Cost Manager

We are seeking an experienced Cost Manager to support capital projects through the full project lifecycle. This role establishes and maintains project cost baselines, develops forecasts and accruals, analyzes variances, and provides clear financial visibility to project teams and leadership. The ideal candidate has project controls experience in an engineering, construction, EPC, industrial, or manufacturing environment. This is a project cost management role—not a general accounting or bookkeeping position.

Key Responsibilities

• Integrate project cost estimates, work-hour estimates, and schedules into the project cost baseline.
• Establish and maintain the cost baseline and work breakdown structure in alignment with project work processes and execution strategy.
• Gather and coordinate cost inputs from project disciplines and functions to ensure accurate forecasts and reporting.
• Develop and maintain cost reports, cash flow forecasts, cancellation curves, contingency analyses, and monthly accruals.
• Monitor actual costs, commitments, spending, and cash flow; compare results with forecasts and explain variances.
• Estimate cancellation costs and assess the cost and overall budget impact of project changes and deviations.
• Ensure cost records reflect committed and spent funds, deviation notices, field change orders, and project execution changes.
• Develop a realistic forecast of the funds required to complete the project within the approved budget and schedule, incorporating cost trends and analysis.
• Identify and communicate cost risks and critical issues to the project team.
• Work with project leadership to understand the causes of deviations and develop actions to mitigate their impact.
• Provide cost data and analysis to support project performance metrics, external benchmarking, and project closeout.
• Present financial updates and cost performance reports to project teams and leadership.

Required Qualifications

• Several years of experience in project cost management, project controls, or a related field.
• Strong experience with cost forecasting, budgeting, accruals, and variance analysis.
• Ability to analyze project financial performance and clearly explain findings to stakeholders.
• Ability to work independently with minimal training.
• Strong communication, organization, and problem-solving skills.
• Bachelor’s degree in a related field preferred. Equivalent years of relevant experience may be considered.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with capital, industrial, engineering, construction, or EPC projects.
• Experience supporting large engineering or construction programs.
• Familiarity working with Project Managers, Engineers, Construction Managers, and Project Controls teams.
• SAP experience strongly preferred; EcoSys experience is a plus.
• Strong Microsoft Excel and cost-reporting skills.

Work Environment

• Houston-area candidates preferred.
• Hybrid schedule: four days onsite and Fridays remote.
• Standard 40-hour work week, with limited overtime expected.
• Flexible start times available.
• Free parking at the office.

As part of our promise to talent, Kelly supports those who work with us through a variety of benefits, perks, and work-related resources. Please note: The following benefits reflect Kelly's general offerings. Eligibility may vary by assignment, location, and job type. Kelly offers eligible employees voluntary benefit plans including medical, dental, vision, telemedicine, term life, whole life, accident insurance, critical illness, a legal plan, and short-term disability. As a Kelly employee, you will have access to a retirement savings plan, service bonus and holiday pay plans (earn up to eight paid holidays per benefit year), and a transit spending account. In addition, employees are entitled to earn paid sick leave under the applicable state or local plan. Click here for more information on benefits and perks that may be available to you as a member of the Kelly Talent Community.

Why Kelly® Engineering?

Your engineering skills are in demand, but how do you find the right fit? Easy. At Kelly Engineering, our team creates expert talent solutions to solve the world’s most critical challenges. We connect you with leading organizations where you can collaborate on innovative projects, work with cutting-edge technologies and accelerate your growth. Whether you prefer the variety and flexibility of short-term projects or are looking for a long-term opportunity, we’re here to guide you to the next step in your engineering career.

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