Principal, Construction/Preconstruction

Principal, Delivery & Preconstruction

Zurich, Switzerland

At Unispace, we bring strategy, design, preconstruction and delivery together under one integrated model, creating exceptional spaces for some of the world’s most recognised brands.

We’re now looking for a Principal, Delivery & Preconstruction to join our Zurich leadership team — a key role responsible for leading both our preconstruction and project delivery functions across the studio.

This is a senior construction leadership role, but it’s also a hands-on one.

You’ll lead a team across both Preconstruction and Delivery, setting standards, driving commercial performance and ensuring our projects are positioned for success from the earliest feasibility and cost-planning stages through to final delivery.

You’ll have visibility across the full lifecycle of our projects — from estimating, cost planning, procurement and commercial strategy, through to construction, contracts, programme, risk and project performance.

What you’ll be doing

You’ll take overall responsibility for our Preconstruction and Delivery teams in Zurich, working closely with the Managing Director and wider studio leadership.

Across Preconstruction, you’ll oversee estimating, feasibility, cost planning, procurement strategy and subcontractor engagement, ensuring every project starts with a robust commercial foundation.

Across Delivery, you’ll provide senior oversight across our live projects, supporting Project Managers, resolving complex issues and ensuring projects are delivered safely, profitably and to the highest standards.

You’ll also:

Lead and develop a team of around six across Preconstruction and Delivery

Establish clear standards across project management, commercial management and construction delivery

Review and challenge project cost plans, budgets and commercial strategies

Oversee tendering, subcontractor selection and procurement

Ensure the right commercial and contractual approach is established from the outset

Maintain visibility of project risk, margin, programme and forecasting

Act as a senior escalation point across live projects

Build strong relationships with clients, subcontractors and delivery partners

Support the continued growth and development of our Zurich studio

What we’re looking for

The most important thing for us is a genuine commercial fit-out background.

You may have worked across workplace, hospitality, retail or other commercial interior environments, but a significant part of your career needs to have been spent delivering fit-out projects.

Experience within a Design & Build or similarly commercially led fit-out environment would be particularly valuable.

You’ll bring strong experience across both the commercial and operational sides of construction, including:

Commercial interior fit-out

Preconstruction and estimating

Cost planning and project budgeting

Procurement and subcontractor management

Contract and commercial management

Project and construction delivery

Risk, forecasting and profitability

Leadership and development of project teams

You’ll be comfortable moving between the strategic and the detailed — leading people and setting direction, while still being able to challenge a cost plan, interrogate a tender, review the commercial position of a project or step into a delivery issue when required.

Your current title could be Project Director, Construction Director, Preconstruction Director, Senior Project Manager, Branch Director, Head of Design & Build or something completely different.

For us, the experience behind the title is what matters.

If you’ve built your career around commercial interiors and fit-out in Zurich, understand how to set a project up commercially and know what it takes to deliver it successfully on site, we’d love to hear from you.

Join Unispace and help shape the next phase of our Delivery and Preconstruction capability in Zurich.