10-15 years of experience in {niche – i.e. residential construction, mixed-use developments, etc}.
The chosen applicant will work from our head office and oversee accounting, project scheduling, financial reporting, contract negotiation, and workforce management with the goal of ensuring Company A’s projects are completed on-time and within budget. They will also attend meetings with stakeholders and potential business partners on behalf of the company to secure contracts and maintain professional relationships.
The ideal candidate should have:
- 10-15 years of experience managing construction projects (preferably in {niche})
- exceptional people management and team leadership skills
- a post-secondary degree in construction, business, or a related field (preference given to those with an MBA)
- experience managing financials for large construction projects
- the ability to work with little to no supervision
As you can see, a vice president of construction is expected to have significant experience and be capable of working across a wide range of disciplines. Their day-to-day responsibilities, which we’ll discuss next, reflect this.
A day in the life of a VP of construction
Of course, no two vice presidents of construction will have the same exact daily schedule. Rather, daily activities will vary depending on the company they work for and what projects are underway at any given time.
Nonetheless, here’s a hypothetical overview.
6:30 AM – Arrive at work
Vice presidents of construction typically arrive at work in the early morning hours. This is because they need to be present on job sites (which are often fully-staffed by this hour of the morning) and understand the work that will be taking place that day. They may also participate in early-morning crew meetings.
7:00 AM – Communicating with stakeholders
Once a VP of construction has a handle on the day’s schedule, they’ll typically begin communicating (via phone or email) with stakeholders. The purpose of these conversations is to keep stakeholders informed of any changes that were uncovered during the day’s initial meetings.
For example, if the VP of construction discovers while speaking with a construction superintendent that progress on a specific aspect of the project has stalled, they may choose to share this information with other stakeholders in order to manage expectations.
The VP of construction will likely also have correspondence from prior days that needs to be addressed or followed up with. They’ll typically handle that during this window of time.
8:00 AM – Meeting with site superintendents
At this point in their day, a VP of construction may meet with site superintendents they couldn’t connect with earlier (either because the job sites weren’t open at 6:30 AM or they couldn’t fit every single meeting in).
9:00 AM – Meeting with the company owner
By this point in their day, the vice president of construction has a very solid grasp on the current state of operations within their company. That leaves them in a good position to meet and strategize with the company’s owner.
During this meeting, they might discuss project finances, workforce management, or any number of other things.
10:00 AM – Catching up on industry news and trends
A vice president of construction needs to have a firm handle not just on their own company but also the broader construction industry. Typically, this means they’ll set time aside out of their day to learn about the state of the industry and what might be coming down the pipeline.
They might glean this information from trade publications or even speaking with associates. If a vice president of construction uncovers a key piece of information during this research that needs to be acted on, they’ll reach out to the relevant personnel.
11:00 AM – Reviewing documents
Vice presidents of construction are typically involved in reviewing a variety of important documents, including requests for information (RFIs) and requests for proposal (RFPs). They’ll leverage their industry knowledge to provide input on these documents and ensure their reports make the right call.
12:00 PM – Lunch
1:00 PM – Meeting with important clients
Because a vice president of construction is relatively high up in the chain of command, their meetings with clients typically address very important concerns. During these meetings, they might, for example:
- share news about the project having fallen behind and what is being done to address it (which they should be able to following their conversations with stakeholders at 7:00 AM)
- share ideas for moving the project forward ahead of schedule (which they, as vice president of construction, have the authority to discuss with the client)
- discuss change orders (including why it may not be possible to meet them within the allocated time and budget, if that’s applicable)
2:00 PM – Touring job sites with clients and construction superintendents
At this point in the day, the vice president of construction may accompany clients and construction superintendents on job site tours. This will reinforce their understanding of the current state of affairs within the company. They’ll also be in a position to provide clarification as requested by clients.
Remainder of the day – Working with colleagues and other stakeholders to handle whatever tasks are needed
Vice presidents of construction are typically tasked with doing whatever it takes to keep projects moving forward on time and within budget. As such, a substantial portion of each day is dedicated to miscellaneous tasks, such as:
- meeting with direct reports to provide input on human resources decisions
- meeting with decision makers at financial institutions to secure additional funding for equipment and other essential purchases
- “putting out fires” (i.e. smoothing things over with unhappy clients or solving internal conflicts between direct reports)
- supporting other construction project management team members as needed
Bridgit Bench is the construction resource management software of choice for general contractors in North America
Bridgit Bench is among the most powerful management tools in a VP of construction’s toolkit. With it, professionals can:
- easily create and visualize resource allocations
- maintain a single source of truth regarding your workforce data
- plan resource allocations remotely
- forecast workforce demands
- generate resource allocation and utilization reports at the click of a button
Schedule a demo of Bridgit Bench. We’d love to show you what it can do!
We hope this article has helped you understand the day-to-day responsibilities of a vice president of construction. Whether you’re looking to hire someone in this role or are interested in becoming a vice president of construction yourself, visit our blog for more construction project management tips.
