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Modular Estimator

interstates

Topeka, KS
Uncategorized

Job Score

70 pts
On-site model (+70)

Take Charge of Your Career at Interstates

At Interstates, we don’t just show up to work, we show up for each other. From our headquarters in Iowa to job sites across the country, we’re doing award-winning electrical, controls, automation, and OT work that powers industrial facilities for clients here in the U.S. and around the world. Whether you’re bending conduit, wiring panels, writing code, supporting projects, or helping things run behind the scenes, you’ll be part of a crew that works hard, shares laughs, and takes pride in doing quality work. We believe in building strong teams, doing the right thing, and making a difference in the communities where we live. If you want to grow and do meaningful work, you’ll feel at home here. 


Are you an electrician or estimator ready to apply your field experience in an office-based role? As a Modular Estimator at Interstates, you’ll develop timely, accurate estimates for modular electrical construction projects while supporting clients across a variety of industrial markets.

You’ll collaborate with estimators, project managers, project engineers, clients, and design professionals to deliver competitive, well-defined proposals. This role is an opportunity to expand your estimating expertise while helping Interstates pursue better ways to serve our clients and communities.

Our Culture

At Interstates, we treat each other like family. Our team is built on Dependability, Integrity, Trust, Quality, and Family.

  • Work with caring teammates who support one another.
  • Be recognized as an individual—not just a number.
  • Balance work and personal commitments through flexible scheduling.
  • Build connections through team gatherings and social activities.
  • Give back through company-sponsored community and charitable events.

Our Why

At Interstates, we believe in:

  • Providing opportunities for our people
  • Making a difference with our clients and communities
  • Pursuing a better way

Watch a Day in the Life of an Estimator

https://youtu.be/vavZuE2FLsI?si=DitBTJm33IiMT1Gv

Responsibilities

The Estimating Department produces project-specific construction estimates based on client requirements, drawings, specifications, and other project information. As a Modular Estimator, you will:

  • Develop accurate, timely estimates for modular electrical construction projects, supporting competitive bids and client proposals.
  • Analyze and interpret drawings, specifications, and scope requirements.
  • Prepare budget pricing from schematic drawings, narratives, and preliminary project information.
  • Identify and price value-engineered alternatives to plans and specifications.
  • Draft scope letters, proposals, bid packages, and vendor solicitations.
  • Attend job walks, pre-bid meetings, and project discussions with clients and design professionals as needed.
  • Collaborate with estimators, project managers, and project engineers on change orders and cost-to-complete estimates for active projects.
  • Help develop and communicate company estimating standards for design-build and plans-and-specifications work.
  • Manage competing deadlines in an efficient, composed, and detail-oriented manner.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

  • Proficiency with Microsoft Excel, Word, Outlook, Office, and Adobe Acrobat.
  • Knowledge of electrical code requirements and basic electrical calculations, including voltage drop, Ohm’s law, conduit fill, wire ampacity, and derating, is preferred.
  • Strong analytical, problem-solving, and organizational skills.
  • Ability to read and interpret electrical drawings, specifications, and construction documents.
  • Ability to calculate figures and amounts accurately.
  • Strong attention to detail, sound judgment, and ability to prioritize work effectively.
  • Clear verbal and written communication skills.
  • Self-motivated team player who works effectively with supervisors, peers, and cross-functional teams.
  • Two or more years of electrical construction or electrical estimating experience preferred.

Education

A high school diploma or GED is required. Additional education or equivalent experience in estimating, construction management, finance, business administration, or a related field is preferred.

Location and Travel

  • Location: Sioux Center, IA, Omaha, NE or Topeka, KS.
  • Travel: Occasional travel to job sites near Sioux Center, IA, Omaha, NE, or Topeka, KS, based on business needs; approximately 10% travel.

Benefits of Working at Interstates

  • 401(k) retirement plan with company match
  • Health, dental, and vision insurance
  • Short- and long-term disability and group life insurance
  • Paid time off, holiday pay, and flexible scheduling
  • End-of-fiscal-year incentives and merit increases
  • Company discount program with national brands
  • Company-sponsored holiday events, team celebrations, and community volunteer opportunities
  • Career advancement opportunities aligned with your long-term goals
  • Career coaching and continued education opportunities for licensed electricians
  • A family- and safety-focused culture that cares about you as a whole person

Build a career that’s built to last. Apply today and see how Interstates can help you grow.

 

Interstates. Let's Build Logo

What You Should Know Before You Apply

Interstates may collect personal information as part of your job application, such as your contact details, work history, education, and any information you provide. This information is used only for recruitment, to evaluate your candidacy, and to meet legal requirements. For details about our privacy practices and your rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), please see our Privacy Policy. By applying, you acknowledge that you have reviewed this notice.

Interstates is an EEO provider and offers a drug-free workplace.  Employment at Interstates is at-will and may be terminated at any time with or without notice or cause, except as otherwise provided by law.

Discover Other Areas

Understand the scope of work, key skills, and tools used in different career areas.

About Scrum Master

The Scrum Master is the professional responsible for facilitating the adoption of Scrum and agile practices within development teams. They act as servant leaders, removing impediments, promoting continuous improvement, and ensuring Scrum events and ceremonies happen in the best possible way.

Key skills include event facilitation (sprint planning, daily, review, retrospective), backlog management, team coaching, conflict resolution, and agile metrics (velocity, burndown, cycle time). Knowledge of Jira, Trello, Azure DevOps, and frameworks like Kanban, XP, and SAFe is a differentiator.

Scrum Masters in technology companies are highly valued, especially those who can promote team autonomy, create psychologically safe environments, and lead agile transformations at scale. The field offers opportunities from junior scrum master to agile coach, head of agile, and director of agile transformation.

About Automation Engineer

The Automation Engineer is the professional responsible for designing, developing, and implementing solutions that automate manual and repetitive processes in IT, infrastructure, testing, and operations. They combine programming knowledge with DevOps and SRE vision to eliminate manual tasks and increase operational efficiency.

Key skills include Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, Ansible, Pulumi), CI/CD (Jenkins, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI), test automation (Selenium, Cypress, Playwright), network automation (Netconf, SDN), RPA (UiPath, Power Automate), and scripting (Python, Bash, PowerShell). Knowledge of Kubernetes, GitOps (ArgoCD, Flux), and automation platforms is a differentiator.

Automation Engineers in technology companies are highly valued, especially those who can create automated deployment pipelines, self-healing infrastructure, and internal developer platforms (IDP). The field offers opportunities from junior automation engineer to automation architect and head of automation.

About Ecommerce Manager

The Ecommerce Manager is the professional responsible for the entire strategic and operational management of online stores and marketplaces. They lead teams, define pricing, promotion, and catalog strategies, and monitor online sales performance across multiple platforms.

Key skills include catalog management, dynamic pricing, seasonal campaigns (Black Friday, Cyber Monday), marketplace management (Amazon, Mercado Livre, Shopee, Magalu), paid traffic, CRO, and team management. Knowledge of Shopify, VTEX, WooCommerce, Google Ads, Meta Ads, and performance metrics is a differentiator.

Ecommerce Managers in technology companies are highly valued, especially those who master multi-marketplace management, checkout optimization, and mobile commerce strategies. The field offers opportunities from ecommerce manager to head of ecommerce, with a focus on revenue, customer experience, and growth.

About Cloud Solutions

The Cloud Solutions area is responsible for designing, implementing, and managing cloud infrastructure and services (AWS, Azure, GCP) for companies. Cloud professionals architect scalable, secure, and cost-optimized solutions, from data center migrations to serverless and multi-cloud architectures.

Key skills include IaC (Terraform, CloudFormation), containers (Docker, Kubernetes), serverless (Lambda, Cloud Functions), managed databases (RDS, DynamoDB, BigQuery), cloud networking (VPC, CDN, load balancer), and security (IAM, WAF, KMS). Knowledge of FinOps, cloud governance, and AWS/Azure/GCP certifications is a differentiator.

Cloud Solutions professionals in technology companies are highly valued, especially those who master multi-cloud architectures, FinOps, and can optimize costs while maintaining performance and security. The field offers opportunities from cloud engineer to cloud solutions architect, head of cloud, and chief cloud architect.

About Graphic Designer

The Graphic Designer is the professional responsible for creating visual pieces for print and digital communication, from visual identity and logos to marketing materials and packaging. They combine creativity with technique to convey messages visually and impactfully.

Key skills include Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign, CorelDRAW, visual identity design, typography, color theory, packaging design, and motion graphics. Knowledge of vector illustration, offset/digital printing, and print production is a differentiator.

Graphic Designers in technology companies are highly valued, especially those who master social media design, infographics, and can create materials that strengthen brand visual identity. The field offers opportunities from junior graphic designer to art director and design director.

Career Guides

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Design Career Guide

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Marketing Career Guide

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Finance Career Guide

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Communication Career Guide

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Administration Career Guide

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Product Career Guide

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Tech & Remote Glossary

Stop getting lost in interviews and job descriptions

The job market, especially within tech and global companies, has developed its own dialect. Not understanding these acronyms can make you lose valuable opportunities or poorly negotiate your contract. To end this problem, we created the Definitive Glossary for the Remote Professional.

🏢 Work Models & Routine

Async (Asynchronous Work)
A communication model where responses don't need to be immediate. Instead of back-to-back meetings, the team relies on well-structured documents, threads, and messages. It's the gold standard for global companies spanning multiple time zones.
Sync (Synchronous Work)
The opposite of Async. It requires the team to be online and available at the same time for meetings, live chats, and real-time collaboration.
Daily / Stand-up
A quick daily meeting (usually 15 minutes) common in Agile (Scrum) methodologies. The team answers three questions: What did I do yesterday? What will I do today? Are there any blockers?
All-Hands / Town Hall
A company-wide meeting involving all employees. Usually led by the founders (C-Levels) to present results, new goals, and answer team questions.
1:1 (One-on-One)
A recurring individual meeting between a professional and their direct manager. It is used for career alignment, feedback, and problem-solving, not just for project status updates.

💰 Contracts, Benefits & Compensation

PTO (Paid Time Off)
Instead of strict, categorized leave policies, modern US companies usually offer a flexible pool of days (e.g., 20 days of PTO, or even "Unlimited PTO") that you can use for vacations, sick days, or personal matters, while receiving your regular compensation.
Equity / Stock Options
Company ownership. The startup offers you the right to buy shares at a heavily discounted strike price in the future. If the company grows, goes public, or is acquired, these shares can be highly lucrative.
Vesting (Vesting Schedule)
The rule that controls your Equity. It usually lasts 4 years. You don't get all the shares on day one; you "earn" them gradually as you stay with the company. A "1-year Cliff" means you must stay for at least one year to receive your first batch of shares.
RSUs (Restricted Stock Units)
Unlike Stock Options (where you have the right to buy the stock), RSUs are actual shares the company grants you as a bonus or part of your compensation package, following a strict Vesting schedule.
Independent Contractor (1099 / B2B)
The most common international hiring model for global talent working for US companies. You act as a service provider (business-to-business), receiving the gross salary (often six-figure compensation) without standard local payroll tax deductions at the source.

🤖 Recruitment & Hiring Process

ATS (Applicant Tracking System)
The "robot" that reads your resume. Software like Greenhouse, Ashby, and Workday are used to filter candidates by keywords before a human even looks at the document. (Pro tip: this is why your resume must be clean, semantic, and have the right keywords).
JD (Job Description)
The document that lists the responsibilities, technical requirements, and benefits of the open position.
Cultural Fit
The interview stage that evaluates if your core values, communication style, and worldview align with the company's culture. This is the ultimate test of your Soft Skills.
Onboarding
The integration process. It's the period of your first few weeks at the company, where you get your access credentials, learn about the culture, study the internal documentation, and understand how the product works.

🚀 How to use this to your advantage?

The secret isn't just knowing what these acronyms mean, but using them actively. If during an interview for a premium tech role you ask, "How does your PTO policy and Vesting schedule work?", the recruiter will immediately perceive you as a high-level professional, familiar with the global market standards.

The remote job market requires preparation. And having the right vocabulary is the first big step to securing six-figure proposals and standing out among thousands of applicants.

Expert Tip

Landing Top-Tier Traffic Analyst and SEO Roles

The New Era of Performance Marketing

The digital marketing landscape has undergone a radical transformation in recent years. The era of the "button pusher" who merely launched Meta Ads campaigns or stuffed keywords into WordPress is officially over. Today, companies—especially top-tier US startups and global tech corporations offering six-figure compensations—are looking for analytical, Growth-focused, and highly Data-Driven professionals.

Whether managing multi-million dollar paid media budgets or optimizing site architecture for the new AI-driven search engines, the Traffic and SEO Analyst has become the engine of predictable revenue for tech companies worldwide.

1. Technical SEO and the AI Revolution (SGE)

With Google's introduction of the Search Generative Experience (SGE), SEO is no longer just about backlinks and search volume. It now requires a deep understanding of search intent and topical authority.

What Tech Recruiters are looking for:

  • Technical SEO Mastery: The ability to analyze Core Web Vitals, manage Crawl Budgets, and optimize JavaScript rendering (a critical factor for modern frameworks like React and Next.js).
  • Advanced Data Analysis: Fluency in enterprise tools such as Screaming Frog, Semrush, Ahrefs, and Google Search Console.
  • Focus on E-E-A-T: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. Understanding how to structure content so that Google's algorithm recognizes it as a reliable primary source.
"Modern SEO success requires you to stop optimizing for algorithms and start optimizing for the user journey, using technical data to remove any friction along the way." — Google Search Central Guidelines

2. Paid Traffic: From Operational to Strategic

In the realm of paid media (Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn Ads, TikTok Ads), platform automation handles most of the bidding work (Smart Bidding). The modern candidate's competitive edge lies in acquisition strategy and financial viability analysis.

Metrics you must master for your interviews:

  1. CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost): Moving beyond Cost Per Click (CPC). Understanding exactly how much it costs to acquire a paying user.
  2. LTV (Lifetime Value): Knowing how to cross-reference acquisition costs with the value a customer brings to the company over time (LTV:CAC ratio).
  3. ROAS vs. ROI: Grasping the crucial difference between the direct return on ad spend (ROAS) and the actual return on investment for the entire business (ROI).
  4. Server-Side Tracking: With the deprecation of third-party cookies, mastering the Conversions API and Google Tag Manager (GTM) Server-Side is a massive senior requirement.

3. Building an Unbeatable Portfolio

In the global remote market, degrees matter far less than proven results. Your portfolio shouldn't just be a resume; it should be a comprehensive document of Case Studies.

Structure your cases using the STAR method:

  • Situation: What was the baseline? E.g., "The e-commerce brand was burning $10k/month with a 1.2 ROAS."
  • Task: What was the goal? E.g., "Reduce CPA by 30% and increase non-branded organic traffic."
  • Action: What did YOU do technically? E.g., "Audited GTM, restructured PMax campaigns, and applied Schema markup in the HTML."
  • Result: The numerical impact. E.g., "Scaled ROAS to 3.8 and grew organic traffic by 45% in 3 months."

4. Certifications That Actually Open Doors

If you want to bypass strict Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) like Greenhouse or Workday, ensure your LinkedIn and resume feature official certifications issued by the tech platforms themselves:

References and Must-Reads

To stay relevant in a market that changes weekly, we highly recommend following these official sources:

  1. Official Google Search Central Documentation.
  2. Annual State of Marketing Reports from HubSpot and Semrush.
  3. Technical articles focused on Data-Driven Marketing from the Harvard Business Review.

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