Commercial electrical general manager job description
A commercial electrical general manager leads the construction division and its project managers, and is judged on how its jobs finish. The GM picks which general contractors' bids to price, matches signed work to the electricians on payroll, and steps in when a job's schedule or scope goes wrong.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, electrical contractors · BLS, May 2025
Lead and oversee the commercial electrical division to ensure seamless integration and coordination across multiple teams, driving efficiency and timely project completion. Develop and implement strategic initiatives that align with company goals and improve operational KPIs. Serve as the principal liaison between cross-functional teams, ensuring quality service delivery and excellence in customer satisfaction.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Coordinate and manage multiple project teams to ensure projects are completed on schedule and within budget.
Monitor, track, and report on key performance indicators to guide business improvements.
Implement robust operational processes and best practices for commercial electrical projects.
Mentor and lead a diverse team, fostering a collaborative and high-performance work environment.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Conduct daily briefings with team leaders to assess project progress and address any potential issues.
Review and analyze project timelines, resource allocation, and operational benchmarks.
Engage in regular on-site evaluations to ensure adherence to safety and quality standards.
Facilitate communication between client representatives and internal teams for seamless project execution.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Project Completion Rate: ≥95% of projects delivered on time.
Customer Satisfaction Rating: >4.8 stars.
Revenue per Project: Maintain at least $150 per operational hour.
Team Productivity: Achieve a minimum capacity efficiency rate of 90%.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Business Administration, or a related field.
Minimum of 7 years of experience in project management within the commercial electrical industry.
Strong leadership and team coordination skills with a track record of managing multifaceted teams.
Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication abilities.
6. Preferred Experience
Prior experience in a General Manager or senior leadership role within a similar industry.
Experience with integrated project management systems and KPI dashboards.
Background in commercial electrical services and infrastructure projects.
Proven success in scaling operations and managing cross-departmental initiatives.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to occasionally lift up to 25 lbs.
Must be able to navigate active job sites with variable environments (e.g., indoor, outdoor, confined spaces).
Comfortable working in settings that include exposure to electrical equipment and construction environments.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typical work hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
Occasional on-call duties and weekend visits may be required based on project needs.
Expected travel to project sites and client meetings on a regular basis.
Fast-paced work environment that demands adaptability and proactive problem-solving.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Salary range of $90,000 - $120,000 USD per annum, based on experience and qualifications.
Eligibility for performance-based bonuses and incentive programs.
Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance packages.
Participation in a 401(k) retirement plan with company matching contributions.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we are committed to fostering a culture of growth, innovation, and excellence.
We value teamwork, integrity, and a proactive approach to challenges, inspiring our employees to constantly level up and succeed.
Our dynamic work environment supports professional development and encourages collaboration with leaders in the home services industry.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
The GM sits between the estimators who win work and the field that builds it. Most of the job is keeping those two in step, one general contractor and one building at a time.
Choosing which general contractors to price
Several general contractors often bid the same building, and each asks every electrical subcontractor for a number. Estimators can't price them all well. The GM picks which requests get a full takeoff, based on your hit rate with each general contractor, the margin on past jobs, and whether it shows your price to other subs after bid day to push them lower. Saying no early is cheaper than a takeoff that never wins.
Backlog counted in field hours
A dollar figure for backlog hides when the work happens. The GM turns signed work into electrician hours by month, using each job's labor budget and schedule, and sets that against the crew the company has. Electrical hours bunch up at rough-in, so two jobs that look far apart on a calendar can need the same people in the same month. That chart, not the dollar total, decides which bids the division chases next.
The squeeze at the end of a job
Trim-out, turning on the gear, testing and final inspections come at the end of the schedule, after other trades have used up the spare time. When the general contractor holds the turnover date anyway, the GM decides whether to add people or overtime. The GM also makes sure project managers log the lost time and extra cost as it happens, so it can be priced as a change.
Scope gaps sit between trades
Some work falls between the electrical, mechanical, fire alarm and low-voltage scopes. Think of wiring for heating and cooling controls, starters and disconnects for equipment, or power to doors and gates. If the bid doesn't say who does it, your crews may end up doing it for free. The GM has estimators send a scope letter that lists what's in and what's out, then checks that the subcontract matches it before signing.
How much commercial electrical general managers make
The closest BLS group for commercial electrical general managers is general and operations managers. General and operations managers who work for electrical contractors earned a median of $119,990 a year ($57.69 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s above the $105,770 median for general and operations managers in all industries. About 29,880 of the 3,503,020 general and operations managers in that survey work for electrical contractors.
Salary with bonus and incentives, as the template says. If your GM comes up from project management, where pay may have included a share of each job's profit, explain how a division-wide bonus compares.
Electrical contractors
$119,990$119,990 median Middle half $84,900–$165,460 10th–90th $58,340–$230,120
All industries
$105,770$105,770 median Middle half $72,320–$167,280 10th–90th $50,090–$253,390
$0k$50k$100k$150k$200k$250k$300k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Electrical contractors
$58,340
$84,900
$119,990
$165,460
$230,120
All industries
$50,090
$72,320
$105,770
$167,280
$253,390
BLS reports residential and commercial electrical contractors together. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Has managed project managers and field supervisors on several commercial electrical jobs at once
Reads a labor forecast and a manpower chart and sees a crunch coming months ahead
Holds firm with general contractors on schedule, scope and extra work
Knows electrical scope well enough to review a bid's inclusions and exclusions
Coaches project managers to document delays and extra work as they happen
Teach these on the job
Your hit rate and margin history with each general contractor
Your manpower forecast and how it's built
How you price time-and-material work
Your standard scope letter and exclusions
Which bids go to the COO or CEO before they're sent
A GM here leans on the manpower forecast, the WIP report and the bid log, pulled from project software such as Procore and from the accounting system's job cost reports. Many divisions still build the manpower chart in a spreadsheet, so comfort with one matters as much as any app.
Commercial electrical general manager interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Saving a slipping job
A large job is behind schedule and over on labor. The general contractor is threatening back-charges. What do you do?
A strong answer: Gets the facts with the project manager and foreman, separates your delays from others', fixes crew and material problems, documents the record, and meets the contractor with a recovery plan.
Behavioral · Developing project managers
Tell me about a project manager you coached to run more profitable jobs, such as one whose crews kept losing hours to poor material planning.
A strong answer: Names the gaps (change orders, labor tracking, contractor communication), how they coached, and how that person's jobs improved.
Score these on closed jobs where you can, since open jobs can still swing either way, and set each target together with the COO before the year starts.
Project Completion Rate
Jobs in the division that reached turnover by the subcontract date. Review the list monthly with each project manager, along with the jobs most at risk next month.
Customer Satisfaction Rating
Group closeout ratings by general contractor and look for patterns. A client who scores you low on two jobs in a row needs a meeting with the GM, not another survey.
Revenue per Project
The template counts it per operational hour: each job's revenue over every hour charged to it, project management included. Rank closed jobs by it to see which general contractors and job types pay best for your time.
Team Productivity
The share of the division's paid field hours that landed on jobs, read monthly, while the operations manager tracks it crew by crew. A dip lasting more than a month often points to a wrong backlog chart, not slower crews.
Career path
Project managerLearns to protect a job's labor budget from buyout to the final bill.
Senior project managerRuns the largest jobs and coaches newer project managers.
General managerOwns how the division's jobs finish, and which general contractors it works for.
It depends on how many strong project managers and foremen you have, not on revenue. A project manager can run a few large jobs or many small tenant jobs, and a foreman runs one big site well. The GM should know each person's limit and stop chasing bids that would push past it.
How much does a commercial electrical general manager make?
General and operations managers who work for electrical contractors earned a median of $119,990 a year ($57.69 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $84,900 and $165,460 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
Who settles a dispute with a general contractor, the GM or the project manager?
The project manager handles daily issues and writes the change orders. The GM steps in when real money or the relationship is at stake. That means a back charge, a rejected change order, a pay application that goes unpaid, or a schedule the crews can't meet. Settle it with the general contractor's project executive, then put the outcome in writing.
What site work comes with the commercial electrical GM job?
Regular walks of active jobs, often with the general contractor's superintendent. That can mean checking work above an open ceiling from a ladder or lift, stepping into tight electrical rooms and crawl spaces, and carrying drawing sets or sample boxes within the template's 25-pound line. The GM follows each site's safety rules and stays clear of live gear. Any candidate can ask for reasonable accommodation, and each request gets its own look.
What should happen when a won bid moves to the field?
Hold a turnover meeting before work starts. The estimator walks the project manager and foreman through the bid: what's in and out of scope, labor hours by area and phase, quotes that expire, and alternates the general contractor took. The project manager turns those hours into the job's budget. On the largest jobs the GM sits in and signs off on that budget before any crew is sent.
