West Regional Director of Engineering

Alta seeks a dynamic West Regional Director of Engineering in Oakland to lead our growing West engineering practice. This pivotal leadership role is ideal for an engineering professional passionate about multimodal, sustainable transportation, business strategy, and operational excellence.

You’ll partner with the Engineering Director to provide strategic leadership and operational oversight for West region engineering teams, guiding innovative transportation design and cultivating collaboration, professional growth, and technical excellence. You’ll set technical and strategic direction for engineering initiatives across key offices (Oakland, Portland, Los Angeles, Seattle, Phoenix, Denver, Salt Lake City, Reno), ensure projects positively impact communities, and achieve financial and operational performance goals.

If leading transformational change in transportation excites you, and you enjoy developing talent and driving excellence, consider Alta.

Leadership Responsibilities

As West Regional Director of Engineering, you drive excellence and growth across Western operations, collaborating with other regional directors to advance the engineering practice. Your leadership furthers our mission to foster active, healthy communities with strong financial and operational results.

Strategic Leadership & Vision

• Develop and execute long-term strategic plans for West engineering, aligning with Alta’s goals and market opportunities.
• Meet or exceed financial targets, emphasizing Net Service Revenue and EBITDA growth.
• Guide the regional organization through growth and change, ensuring operational and cultural alignment.
• Champion innovation in active transportation and emerging technologies.
• Cultivate fiscal acumen, empowering teams to improve efficiency and financial performance.
• Participate actively in budgeting, prioritizing trade-offs for revenue and earnings growth.

People Leadership & Organization

• Lead, mentor, and develop engineering staff and project managers across multiple offices.
• Supervise West Region staff, set clear expectations, provide regular feedback, and build career advancement pathways.
• Build a high-performance culture that values professional growth and collaboration.
• Recruit, hire, and retain top engineering talent, maintaining strategic hiring plans.
• Foster cross-disciplinary collaboration throughout the organization.
• Own key areas: safety, client engagement, staff development, retention, and business-wide cooperation.
• Maintain staff utilization goals with sustainable workload management.

Business Development & Client Relations

• Support business development directors in identifying market opportunities and cultivating client relationships.
• Lead proposal development and major client presentations.
• Build and expand relationships with public sector clients.
• Ensure compliance with proposal protocols and maintain delivery integrity.

Operational Excellence & Project Oversight

• Oversee regional project delivery for quality, schedule, and budget performance.
• Manage project financials, monitor project manager performance, delegate efficiently.
• Demonstrate strong understanding of financial metrics such as book-to-burn ratio, revenue factor, and overhead rate.
• Implement best practice improvements for efficient delivery and enhanced client satisfaction.
• Strategically oversee diverse project portfolios, from trails to complex multimodal networks.
• Ensure compliance with standards, regulations, and company quality protocols.
• Apply disciplined management to non-billable labor and overhead.

Qualifications

Required Experience & Education

• 15+ years’ progressive experience as a Transportation Engineer in consulting or public entities.
• 8+ years in project management (P&L responsibility).
• 5+ years in engineering team and business operations leadership.
• Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering.
• Professional Engineering (P.E.) license.
• Proven business development and client management success.

Leadership & Management Competencies

• Demonstrated ability to lead and develop high-performing teams.
• Strategic and business acumen with organizational planning experience.
• Financial expertise with KPIs, metrics, and drivers of growth.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills to influence at all levels.
• Regional operations management with budget and resource oversight.
• Cultural change leadership and organizational development.
• Skilled in budget prioritization and trade-off evaluation.
• Strong financial command and data-driven decision making.
• Critical thinking and judgment with attention to execution detail.

Technical Expertise

• Experience in active, non-motorized transportation planning and design.
• Full project delivery knowledge, from concept to construction administration.
• Skilled with Plans, Specifications, and Estimates for complex projects.
• Proficiency in project management for large, multi-disciplinary efforts.
• Familiarity with MS Excel, Word, MS Project, AutoCAD / Civil 3D, MicroStation / OpenRoads, and enterprise management tools.

Additional Requirements

• Willingness to travel regionally as needed.
• Strong ethics, accountability, and decision-making.
• Experience managing competing priorities and multiple concurrent projects.
• Operational discipline ensuring compliance with project standards.

What We Offer

Flexible Schedule
Alta offers a hybrid work schedule with most employees working from home three days weekly, supporting a collaborative culture.

Compensation
The Oakland pay range is $175,000–$215,000 annually, based on experience and qualifications.

Benefits
Alta provides comprehensive benefits for all full-time staff, including:

• Medical: PPO or HSA plans
• Dental/Vision: PPO
• Life/AD&D: 100% Alta-paid, matching base compensation
• 401(k): 3% match
• PTO: 21 days accrued annually to start
• 11 paid holidays
• Paid parental leave/short-term disability
• Wellness reimbursement ($800/year), Alta Gets Around ($900/year), 5-year travel award, and professional development