Construction Manager

Construction Manager

Career Overview

Construction Managers supervise every aspect of a construction project, including the planning, organizing, directing, and evaluating of the activities involved in the project.

Education

A four-year bachelor's degree in construction management, construction science, engineering, architecture, or a related field is generally required for one to obtain this position.

Future Outlook

Employment of construction managers is projected to grow 8 percent from 2019 to 2029, much faster than the average for all occupations. Construction managers are expected to be needed as overall construction activity expands.

Work Environment

Construction Managers work for construction and engineering companies. Construction managers may work out of a main office as well as an office at the construction site. They may travel between multiple construction sites. They may also be required to work many hours because of tight deadlines.

Recommended High School Courses

  • Trade-related courses
  • Drafting
  • Construction Management
  • Blueprint reading
  • Carpentry
  • Electricity
  • Computer functions

  • Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
  • Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
  • Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
  • Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
  • Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
  • Management of Financial Resources - Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
  • Management of Material Resources - Obtaining and seeing to the appropriate use of equipment, facilities, and materials needed to do certain work.
  • Management of Personnel Resources - Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
  • Mathematics - Using mathematics to solve problems.
  • Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • Negotiation - Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
  • Operations Analysis - Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
  • Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
  • Quality Control Analysis - Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
  • Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
  • Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Systems Analysis - Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
  • Systems Evaluation - Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
  • Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
  • Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
  • Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
  • Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
  • Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
  • Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
  • Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
  • Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
  • Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
  • Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
  • Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
  • Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
  • Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
  • Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
  • Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
  • Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
  • Flexibility of Closure - The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
  • Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
  • Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Mathematical Reasoning - The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
  • Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Number Facility - The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
  • Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
  • Perceptual Speed - The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
  • Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
  • Selective Attention - The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
  • Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Speed of Closure - The ability to quickly make sense of, combine, and organize information into meaningful patterns.
  • Time Sharing - The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources).
  • Visualization - The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
  • Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
  • Manage construction activities.
  • Develop operating strategies, plans, or procedures.
  • Prepare financial documents, reports, or budgets.
  • Communicate organizational information to customers or other stakeholders.
  • Communicate organizational policies and procedures.
  • Supervise employees.
  • Negotiate project specifications.
  • Prepare forms or applications.
  • Direct facility maintenance or repair activities.
  • Review blueprints or other instructions to determine operational methods or sequences.
  • Determine operational compliance with regulations or standards.
  • Investigate industrial or transportation accidents.
  • Implement organizational process or policy changes.
  • Develop procedures to evaluate organizational activities.
  • Purchase materials, equipment, or other resources.
  • Estimate labor requirements.
  • Evaluate green operations or programs for compliance with standards or regulations.
  • Analyze data to determine project feasibility.
  • Develop environmental remediation or protection plans.
  • Estimate green project costs.
  • Analyze forecasting data to improve business decisions.
  • Model operational processes.
  • Develop sustainable organizational policies or practices.
  • Recruit personnel.
  • Prepare operational budgets for green energy or other green operations.
  • Train employees on environmental awareness, conservation, or safety topics.

Schools

usa_school
Alfred State College
Appalachian State Univers...
Arizona State University
Ball State University
Bowling Green State Unive...
Brigham Young University
Capitol Technology Univer...
Central Connecticut State...
Central Washington Univer...
Clarkson University
Clemson University
College Of Dupage
Cuyahoga Community Colleg...
Delaware Technical And Co...
Drexel University
East Carolina University
Eastern Illinois Universi...
Eastern Michigan Universi...
Everglades University- Bo...
Everglades University- Mi...
Everglades University- On...
Everglades University- Or...
Everglades University- Sa...
Everglades University- Ta...
Ferris State University
Florida Gulf Coast Univer...
Florida Institute Of Tech...
Florida International Uni...
Illinois State University
John Brown University
Lawrence Technological Un...
Louisiana State Universit...
Michigan Technological Un...
Missisippi State Universi...
New England Institute Of...
New York University
North Dakota State Univer...
Norwich University
Ohio Northern University
Oregon State University
Pittsburg State Universit...
Purdue University- Online...
Rowan University
Southern Adventist Univer...
Southern New Hampshire Un...
Southern Utah University
Stephen F. Austin State U...
Suny College Of Environme...
Suny Farmingdale State Co...
Thomas Jefferson Universi...
University Of Alaska Anch...
University Of Alaska Fair...
University Of Arkansas- L...
University Of Florida
University Of Illinois- C...
University Of Massachuset...
University Of New Mexico
University Of Northern Io...
University Of Oklahoma
University Of Wisconsin-...
Vista College- El Paso Ca...
Washington State Universi...
Weber State University- D...
Western Carolina Universi...
Worcester Polytechnic Ins...
canada_school
Algonquin College
British Columbia Insti...
Canadore College- Stan...
Conestoga College- Wat...
École De Technologie S...
George Brown College-...
Northern Alberta Insti...
Red River College- Not...
Sait - Southern Albert...

Potential Scholarships

5 Strong Scholarship
Agnes M. Lindsay Scholars...
Curt Pozan Trades Scholar...

Approx Salary Expectation

Currency:
Low End:
$56,140.00 /yr
Avg/Med:
$95,260.00 /yr
High End:
$164,790.00 /yr

References

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/.
Trend Analysis - Explorer the Market, Labour Market Information, Government of Canada https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis.
O*NET OnLine, National Center for O*NET Development, https://www.onetonline.org/.