Fire Alarm and Life Safety Project Manager

About Us

Johnson Controls, a global leader in thermal management, mission-critical building systems, energy efficiency, and decarbonization, helps customers use energy more productively, reduce carbon emissions, and operate with the precision and resilience required in rapidly expanding industries such as data centers, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, advanced manufacturing, and higher education.

For more than 140 years, Johnson Controls has delivered performance where it really matters. Backed by advanced technology, lifecycle services and an industry-leading field organization, we elevate customer performance, turn goals into real-world results and help move society forward.

Fire Alarm and Life Safety Project Manager

Johnson Controls is a global leader in smart, healthy, and sustainable buildings, fire protection, and life safety solutions. In this role, you will serve as a trusted point of contact for a corporate client across multiple facilities, helping ensure fire alarm and life-safety projects are planned, coordinated, and delivered to the standards the client expects.

Role Overview

This position leads technical and project-management activities across multiple concurrent fire alarm projects, with a strong focus on automotive environments and other complex customer sites. You will provide a seamless link between design and operations before and during implementation, coordinate with Johnson Controls branches for asset support, and keep scope, materials, staffing, and schedules aligned from start to finish.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the single point of contact for a corporate client across multiple facilities.
• Coordinate the technical and schedule aspects of multiple concurrent fire alarm and life-safety projects.
• Act as the liaison between the corporate client and JCI branches for asset support and project execution.
• Program and commission fire alarm networks and integrate with internal systems and networked audio where applicable.
• Interface with the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) to support approvals, submittals, and inspections as needed.
• Troubleshoot system faults and help ensure compliance with NFPA 72 and applicable local codes.
• Develop and maintain project schedules, allocate resources, and monitor progress to support on-time delivery.
• Coordinate on-site staffing, travel, materials, subcontractors, and day-to-day project execution.
• Produce daily activity reports and maintain thorough project documentation.
• Conduct regular project reviews with the team to support quality, consistency, and adherence to standards.
• Ensure safety compliance for Johnson Controls team members and subcontractors and enforce site safety standards.
• Communicate with Corporate Management to help optimize staffing levels and project support.

How You Will Do It

• Own outcomes with accountability, safety, and integrity by keeping project scope, code compliance, and customer commitments clearly managed.
• Stay close to the work through direct coordination with the client, field teams, branch resources, and AHJ contacts to remove obstacles quickly.
• Use candid project reviews and practical problem-solving to identify schedule risk, material gaps, commissioning issues, and field changes early.
• Work as one team by aligning design, operations, subcontractors, and leadership around the same delivery plan.
• Use detailed reporting and documentation to maintain visibility on progress, risks, and next steps.
• Balance technical execution with strong communication so that complex fire alarm work is clearly understood by both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of comprehensive fire alarm experience across engineering, installation, commissioning, or service.
• Strong technical and operational understanding of fire alarm design, installation, commissioning, and troubleshooting.
• Deep knowledge of life-safety systems in both new construction and remodel environments.
• Experience managing multiple projects, schedules, resources, and subcontractors simultaneously.
• Working knowledge of NFPA 72 and applicable local codes.
• Ability to communicate technical concepts clearly to non-technical audiences.
• Proficiency with MS Office, including Excel, Word, and PowerPoint, plus Adobe Acrobat, Visio, and a basic Windows environment.
• Valid driver’s license and willingness to travel to out-of-town projects as required.

Nice to Have

• Four years of engineering or trade school training, or an engineering degree or equivalent.
• NICET certification in Fire Alarm Designer or Fire Alarm Technician, or an equivalent certification.
• Experience suppor