Logo
HDR

Central / West Tunnel Practice Lead

HDR, Riverside, California, United States, 92504

Save Job

At HDR, our employee-owners are fully engaged in creating a welcoming environment where each of us is valued and respected, a place where everyone is empowered to bring their authentic selves and novel ideas to work every day. As we foster a culture of inclusion throughout our company and within our communities, we constantly ask ourselves: What is our impact on the world?

Watch Our Story: https://www.hdrinc.com/our-story

Each and every role throughout our organization makes a difference in our ability to change the world for the better. Read further to learn how you could help make great things possible not only in your community, but around the world.

We believe water is more than a resource, it’s a shared responsibility. As part of our Water Business Group, you’ll help shape how communities manage water for generations to come. From delivering safe drinking water and treating wastewater responsibly to developing sustainable water supplies and protecting lives and property through flood control, your work will directly support public health, environmental sustainability, and infrastructure resilience. We bring together experts across disciplines to solve complex challenges with bold thinking and technical excellence. Whether you’re modernizing aging systems or pioneering innovative approaches, your contributions will make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. This isn’t just a job, it’s a chance to lead change, drive progress, and leave a lasting legacy.

This is a key leadership role that functions in partnership with some of the best and brightest water professionals in the industry. This person will lead some of the largest and most significant infrastructure projects in the Central and West Regions. This role will focus on hydraulic tunnel engineering.

The Central/West Tunnel Practice Lead is a professional that is well versed in all aspects of services for trenchless projects. We have a strong backlog of conveyance work and opportunities for continued growth.

The duties of the Central/West Tunnel Practice Lead are to support design teams and oversee all aspects of trenchless discipline and multi‑benefit projects with a high degree of technical complexity. The position will help build and maintain client relations and participate in project development and contract document preparation. The person will support staff across a variety of disciplines. The position will participate in and provide oversight of a variety of project types including planning, design, inspection and construction management of tunnels and general site civil of major water, wastewater, stormwater and reclaimed water infrastructure. The position will also work in coordination with HDR’s national Business Class Director, Tunnel Practice Lead, technical leads and advisors.

You will participate in the technical advancement and corporate management of HDR’s tunnel/trenchless program. HDR utilizes a robust workshare program, and it is common and expected that work is shared across the HDR network between our operational areas.

This person will also be responsible for supporting HDR’s risk awareness and management of the WBG tunneling portfolio, influencing the firm’s geotechnical and tunneling/underground engineering practice, and participating in the development and implementation of HDR’s strategic direction for our tunneling practice. The selected candidate will also support overall quality control, manage project delivery risk and participate in HDR’s go/no go process during the project pursuit phase.

Responsibilities

Primary Responsibilities

Direct involvement and oversight on select projects to manage tunnel related services

Advising on and review of alternatives analyses and feasibility studies related to tunnels

Risk Management and risk awareness of the WBG tunneling portfolio

Subconsultant vetting and working with teams for subconsultant risk management including required Quality Assurance activities and scope provisions

Assessment and enhancement of HDR’s capabilities regarding tunnel construction and trenchless technologies including expertise with Sequential Excavation Method (SEM) and the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM)

Collaboration with HDR’s WBG Tunnel Practice Lead our Geotechnical Cross Sector

Verify qualifications and training of field staff assigned to construction phase services related to tunnels

Secondary Responsibilities

Cost Engineering support

Skills and bench-depth management for tunnel instrumentation, mechanical, civil, and mechanical consulting and design support for projects

Assessing terrestrial and marine construction capabilities

Numerical modeling to support tunnel projects including modeling of ground/structure interaction and underpinning of buildings and utilities

Technologies for coordination/production of design (calculations), design products, and contract documents

Site characterization and geotechnical evaluations

Construction Engineering support

Inspections and Condition Assessments

Resiliency, operations, and emergency response issues

Preferred Qualifications

Masters degree

Ability to communicate and coordinate work within an integrated multidisciplinary team

Applicable experience in:

U.S. focused tunneling design and construction

Leading the design and construction of tunnels and underground facilities for major projects

Rock mechanics, soil mechanics, and geotechnical engineering

Wide varieties of ground conditions

Applications of various approaches and technologies such as SEM, NATM, SCL, EPBM, and cut-and-cover techniques.

Track record of industry facing publication and presentation of technical papers and active participation in professional organizations

Ph.D. in engineering or related field

Previous experience managing staff, clients and contracts, and hiring staff for an engineering consulting firm, is desired

Excellent marketing and business development skills in addition to contacts/relationships in respective business class discipline

Experience in numerical analysis such as FLAC, UDEC, PHASES2, PLAXIS 2D & 3D, MIDAS GTS, MODFLOW, etc. is a plus.

Ground-structure-interaction modelling (FEM or similar)

Experience in large scale underground projects, urban tunneling, tunnel rehabilitation

Prior working experience in construction or working for a contractor

Robust interpersonal skills and professional demeanor appropriate for interacting with clients, other design professionals and colleagues

Required Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

10 years related experience

A minimum 5 years project management experience

Requires professional engineering license recognized by the licensing board for the location of the position offered. Example: Professional Engineer (PE or P.Eng) license.

MS Office and MS Project experience (Access experience would be plus)

Demonstrated leadership, business development and strategic planning skills

An attitude and commitment to being an active participant of our employee-owned culture is a must

Primary Location United States-Wisconsin-Madison

Other Locations

United States-Oklahoma

United States-Texas-Round Rock

United States-South Dakota-Rapid City

United States-Minnesota

United States-Washington-Bellevue

United States-Wyoming-Cheyenne

United States-Missouri-Kansas City

United States-South Dakota-Sioux Falls

United States-Oregon

United States-California-Long Beach

United States-Minnesota-Saint Louis Park

United States-Hawaii

United States-Wyoming

United States-Oregon-Salem

United States-Louisiana-New Orleans

United States-Texas-Fort Worth

United States-Montana-Missoula

United States-Wisconsin

United States-New Mexico-Albuquerque

United States-Texas-Houston

United States-Michigan

United States-California-Irvine

United States-Missouri-Columbia

United States-Washington-Tacoma

United States-Nevada

United States-Nevada-Reno

United States-Colorado-Fort Collins

United States-Colorado

United States-Iowa-Des Moines

United States-California-Folsom

United States-Oregon-Portland

United States-Washington

United States-Montana-Bozeman

United States-Texas-El Paso

United States-Arizona

United States-Colorado-Durango

United States-Utah

United States-Alaska-Anchorage

United States-Texas-Corpus Christi

United States-Louisiana

United States-Minnesota-Minneapolis

United States-Washington-Seattle

United States-New Mexico

United States-Nevada-Las Vegas

United States-Montana-Billings

United States-Texas-Dallas

United States-California

United States-Washington-Spokane

United States-California-San Diego

United States-Iowa-Cedar Rapids

United States-Michigan-Lansing

United States-Washington-Pasco

United States-Nebraska

United States-California-Riverside

United States-Texas-Austin

United States-Texas

United States-Nebraska-Omaha

United States-Colorado-Denver

United States-Oregon-Bend

United States-Illinois-Springfield

United States-California-Sacramento

United States-Texas-Brownsville

United States-Missouri-St Louis

United States-Alaska

United States-California-Pasadena

United States-South Dakota

United States-Arizona-Tucson

United States-Michigan-Ann Arbor

United States-Indiana

United States-Utah-Salt Lake City

United States-North Dakota

United States-Washington-Olympia

United States-Colorado-Colorado Springs

United States-Wisconsin-Milwaukee

United States-Hawaii-Honolulu

United States-Michigan-Detroit

United States-Arizona-Phoenix

United States-North Dakota-Bismarck

United States-Idaho

United States-Washington-Everett

United States-Montana

United States-California-Walnut Creek

United States-Illinois

United States-Louisiana-Baton Rouge

United States-Illinois-Chicago

United States-California-Los Angeles

United States-Missouri

United States-Idaho-Boise

United States-Iowa

United States-Texas-San Antonio

United States-Washington-Edmonds

United States-California-Ventura

Industry Water

Schedule Full-time

Employee Status Regular

Business Class Pump Stations and Pipelines

Job Posting Oct 13, 2025

At HDR, we are committed to the principles of employment equity. We are an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants, regardless of criminal histories, arrest and conviction records.

#J-18808-Ljbffr