Chief Engineer

What you’ll be doing

• Lead all day-to-day hotel engineering, maintenance, and facilities operations across guest rooms, public spaces, back-of-house areas, and building systems.

• Supervise, train, schedule, and develop engineering and maintenance team members to support operational efficiency and exceptional service standards.

• Oversee preventative maintenance programs for HVAC systems, plumbing, electrical systems, boilers, chillers, kitchen equipment, elevators, life safety systems, and general hotel infrastructure.

• Respond to maintenance requests, guest concerns, equipment repairs, and operational issues quickly and professionally to minimize downtime and ensure guest satisfaction.

• Manage building systems, property inspections, maintenance schedules, and operational compliance programs.

• Ensure compliance with OSHA regulations, fire and life safety requirements, environmental standards, building codes, and hotel safety procedures.

• Support capital improvement projects, renovations, vendor management, contractor coordination, and facility upgrades.

• Monitor engineering department budgets, maintenance expenses, inventory levels, energy usage, and operational costs to drive efficiency and profitability.

• Partner closely with Housekeeping, Food & Beverage, Front Office, and Operations teams to support seamless hotel operations and guest experiences.

• Maintain accurate maintenance logs, engineering documentation, compliance records, inspections, and reporting requirements.

• Lead emergency response efforts related to building systems, weather events, power outages, or operational disruptions as needed.

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on safety, sustainability, preventative maintenance, and operational excellence.

• Help create a safe, efficient, and welcoming environment aligned with Sonesta’s People People culture.

• Any other duties as assigned.

What great looks like

• High school diploma or equivalent required; technical certification, trade school, or degree in Engineering, Facilities Management, HVAC, Electrical, or related field preferred.

• 5+ years of engineering, facilities maintenance, or hotel maintenance experience preferred.

• Previous leadership or supervisory experience within hotels, resorts, commercial buildings, or hospitality operations preferred.

• Strong knowledge of HVAC systems, plumbing, electrical systems, boilers, refrigeration, life safety systems, and preventative maintenance programs.

• Experience managing hotel engineering operations, vendor relationships, maintenance scheduling, and capital projects.

• Knowledge of OSHA regulations, fire and life safety standards, building codes, and hospitality maintenance compliance requirements.

• Strong troubleshooting, problem-solving, and technical diagnostic skills.

• Excellent leadership, communication, and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.

• Ability to respond to operational emergencies as needed.

• Flexible availability including evenings, weekends, holidays, and on-call support as required in hospitality operations.

• A passion for hospitality, operational excellence, teamwork, and creating safe and exceptional guest experiences behind the scenes.