Director of Engineering (Hybrid or Remote)

Who is Michaels Energy?

Michaels Energy is a veteran-owned energy consulting firm that exists to help businesses minimize waste and maximize value. Our energy and engineering gurus are obsessed with optimizing buildings and processes to maximize energy savings and profits, minimize utility grid stress and carbon footprints, and keep this big, beautiful planet in tip-top shape. Our passion is developing long-term client relationships with energy users, utilities, consultants, and partners. This passion combined with our core values of proactive and responsive service, intuitive analysis, collaborative partnerships, and fanatical execution, forms the foundation of our corporate culture.

We’re proud to share that Michaels Energy is one of Inc.’s Best Workplaces of 2024 & 2025. This award is given to workplaces that foster an environment where employees willingly go above and beyond in their work, advocate for the organization, and intend to stay in the future.

What is the role? 

Michaels Energy is seeking an experienced engineering leader to fill a key management role in the company. The Director of Engineering will directly lead a team of engineering managers, overseeing staffing, training, and resource planning. This role ensures that staff are equipped, skilled, and aligned to deliver high-quality technical solutions for clients. Success in this role is measured by balancing workload demands, budgets, and utilization targets. The ideal candidate will thrive in leading a large team, drive technical solutions to maximize client satisfaction, and exemplify Michaels’ values.

Department Management

• Set the vision and direction of the engineering department to create a cohesive team working towards a shared goal.
• Identify areas for improvement in company policies and procedures to improve quality, productivity, and staff retention.
• Manage staffing levels to hit department utilization targets using workload forecasting tools.
• Work with engineering managers to assign engineers to projects based on Program Management requests.
• Collaborate on proposal development to assign staff and provide subject matter expertise.

Staff Development

• Develop and execute a training plan for new hires.
• Oversee the ongoing technical development of engineers.
• Develop and assign technical engineering Subject Matter Experts (SME).
• Ensure redundancy in engineering skill sets across the department.
• Train all engineering managers to apply company policies and directives equitably.

Staff Management

• Establish staff performance goals and metrics.
• Lead weekly department meeting.
• Perform monthly one-on-one meetings with direct reports.
• Mentor and support staff to help them achieve goals in their career development plan.
• Recommends compensation levels and bill rate levels for staff.
• Leads job candidate interviews and makes candidate selections.

Calculation and Tool Management

• Ensure all calculation templates are to Michaels and the client's quality standards.
• Identify and develop additional calculation templates to improve cost effectiveness.
• Oversee the equipment management process and purchasing.

QA/QC

• Provide engineering QA/QC to ensure technical consistency of deliverables.
• Investigate project write-offs due to engineering overages and determine corrective action.
• Handle escalated issues related to engineering, including quality, safety, and data security.

How do you contribute?

After 3 months, you will have….

• Developed relationships with all of your direct reports to gain an intimate understanding of their roles, contributions to the organization, and technical skill sets.
• Integrated yourself within the delivery department leadership team and gained an understanding of Michaels’ business practices, scorecards, and other key business metrics.
• Met with all internal delivery teams to introduce yourself and understand opportunities and challenges they are facing with engineering delivery.

After 6 months, you will have….

• Met with each of our program and project managers to understand current technical skill and tool gaps to address to help drive business goals.
• Evaluated the structure and practices of the engineering department and identified areas for improvement to explore over the next 12 months.
• Worked with your team and the profit centers to develop engineering staffing plans for the next 12 months.

What are the metrics for this role?

• Department Utilization
• Department Project Budget Performance
• Department On-Time Task Completion
• Department Performance Feedback from PM’s
• Managerial Feedback from Direct Reports
  

What are we looking for?

• Bachelor’s degree in preferably in electrical, mechanical, chemical, or building systems engineering
• Five years of management experience leading a technical team
• Ten years of technical experience, combining any of the following:
  • Energy efficiency industry – e.g., utilities or performance contracting
  • HVAC operations, controls, and/or building energy investigations
  • Utility program experience in retro-commissioning, ASHRAE level 2 energy audits, or custom rebate calculation
  • Managing building retrofit projects
  • Implementing controls upgrades
  • Commissioning HVAC retrofits
  • HVAC Design or Electrical Design as part of a Design/Build or A&E Firm
  • Energy modeling using Open Studio or eQuest
• Advanced MS Excel skills
• PE (Professional Engineer) is preferred but not required
• Ability to travel up to 20% to Michaels’ office locations

Where can you work? 

Remotely in any U.S. location or any of the Michaels Energy office locations: La Crosse, WI, Minneapolis, MN, Cedar Rapids, IA, Denver, CO, Chicago, IL, and Richmond, VA.

Why work for Michaels Energy?

The top reasons Michaels Energy is an awesome place to work, besides helping the world save energy.

• We Never Stop Learning
• Flexible Work Hours
• Collaborative
• Career Development
• Beer Fridays
• Fresh Fruit Daily
• Wellness Rewards
• Fun Company Outings

Michaels Energy EEO Statement

We are an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin,

veteran, or disability status. We strive to build and nurture a culture that is inclusive and welcoming for all employees. We know diversity and inclusion are essential to innovation, a strong work environment, and exceptional results. This fits well with our culture that celebrates the unique, the different, and the individual. For us, this is who we are and what we do, not just words in a policy.