Autumn Smith

Lead operational strategy and client engagement efforts for a civil infrastructure inspection firm supporting residential development projects across Texas Serve as a primary point of contact for clients, building and maintaining relationships with developers, engineers, municipalities, and contractors Coordinate closely with field inspectors and project stakeholders to ensure alignment between client expectations, project requirements, and reporting deliverables Oversee the development and implementation of standardized processes for daily inspection reporting, photo documentation, and weekly project summaries Design and implement operational systems leveraging tools to improve organization, accessibility, and consistency of project information Support business development efforts by identifying opportunities, strengthening industry partnerships, and contributing to proposals and client onboarding Continuously refine workflows and communication practices to enhance transparency, responsiveness, and overall client experience

As a Development Operations Manager, I oversee our organizations operations related to our Development and Contracts Management teams. Ensuring all processes and procedures are in line with company and legal standards, I continue to develop and implement policies and processes that evolve the efficiency of staff and integrity of data. Utilizing my ten years of experience and knowledge in commercial and residential development, I continue to maintain and analyze the success and overall effectiveness of our operations. Continued improvement of operations and required coordination with other departments of our organization has enabled me to strengthen our organizations information sharing, minimize duplicate processes and provide reporting and value previously unavailable. Constant analysis and collaboration with each department to ensure we are operating under the optimal integrated systems, established processes and best practices. I continue to oversee the administration of our contracts department to ensure we are compliant throughout contract life cycle. I work with in house council to establish appropriate contract language and maintain compliance under applicable governing regulations. I represent our organization in the negotiation of complex terms with vendors and all other stakeholders involved. I provide guidance on the handling of proposed and contracted terms to our project management team members through creative judgement and knowledge of our book of business. I strive to improve contract management, document/information processing and systems that support our project teams in a manner that allows our organization to continually reach new levels of efficiency.

Active role as Assistant Project Manager on systems transformation project within JDEdwards and Cecilian to track inventory and job cost tracking to eliminate housing core business operational data in siloed manner that puts business at risk – connecting data across sources to increase data accessibility. Ensuring effective cross-functional team communication and the completion of common initiatives related to software development, training and implementation, job cost review, contracting, compliance and risk. Successfully completed the restructure and relaunch of Contracts Management department through creation and implementation of an all-encompassing system and staff empowerment. Represented Hillwood Communities as expert of operations in the design and implementation of SalesForce+JDE integration project. Leveraging existing technology to streamline contracts processing reduced manual processing by +5hrs/month, eliminated duplications in data storage, increased reportability of information, and decreased workload across multiple departments. Developed policies and procedures that ensured compliance with internal and external controls designed to mitigate risk and create operating efficiencies. Standardizing contract language to provide template documents fitting of routine scopes of work, standardizing all exhibits and addendums, establishing review and approval process of all negotiation terms. Relaunch of insurance program and successful onboarding and management of third-party firm processing daily program functions. Continued collaboration with internal and external council on elevated term negotiation and contract language needs of project teams. Implemented electronic signature procedure, reducing document review cycle time, allowing simultaneous review capability, and providing contract insight to all necessary team members despite geographic location.

Support 20+ managers and engineers in project management and coordination Collection and review of the required compliance documentation for subcontractors (Including but not limited to licensing, insurance, w-9’s, etc.) Responsible for processing all subcontracts, purchase orders, and change orders beginning at the bid/pre-award process through final payment, managing approximately $40 million in contracts per quarter Attend project kick-off meetings to assess project risk, discuss bids and awarded subcontractors, clarify Owner requirements related to contracting and draw process Communicate with all project stakeholders in a manner representative of the company values and provide the upmost support for all involved Manage document workflow from rough draft to execution, utilizing workflow software: CDM Worked independently with little supervision needed Collaborate with company attorney and team members to resolve legal inquiries Initiated restructure of job roles and responsibilities within the Subcontract Administration department Organizational Support - Follows policies and procedures; Completes accounting tasks correctly and on time; supports organization's goals and values Transitioned from intern to full-time employee within three months through proven success of the Subcontract Administrative process Active participant in Hill & Wilkinson’s Culture Committee, committed to improving company culture, and encouraging employees to embody the company’s mission and values Received certification in The Dale Carnegie Course: Skills for Success