CM/GC Project Manager Exit Ops
Hi guys -
Mid 20s male, graduated from NYU a few years ago. Recently though my network was offered a job as a Project Manager for a company that does the Electric work for large project developments. This is not a development company, more of a GC/CM type org.
Wanted to get thoughts on exit ops down the road, as I want to make sure I have a plan with this career before deciding to pursue it. I have heard PMs in CM/GC generally need to get an MBA at some point, and can then transition to a role with a developer (think Related in NYC etc). This career path would be of interest to me, as I do not see myself on the construction side for more than simply learning the ins and outs, and becoming an attractive MBA candidate at a top school (tests scores considered as well, of course) to then land me with a developer.
Additionally, prior to this role I worked at a small Investment Banking recruitment firm. I did not like the recruiting aspect, but I very much enjoyed speaking with very intelligent people every day, and learning about the deals they were working on. Although I have no interest in IB, PE or corp dev, I do have an interest in trading/VC as my father was a trader.
Would like to get an understanding on whether or not me pursuing this role as a PM in CM/GC would position me well for a career outside of construction in a few years, whether that be development or a more financial role. Idea is to not pigeon hole myself in this field, and instead use it as a stepping stone.
Thanks in advance for any responses
Hey there,
Based on the most helpful WSO content, taking a Project Manager role in a Construction Management (CM) or General Contractor (GC) organization can indeed be a stepping stone to other roles, especially in development.
Here's why:
You'll gain a deep understanding of the construction process, which is invaluable in real estate development. You'll be able to "speak the language" when bidding GC's to build your project, and you'll have an advantage in managing projects (and people) against tight deadlines.
The skills you'll acquire in this role, such as managing budgets and overseeing projects, are transferable to many other fields, including finance and development.
If you decide to pursue an MBA in the future, your background in project management could help you stand out from other candidates. It could also provide a narrative for your career transition, from construction to development or finance.
However, there are a few things to keep in mind:
The construction industry has its own jargon and working hours, which might take some time to get used to.
Depending on the company, you might be required to travel or relocate for projects.
Transitioning to a role with a developer or a more financial role might require additional education or certifications, depending on the specific job requirements.
Remember, every career move is a personal decision that comes with its own set of risks and rewards. It's important to weigh these factors against your long-term career goals.
Hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.
Sources: Should I Take Construction Project Manager Position, Making The Jump - Construction Manager to Development, RE Development Project Management
This topic has come up before, and my opinion on it seemed to be swimming a little against the current of what everyone else thought so take it with a grain of salt, but I think it's a fine move. Managing the construction process is arguably the most important job for a development project manager, and having some baseline experience in reviewing requisitions, reading blueprints and construction drawings, and understanding how the sausage gets made at a GC is incredibly valuable skills. They're also much, much harder to acquire "on the job" than the finance parts, which frankly are very easy and very unimportant in the scheme of things. Certainly you'll have an easier time learning that at an MBA or MSRED program than learning the construction piece.
As always, though, a lot of it will depend on what you make of it.
Thanks for the reply. I want to clarify, I am looking to use the CM PM role as a method of transitioning to more of the technical side of a developer, not to be a construction pm within a developer. Would this path still work to that end?
Also, if it does not work as a natural transition, would using the project management experience in construction make me an attractive mba candidate? Further, could this help me land a different type of role with a developer ? Thanks again
I don't know what this means. Some developers have in-house construction teams, or design teams, and I understand you want to avoid that. But a project manager at a development firm is very involved with the construction process, or they are in my experience - sitting in weekly progress meetings, processing requisitions, discussing/approving change orders, etc. Development pays well because the developer takes on the enormous risk of actually constructing an asset on time and on budget, so naturally anyone who can mitigate that risk (e.g. someone with construction experience) is going to have a valuable skill set. If that is what you mean by "technical side of a developer" then you'll be fine. Otherwise you'll have to tell me what you think the difference is between a technical PM and a construction PM.
Generally speaking, I think you've got a view of development which is not in line with the reality. Maybe at the really huge national firms you end up with people who are ultra-specialized, but most shops, even big ones, make their project managers wear a bunch of different hats. Maybe you're not doing the bookkeeping or invoice processing or whatever, but it's really rare (in my experience) to have completely atomized teams of designers, construction, finance, acquisitions, etc all for one deal. Usually one person does a lot of that, obviously with help from consultants and subcontractors and whatnot.
I don't think you need a MBA to go be a developer's construction guy at all. If you want to be a developer at Related, sure, but if you're looking for in-house construction manager jobs a MBA really isn't necessary. Totally agree with Ozy that it's a lot easier to teach someone how to divide the NOI by a cap rate than it is the construction process too.
I can't possibly explain how valuable an intelligent in-house construction guy is and how frustrating it is when yours are morons or lazy. If you can be put together and sit in on meetings beyond just OACs too or keep your own, accurate budget you might be able to write your own ticket.
This is the sentiment I agree with. I do want to clarify as I did above - I am looking to use this role as a means of hopefully transitioning to the development side, without the focus on construction.
For example, I’ll be working for a GC doing electrical for the skyscraper, but we will be basically hired by the developer. I’d ideally like to eventually transition to a non construction-only focused role within the developer. I understand developer roles are hard to follow a traditional hiring path, but would my experience make me attractive enough? Would I need an mba? Etc.
Also to clarify, i wont be building anything. I’ll be a project manager overseeing the electrical installation working with the developers.
I'm not quite following your train of thought - the role you're debating in being a PM for an electrical sub. You manage the field work, hired by a GC, who is hired by the developer.
In what development role would you be a developer, without dealing with construction?
If you are thinking of getting in on real estate development on the finance side where you don't deal with actual day to day development, then this potential job wouldn't be as big a stepping stone. If you just want to do strictly finance, get an MBA/MSRED and try to work for a real estate private equity shop where you deal with real estate, but not strictly the DEVEOPMENT of it. Look up LP, or limited partner, vs GP or General Partner (sponsor).
Thank you for the reply.
I guess I am just a bit confused. It is my understanding that oftentimes, people who work as PM in construction get pigeon-holed into a construction pm job within a developer, if they ever are able to make the jump from a GC to a Developer in the first place. (would like insight into how common this is).
To that end, would it make sense to use my experience as a stepping stone to an MBA from a top school? With a background in construction PM (boots on the ground), and the finance education from a top MBA, would I not be able to step into a Developer as more of a generalist? I am strictly speaking in theory, just to align my experience with my ultimate goal of becoming someone who wears several hats at a Developer in a city like NYC, where I would love to get back to for family and personal reasons one day.
It varies by the company, but many development firms hire folks to their dev teams that worked at a GC. As others have pointed out, this in very valuable experience. You will handle construction, but also get into the project planning, putting a design team together, and run the project for the entire life cycle. You will work with execs who plan where to develop and acquire land, and take it from purchase through turnover. I also have colleagues that came from architectural and Civil Engineering backgrounds.
These types of backgrounds are good for development, but not as relevant for REPE. Please search this term on here. Real Estate Private Equity. Many of these careers are more finance oriented, and don't deal with the actual building of buildings some of the time, but rather buying and selling of buildings/portfolios and running them more efficiently to add value. Some do both. My development firm has specialty folks for the finance portion only that don't build the building, but do the underwriting and the deals. So you need to clarify if you want to be a developer, or at a fund doing REPE. If this is the case skip working for a contractor and just go get an MBA.
On another note, if you still want to be a developer, the electrical contractor position will get you to learn how construction works and to read drawings, but it would be more prestigious and make you a more attractive candidate if you worked direct for a GC who oversees all the subcontractors vs working for one sub. Closer up the food chain to a developer.
Adding on here. The most valuable construction guys I've worked with can be on-site inspecting work with subs and the GC, but also dumb it down and put together a deliverable for the finance guys to understand. If you can do that, you are invaluable to a developer.
To everyone's point in here, finance/excel is the easy part, especially if you aren't transitioning to an analyst or associate role. If you're transitioning to a development manager role, you just need to know enough to be dangerous and spot things that don't add up, and understand the impacts of cost and timing delays to the pro forma.
Thanks for this. Very clear and helpful. My response might echo what I mentioned to others, but I want to flush this out.
My goal is to work in this role as a PM in construction, and then apply for my MBA. I feel this will make my overall profile much more well-rounded, in terms of understanding both the technical aspects of the construction side, as well as the finance side (post MBA). My ultimate goal is to move from a GC to a Developer in NYC, operating as more of a generalist working on all aspects of the project. I do not simply want to get my MBA, and then come back to work for a developer doing the same job I was doing for the GC pre-MBA.
Would NYC be hard to move to having spent 2-3 years pre-MBA working for a GC doing projects in cities like Atl, Charlotte etc? Also, with a non-traditional recruiting process for Development, would an MBA even introduce me to those firms via internships or networking?
Thanks in advance
I'll weigh in my two cents on this as a former GC PM who got an MRED. I think the project management skillset definitely transfers, but I'd see if you could land a specifically GC role rather than a sub role. There's definite value in being an expert on the electrical front, but in terms of amount of relevant knowledge from a developer perspective it could be a little limited.
GC's have direct access to the A/E team, CMs/Developers, and give you a better base of knowledge of overall schedule/constructability. From a knowledge/time perspective, I think it's a lot more valuable than working for a sub, where you only have direct access over your specific scope and have access to a GC without knowing the bigger picture and understanding drivers of a project. It's like playing telephone but you're farther down the chain from a directive perspective.
Maintaining schedule, understanding project scope, and keeping budgets/people working is generally valuable, but you just get a bigger picture in a GC or CM role if you have the chance to get one of those instead. I jumped from doing GC work to CM work, and CM work to developer work and I think that CMs/Developers run a lot more in parallel than GC/Developers and even moreso than subs/developers would. I know people who worked for MEP subs that got MREDs/MBAS that eventually became developers, but a lot of them had engineering backgrounds beforehand so their general technical knowledge allowed for an easier translation IMO.
Thanks for the response. Here is a bit more detail - I do not have an Engineering background, this electrical sub company is a family connection. I do not currently have a GC offer, my offer is through the sub. However, the head of the sub is a very close family friend, and it is his company.
Is this worth doing as opposed to doing something entirely different? I was thinking of doing this for a few years to learn the ins and outs of construction, before applying to get my MBA. What doors would this open if any? Just feeling a bit down after hearing the GC vs. Sub point. But thank you for pointing that out.
To reference Swizz Beats, there are a million ways to get it, choose one. There are a million ways to get where you need to go and if you're able to get into a strong MBA/MRED program, a lot of the former sins are washed away after going to school. Going to a CM/GC job might be better from an overall understanding perspective, but you don't need to be good at all aspects before going to school/recruiting for your first job. Realistically CM jobs with no experience are extremely few and far between. As long as you know what you're missing from a skills perspective you can always improve them with education or what have you.
I'm not sure what your current job is, but I'd factor that into your decision making. If you think your current role is more relevant and better for recruitment professionally and academically while fitting your financial needs, I'd stick with it. If you think this PM job is a step up, take it.
Also FWIW, if the electrical sub is big enough, I think there is some level of brand recognition in the development world, there is in the CM world at least. If someone said they worked for like Rosendin/Power Design/EMCOR-esque company I'd personally take that into account, but that's extremely anecdotal and YMMV.
One important thing to consider when entering the construction field is the exposure to harmful particles. Does anyone have any insight into the exposure risk for a sub/GC PM with regards to asbestos/crystalline silica? I would be working on new developments, but have heard stories about concrete getting blasted and silica clouds...
Facere id velit et repellendus nisi natus maxime eum. Magnam iste est perspiciatis voluptates reiciendis enim eum voluptas. Vero nihil a omnis non quia necessitatibus. Voluptatem hic quibusdam sit. Et aspernatur et quos.
Laborum molestiae laborum reprehenderit quo tempore consequuntur. Rerum magni sed aut autem. Rerum ipsam sit qui qui ut natus suscipit voluptatem. Consequuntur debitis harum sed tempora voluptatum fuga.
Asperiores consequuntur distinctio vel molestiae explicabo ad sed. Distinctio quia non consectetur sunt dolores tempore. Quisquam omnis autem perferendis qui et atque laudantium. Omnis ut dolorem numquam asperiores minima ipsam.
Adipisci nulla iusto voluptas harum nulla aut. Et aut harum nam illum.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...