Plant Project Controls Specialist

Position Summary: The Plant Project Control Specialist supports Sonic Telecom’s network expansion and infrastructure projects by providing cost analysis, initial schedule setup, budget oversight, and coordination across teams. This role partners closely with project teams, engineering, construction crews, contractors, and internal stakeholders to help deliver fiber and telecom projects safely, on time, and within budget. Position Type: Full-time, non-exempt Hybrid preferred; open to consider fully remote candidates Travel: Travel is not expected for this position. Supervisory Responsibilities: The Plant Project Control Specialist position does not have supervisory responsibilities. Pay Range: $34 - $37/hour DOE Benefits and Perks: • Medical + Dental + Vision benefits • 401k and Profit Sharing • Paid Time Off • Education opportunities • Paid Comprehensive Training • Growth Opportunities • Company Paid Pregnancy/Bonding Leave Qualifications: To perform this role successfully, an individual must be able to carry out each essential duty effectively. The qualifications below are representative of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. • Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Business Administration, Finance, or a related field preferred; equivalent experience in telecom or infrastructure projects will be considered. • Experience with estimating, scheduling, budgeting, or project support within telecom, fiber, or construction environments. • Strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel and familiarity with project management tools (e.g., SAP, Jira, MS Project). • Experience with construction project estimating; fiber experience is a plus. • Working knowledge of cost forecasting, project tracking, and performance management practices. • Understanding of contracts, change management processes, and project financials. Core Competencies • Strong organizational, analytical, and communication skills. • Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment. • Effective communication and teamwork • Problem-solving and adaptability • Strong time management and prioritization Essential Duties and Responsibilities: • Develop and maintain cost estimates for fiber deployment, network upgrades, and telecom infrastructure projects. • Build preliminary project schedules and upload into the tracking systems. • Facilitate the formal handoff of approved projects to the execution team, ensuring readiness for implementation. • Monitor budgets, forecasts, and actual expenditures, identifying variances and recommending corrective actions when needed. • Coordinate with project management, engineering, field operations, and contractors to develop bid packages, support vendor selection, and facilitate contract awards. • Track costs related to labor, materials, equipment, and contracted services throughout the project lifecycle, ensuring alignment with invoicing. • Assist with scope reviews, change management, and financial reporting for active projects. • Analyze risks, budget variances, and communicate insights to project manager and PMO leadership. • Ensure alignment with Sonic Telecom’s standards, safety practices, and applicable regulatory requirements. • Prepare reports and dashboards to provide visibility into project status, costs, and schedule performance. • Contribute to process improvements that enhance estimating accuracy, scheduling efficiency, and cost control. • Conduct post-project financial/estimate to actual retrospectives to evaluate performance, capture lessons learned and drive continuous improvement across future projects. Work Environment & Physical Demands: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is consistently required to sit; key/type, talk, hear, use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls; reach with hands and arms. The employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; balance; stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. Equal Opportunity: Sonic is an equal opportunity employer. Sonic is committed to providing a work environment free of harassment, discrimination, retaliation and disrespectful or other unprofessional conduct based on sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), race, religion (including religious dress and grooming practices), color, gender (including gender identity and gender expression), national origin (including language use restrictions and possession of a driver's license issued under Vehicle Code section 12801.9), ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, registered domestic partner status, age, sexual orientation, military and veteran status or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law or ordinance or regulation. It also prohibits discrimination, harassment, disrespectful or unprofessional conduct based on the perception that anyone has any of those characteristics or is associated with a person who has or is perceived as having any of those characteristics.