Project management

External project management for developers

When the project manager is missing, leaving or the team is at capacity

Three triggersWhen we get the call

When external project management is the faster solution

Developers rarely need a project manager permanently. They need one for a scheme that is running now, and usually for one of three reasons.

No.TriggerSituation

01VacancyThe project manager resigns, falls ill or moves internally. The project keeps going; awards and change orders do not wait for a job advertisement.

02OverloadThe team is fully committed and a new site or a second scheme comes in. Hiring for one project does not pay; a project without leadership costs.

03Experience gapThe first scheme of this size, a special building, a general contractor award, a refurbishment under continued operation. The organisation is there, the experience for this case is not.

In all three cases, hiring is the slower route: search, notice period, induction. External project management starts as soon as the agreement is in place and ends with the project or with the return of your own manager.

Week 1What happens first

What we do in the first week

DayStepResult

1–2StocktakeRead contracts, design status, cost status, programme, open change orders and pending decisions. Read first, judge later.

3Risk listWhat has to be decided in the next 30 days, what costs money if it is left, and where the contract has gaps.

4ConversationsArchitect, engineers, contractors, authority: who is where, what is missing for whom, which promises are on the table.

5ReportCost and schedule forecast, decision papers for the owner, proposal for the next 90 days. From here, project management runs as normal.

This sequence is the usual case, not a promise for every project. A scheme in difficulty needs the change orders first; a scheme in its early phase needs the procurement strategy first.

DistinctionSix criteria

Permanent hire or external project management

No.CriterionPermanent hire · External project management

01AvailabilityHire: search, the candidate's notice period, induction, in practice months. External: start within days to weeks, with a stocktake in the first week.

02CostHire: salary, on-costs, workplace, vacancy and search costs, also in quiet periods. External: fee only for the duration of the mandate, as a percentage of construction cost, a fixed fee per phase or by time.

03TerminationHire: employment law, notice periods, protection against dismissal. External: terminable per project stage with settlement of work performed.

04LiabilityHire: employee liability is limited by law, the risk stays with the employer. External: professional indemnity for control, review and advice, evidenced per project.

05KnowledgeHire: experience stays in-house. External: experience from other projects comes in, handover at the end is documented. Whoever wants to keep the knowledge lets their own junior staff run alongside.

06DirectionHire: the employer's right to give instructions. External: authority defined in the agreement, with clear limits for releasing payments, change orders and design decisions.

ServiceWhat is included

What external project management covers

External project management is owner's representation with authority: we lead the project in your name towards designers, contractors and authorities, own cost, schedule and quality, and prepare the decisions that remain with you. The scope follows the AHO booklet no. 9 across all project stages; which of them you commission depends on where your scheme stands.

The phases in detail are on the page owner's representation and project control in Munich. What distinguishes the role from a site manager and a general contractor is explained in What does an owner's representative do? We regularly act as owner ourselves, with our own capital at risk, and lead your project the way we lead our own.

Current mandateAll projects

Bogenhausen — visualisation, garden view

[SE-02]HerzogparkMunich · Owner's representationUnder construction

Let's talk about your project

At Herzogpark in Munich-Bogenhausen we are taking 14 residential units through construction as owner's representative and project controller. Whether design in progress or a site in operation: we join where your project stands right now.

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Frequently asked

What clients ask about this

How quickly can external project management start?

Usually within days to a few weeks of signing, depending on our capacity and the size of the stocktake. The first week is for reading the documents and talking to the parties; after that, project management runs as normal.

Is external project management the same as owner's representation?

In essence yes. External project management is owner's representation with authority for a specific scheme, usually replacing or supplementing a missing in-house project manager. Project control is the narrower term under AHO booklet no. 9, which advises and controls but does not decide for the owner.

Who carries responsibility towards designers and contractors?

Externally we act within the agreed authority in the owner's name. The limits are in the agreement: payments, change orders up to an amount, design decisions. Everything above stays with the owner, with our decision paper.

What does external project management cost?

Under AHO booklet no. 9, project leadership is remunerated by time; the charge rate for a project manager is 18,000 to 23,000 euros per month, as of the first quarter of 2025, pro rata to the deployment. Together with project control as a full mandate, this typically amounts to a mid single-digit percentage of construction cost, degressive with project size. In detail, with a worked example: What does an owner's representative cost?

Which schemes qualify for external project management?

Residential, commercial, refurbishment and public schemes in Munich and Bavaria, from a size at which several awards, a permit procedure and a seven-figure budget come together. Entry is possible in any phase, including a running project.

As of 09/2026. General information, not legal or fee advice for an individual case.

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