Design Project Manager

Reports To: Director of Design & Architectural Standards

Location: El Dorado, Arkansas

Career Level: Recent graduate to early-career professional

Experience: 0-4 years preferred

Position Summary

The Design Manager is an early-career, owner-side role supporting the planning, design coordination, and delivery of Murphy USA store development projects. Working under the direct mentorship of the Director of Design & Architectural Standards, this position provides broad exposure to site development, prototype design, consultant coordination, permitting, construction documentation, and cross-functional project delivery.

This role is designed for a recent graduate or early-career professional who is ready to build project leadership skills, assume increasing responsibility, and grow within Murphy USA. The Design Manager will help move projects from initial site evaluation through construction document completion while supporting quality, schedule, cost, and brand standards.

What You Will Do

Project Planning & Due Diligence

• Support multiple new-store and redevelopment projects from site evaluation through construction document issuance.
• Partner with Real Estate, Development, and Construction teams to review prospective sites, project requirements, constraints, and development opportunities.
• Track key design milestones, open decisions, risks, and required follow-up actions.

Site Layout & Design Coordination

• Assist with preliminary site layouts and concept plans for new stores and redevelopment projects.
• Coordinate design activities with architectural, civil, structural, MEP, signage, and specialty consultants.
• Review layouts for alignment with operational needs, prototype requirements, and Murphy USA design standards.
• Organize design reviews, document stakeholder input, and coordinate revisions.

Consultant & Deliverable Coordination

• Help manage consultant schedules, budgets, scopes, and design deliverables with guidance from design leadership.
• Review site plans, drawing packages, and consultant submissions for completeness, coordination, constructability, and standards compliance.
• Coordinate responses to design comments and support timely completion of review cycles.
• Support interior equipment and layout optimization initiatives.

Construction Documents & Permitting

• Support the development and review of permit and construction drawing packages.
• Coordinate revisions resulting from jurisdictional comments, value engineering, field conditions, and stakeholder input.
• Assist bidding and pre-construction activities by helping maintain accurate, coordinated, and complete documentation.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work across Design, Development, Real Estate, Construction, Procurement, Operations, Fuel, Marketing, and external partners.
• Participate in project status meetings and communicate progress, decisions, risks, and next steps.
• Support prototype updates, standards implementation, lessons learned, and continuous improvement efforts.

What You Will Gain

• Direct mentorship from the Director of Design & Architectural Standards.
• Owner-side experience across the full commercial store development process.
• Exposure to real estate, site planning, architecture, engineering, permitting, construction, operations, procurement, and prototype programs.
• Increasing project ownership and leadership responsibility as capability grows.
• A development path toward future project management and design leadership opportunities.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's degree in architecture, engineering, construction management, or a related discipline preferred.
• Recent graduates and early-career professionals are encouraged to apply.

Experience

• 0-4 years of relevant experience in architectural design, engineering, construction management, project coordination, store development, retail development, or a related field preferred.
• Internship, co-op, studio, or professional experience involving site plans, commercial projects, construction drawings, permitting, or consultant coordination is valued.
• Convenience retail, fuel retail, restaurant, or commercial development experience is helpful but not required.

Knowledge & Skills

• Ability to read and interpret architectural and engineering drawings, or a demonstrated readiness to develop that capability.
• Working knowledge of Revit or AutoCAD; exposure to Bluebeam, Microsoft Office, and project collaboration platforms is preferred.
• Strong organization, communication, follow-through, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, ask good questions, accept feedback, and learn quickly in a fast-paced development environment.
• Interest in site development, prototype design, permitting, construction documentation, and owner-side project delivery.

Success in This Role

• Keeps design tasks, decisions, and deliverables organized and moving forward.
• Produces thorough, accurate work and identifies coordination issues early.
• Communicates clearly with internal partners, consultants, and design leadership.
• Applies Murphy USA standards consistently while remaining open to continuous improvement.
• Demonstrates measurable growth in technical knowledge, judgment, project ownership, and leadership capability.

Build Your Career at Murphy USA This position offers an opportunity to contribute to active commercial projects, learn directly from experienced leaders, and develop the broad business and technical perspective needed for long-term growth in design and store development.