Chief Engineer

About

We are conducting a confidential search for a Chief Engineer to lead engineering and facility operations for an iconic ultra-luxury hotel environment in Los Angeles.

This opportunity calls for a rare blend of executive presence, refined guest-facing leadership, and deep mechanical expertise. The ideal leader is equally comfortable stepping into Executive Committee conversations in a suit jacket as they are rolling up their sleeves in the mechanical room to troubleshoot critical systems.

This role requires a hands-on engineering professional with strong MEP (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing) depth, luxury hospitality instincts, and the leadership capability to elevate preventive maintenance standards, room readiness, and long-term asset performance.

Position Overview

The Chief Engineer will oversee all aspects of hotel engineering, building systems, life safety, preventive maintenance, capital planning support, and guest room reliability. This individual must lead from the floor, mentor the engineering team, and partner closely with Rooms Operations and senior hotel leadership to ensure every guest space consistently meets ultra-luxury expectations.

A major priority for this role will be the design and implementation of a Perfect Room Program—a highly disciplined room-readiness initiative focused on preventive inspections, defect trend tracking, escalation procedures, and proactive replacement cycles to ensure flawless guest room delivery.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead all engineering operations including HVAC, boilers, chillers, electrical, plumbing, BMS, and life safety systems
• Maintain exceptional uptime and performance across all critical building infrastructure
• Build and implement a Perfect Room Program to ensure guest rooms are fully inspection-ready at all times
• Develop preventive maintenance SOPs, room checklists, and equipment lifecycle schedules
• Partner closely with Housekeeping, Front Office, and Rooms leadership to enhance room product consistency
• Oversee vendor relationships, service contracts, and capital project execution
• Ensure compliance with all local codes, safety standards, and luxury brand operational expectations
• Mentor, train, and elevate the engineering team through visible, hands-on leadership
• Support budget planning, CapEx forecasting, and long-term asset preservation strategies
• Respond with calm urgency to guest-impacting maintenance issues and operational emergencies

Ideal Background

• Previous experience as Chief Engineer, Director of Engineering, or Assistant Director of Engineering within luxury hotels, resorts, private residences, or mixed-use hospitality environments
• Strong technical expertise in MEP systems, HVAC, chillers, boilers, electrical distribution, and plumbing infrastructure
• Proven success balancing executive polish with hands-on operational leadership
• Experience creating or refining preventive maintenance and room inspection programs
• Strong understanding of luxury guest expectations and discreet service culture
• Ability to move seamlessly between guest-facing professionalism and technical field execution
• Strong communication skills with ownership, senior hotel leadership, and operational departments

What Success Looks Like

• Guest room defect trends materially reduced within the first 90–180 days
• Perfect Room standards fully deployed with measurable compliance
• Preventive maintenance completion rates consistently above target
• Reduced reactive work orders through proactive systems management
• Engineering team becomes more visible, polished, and service-aligned
• Stronger partnership established with Rooms leadership and Executive Committee

This is a career-defining opportunity for a refined engineering executive with true systems credibility who understands that in ultra-luxury hospitality, flawless mechanics directly protect the guest experience.