What does a lead contractor do?
A lead contractor is someone who is in charge of designing, building, and the engineering elements of a construction project. Lead contractors serve as the prime subcontractors to a development entity. They direct contract administration for the services and commodities as the team leads. It is part of their responsibilities to be goal-oriented with consistent meetings and create project management-related objectives. Also, they implement failure analysis and its modes and project management practices while they develop the failure analysis program.
Lead contractor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real lead contractor resumes:
- Manage $13.3M contract portfolio, enhance base mission by securing $350K in DoD savings.
- Manage purchasing flow through approval processes for HW (hard ware) via C4 process using SharePoint application requisition work flow.
- Manage healthcare education program for compliance & issuance of continuing education units and take lead role in delivering various educational topics.
- Maintain up-to-date, accurate, and compliant files and RFP databases in accordance with company policies and government regulations.
- Eliminate the HVAC work order backlog.
- Create in depth PowerPoint presentations working closely with IBM clients.
- Confirm pricing, terms and conditions conform to the current GSA contractschedule.
- Act as a liaison and maintain exceptional rating on the annual GSA audit.
- Lead government contractor ensuring NATO and DOD guidance in the development of JWARN software program.
- Prepare briefs, summaries, white papers, consent to assignment agreements, and logistics service agreements for legal review.
- Job duties include training, billing and invoicing, scheduling, QC, customer service, contract reviews and public relations.
- Monitor asbestos and lead removal from commercial/industrial sites.
- Set up and maintain asbestos removal contaminants and decontamination units
- Utilize SharePoint for information, document sharing, and document management.
- Develop QC program that lower charge-backs to technicians for incomplete installations.
Lead contractor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Lead Contractors are proficient in Project Management, Contract Management, and PowerPoint.
We break down the percentage of Lead Contractors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Project Management, 10%
Interfaced with project management engineering and construction department and client personnel in all related contractual matters.
- Contract Management, 8%
Developed and implement written procedures for contract management and administration in compliance with company policy.
- PowerPoint, 6%
Designed, Edited and Published a high impact, sophisticated multimedia Breeze e-learning modules using Microsoft PowerPoint as a base.
- Contract Administration, 6%
Perform contract administration activities to include reviewing contractor invoices, preparing contract modifications, and exercising options.
- Price Analysis, 5%
Prepare a price/cost analysis report of conclusions reached.
- Contract Terms, 5%
Administered information programs to ensure understanding of subcontract terms and conditions.
"project management," "contract management," and "powerpoint" are among the most common skills that lead contractors use at work. You can find even more lead contractor responsibilities below, including:
The three companies that hire the most lead contractors are:
- Deloitte67 lead contractors jobs
- Highmark36 lead contractors jobs
- Franklin Covey Co22 lead contractors jobs
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Lead contractor vs. Project specialist
A project specialist's role is to ensure that a project or program's completion is within the allotted time and budget. They are primarily responsible for devising plans and strategies to quicken the pace of production or processes involved, creating a comprehensive schedule, monitoring the progress and producing reports, tracking the budget and expenditures, and coordinating with all department personnel. Moreover, a project specialist may also schedule and attend meetings, all while adhering to the company's policies and standards.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, lead contractor responsibilities require skills like "contract management," "c #," "contract administration," and "contract terms." Meanwhile a typical project specialist has skills in areas such as "customer service," "project proposals," "strong customer service," and "telemarketing." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Project specialists tend to make the most money working in the professional industry, where they earn an average salary of $77,221. In contrast, lead contractors make the biggest average salary, $106,154, in the technology industry.The education levels that project specialists earn slightly differ from lead contractors. In particular, project specialists are 2.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a lead contractor. Additionally, they're 2.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Lead contractor vs. Business developer
A business developer specializes in conducting in-depth business analysis and crafting various strategies that would not just help a business grow, but also strengthen client base and brand awareness. One of their primary responsibilities revolves around identifying areas in need of improvement. They come up with new services that will boost customer satisfaction, examining the potential for revenue and figuring out new opportunities from trends or other pre-existing programs within the company. All of this is conducted according to the vision, mission, and policies of the organization.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that lead contractor responsibilities requires skills like "contract management," "c #," "powerpoint," and "contract administration." But a business developer might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "healthcare," "crm," "customer service," and "work ethic."
Business developers may earn a higher salary than lead contractors, but business developers earn the most pay in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $118,082. On the other hand, lead contractors receive higher pay in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $106,154.In general, business developers achieve similar levels of education than lead contractors. They're 2.1% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 2.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Lead contractor vs. Senior specialist
A senior specialist is a financial professional responsible for assisting senior citizens in managing their economic activities. Senior specialists must manage a portfolio of investors to ensure that foreclosed properties are ready for title transfer and monetary reimbursements. To reach compliance goals, senior specialists must provide staff training on Microsoft Office suite and other software applications. They also handle customer complaints through phone or email and provide their customer with the proper solution.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, lead contractors are more likely to have skills like "contract management," "c #," "contract administration," and "contract terms." But a senior specialist is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "patients," "sr," and "java."
Senior specialists earn the best pay in the pharmaceutical industry, where they command an average salary of $114,721. Lead contractors earn the highest pay from the technology industry, with an average salary of $106,154.senior specialists typically earn similar educational levels compared to lead contractors. Specifically, they're 2.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Lead contractor vs. Operations, senior specialist
A senior operations specialist is responsible for monitoring the company's operational processes and procedures and ensuring that the staff meets productivity goals according to business requirements and specifications. Senior operations specialists perform quality assessments to the methodologies, modify business plans as needed, and identify opportunities to increase efficiency. They also maintain the timely delivery of outputs and services to the clients and build the highest customer satisfaction. A senior operations specialist must have excellent communication and critical-thinking skills, especially in resolving process gaps and implementing quality standards.
Types of lead contractor
Updated January 8, 2025











