Chief Estimator

Chief Estimator – Own Bidding Strategy & Lead Heavy Civil Pursuits for Mark Cerrone, Inc.

Job Overview


* Company: Mark Cerrone, Inc.


* Salary/Pay Rate: $165,000 - $190,000 annually (based on experience)


* Location: Niagara Falls, NY


* Job/Employment Type: Full Time


* Project Scope: Heavy Civil, Site Work, Underground Utilities, and Commercial Construction


* Mandatory Licenses & Certifications: OSHA

The Opportunity

You will step into a standalone leadership seat to take full ownership of our bidding function and drive the continuous growth of our heavy civil footprint.

Partnering directly with ownership and leadership, you will set estimating standards and establish the numbers that go out the door.

This position gives you direct accountability, high visibility, and the opportunity to see your estimates built by our own field crews.

This is an opportunity to rebuild and strengthen the estimating function rather than simply inherit an established department.

You will have the authority to establish standards, structure, accountability, and development practices for the team.

How You Will Make an Impact


* Oversee and approve every estimate before final submission, ensuring pricing accuracy, complete scope, and risk mitigation.


* Establish and enforce estimating standards, methods, and documentation requirements.


* Build and maintain historical cost and production-rate databases, using post-bid and post-job reviews and actual project performance to continuously improve future estimating assumptions.


* Partner with ownership to establish bid strategies, evaluate markups, and lead formal bid/no-bid decision-making.


* Price self-performed heavy civil, site development, and utility work based on real-world production rates, fleet data, and labor costs.


* Perform and enforce written subcontractor scope leveling, identifying inclusions, exclusions, qualifications, and gaps between adjacent trades before award.


* Mentor and develop project estimators and project managers through constructive bid reviews and collaborative strategies.


* Work closely with field operations post-award to transfer bid intent, production assumptions, and risk strategies to project teams.


* Build and maintain key relationships with subcontractors, suppliers, and municipal owners to expand our competitive edge.


* Build realistic bid schedules based on actual construction sequence and duration, identify compressed contract timelines, and incorporate acceleration costs and schedule risk into the estimate when required.

Required Qualifications & Experience


* Minimum of 10 years of construction estimating experience, including direct senior or lead estimating responsibility.


* Experience estimating in a union construction environment, including understanding labor rules, crew composition, jurisdiction, labor rates, fringes, and how those factors affect production and cost.


* Must hav...