---
title: "Construction Manager"
description: "Plan, direct, or coordinate, usually through subordinate supervisory personnel, activities concerned with the construction and maintenance of structures…"
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/construction-manager"
last-updated: "2026-08-23T15:56:39.581Z"
---

# Construction Manager

**Category:** Management · **SOC code:** 11-9021 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 11-9021.00

Plan, direct, or coordinate, usually through subordinate supervisory personnel, activities concerned with the construction and maintenance of structures, facilities, and systems. Participate in the conceptual development of a construction project and oversee its organization, scheduling, budgeting, and implementation. Includes managers in specialized construction fields, such as carpentry or plumbing.

Also advertised as: Concrete Foreman; Construction Area Manager; Construction Foreman; Construction Management Supervisor; Construction Manager; Construction Services Manager; Construction Superintendent; General Superintendent.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $114,990 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $55.28/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $69,690 to $189,440, with the middle half between $88,550 and $151,640
- **Total US employment:** 380,360
- **Typical entry education:** Bachelor's
- **Preparation required:** Medium preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** +8.7% over 2024–2034 (BLS EP, 2024–2034)
- **Annual job openings:** 46,800 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 54/100 — a NueCareer heuristic over O\*NET work activities and context, not a BLS or O\*NET figure

## Pay

National wage distribution, BLS OEWS, May 2025, across 380,360 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $69,690 |
| 25th | $88,550 |
| 50th (median) | $114,990 |
| 75th | $151,640 |
| 90th | $189,440 |
| Mean (average) | $124,360 |

### Pay by state

The 15 highest-paying states, by median annual wage. The cost-of-living-adjusted column divides the state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, so the columns answer different questions: the first is what the job pays there, the second is what that pay buys there.

| State | Median annual wage | Cost-of-living adjusted | Employment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NY | $155,360 | $143,957 | 10,280 |
| WA | $155,070 | $144,908 | 6,010 |
| MA | $145,010 | $137,116 | 9,870 |
| AK | $139,190 | $135,982 | 1,720 |
| NJ | $138,230 | $127,044 | 6,910 |
| CA | $133,160 | $120,267 | 34,750 |
| DE | $132,150 | $132,404 | 610 |
| OR | $131,420 | $127,147 | 4,300 |
| NH | $129,260 | $124,092 | 660 |
| HI | $128,910 | $117,243 | 2,890 |
| MD | $128,330 | $122,267 | 5,770 |
| DC | $126,430 | $115,040 | 1,250 |
| CT | $125,190 | $120,828 | 3,620 |
| CO | $124,830 | $121,133 | 12,550 |
| MN | $123,400 | $125,125 | 5,800 |

39 more states with published wage data are omitted here. The full table for all 54 states is at https://nuecareer.com/careers/construction-manager/salary-by-state, or as JSON at https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/construction-manager.

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 550,300 in the 2024–2034 base year to 598,400 by the end of the cycle — a gain of 48,100 jobs, or +8.7%. Much faster than average: 8.7% against 3.1% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 46,800 openings a year are expected on average, counting openings from growth as well as from workers leaving the occupation permanently. Source: BLS EP, 2024–2034.

## How to get in

- **Typical entry education:** Bachelor's degree (BLS Employment Projections).
- **Preparation level:** Medium preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** None.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** Moderate-term on-the-job training.

### Education people in this job actually hold

O\*NET surveys incumbents, so this distribution describes who is in the job today and can differ from the BLS entry requirement above.

| Education level | Share of workers |
| --- | --- |
| Bachelor's Degree | 40.0% |
| High School Diploma | 15.0% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 15.0% |
| Some College Courses | 10.0% |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 10.0% |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 5.0% |

## What the work involves

- Inspect or review projects to monitor compliance with building and safety codes or other regulations.
- Plan, schedule, or coordinate construction project activities to meet deadlines.
- Prepare and submit budget estimates, progress reports, or cost tracking reports.
- Confer with supervisory personnel, owners, contractors, or design professionals to discuss and resolve matters, such as work procedures, complaints, or construction problems.
- Study job specifications to determine appropriate construction methods.
- Plan, organize, or direct activities concerned with the construction or maintenance of structures, facilities, or systems.
- Apply for and obtain all necessary permits or licenses.
- Develop or implement quality control programs.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Active Listening — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Critical Thinking — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Reading Comprehension — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Transferable skills

These are the skills that carry into other occupations, and they drive the related-occupation and career-change rankings on this site.

- Judgment and Decision Making — importance 4.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Management of Personnel Resources — importance 4.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Coordination — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Complex Problem Solving — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Time Management — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Negotiation — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Systems Analysis — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Management of Financial Resources — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- Building and Construction — importance 4.7 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Administration and Management — importance 4.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Engineering and Technology — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Customer and Personal Service — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mechanical — importance 3.8 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Problem Sensitivity — importance 4.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Oral Comprehension — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Comprehension — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Oral Expression — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Deductive Reasoning — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Information Ordering — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

## Who it suits

O\*NET rates every occupation on the six Holland (RIASEC) interest areas, on a 1–7 scale. This occupation's strongest areas are Enterprising (E), Conventional (C), Realistic (R).

| Interest area | Score (1–7) |
| --- | --- |
| E — Enterprising | 5.73 |
| C — Conventional | 4.80 |
| R — Realistic | 4.68 |
| I — Investigative | 3.18 |
| S — Social | 2.35 |
| A — Artistic | 1.70 |

### Personality fit

These scores are **derived by NueCareer**, not published by any government agency: they are cosine similarities between a personality type's trait profile and this occupation's O\*NET interest and work-style ratings, expressed 0–100. Treat them as a starting point for exploration, not as evidence that a type belongs in a job.

| Type | Fit score (0–100) |
| --- | --- |
| ESTJ | 87.1 |
| ISTJ | 79.5 |
| ESTP | 73.2 |
| ENTJ | 65.5 |
| ESFJ | 64.1 |

Best-fitting types: ESTJ.

## Related occupations

O\*NET's primary related occupations, in its own ranked order.

- [Civil Engineer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/civil-engineer) — median $100,840
- [Solar Energy Installation Manager](https://nuecareer.com/careers/solar-energy-installation-manager) — median $79,920
- [Civil Engineering Technologist and Technician](https://nuecareer.com/careers/civil-engineering-technologist-and-technician) — median $64,950
- [First-Line Supervisor of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers](https://nuecareer.com/careers/first-line-supervisor-of-construction-trades-and-extraction-workers) — median $79,920
- [Construction and Building Inspector](https://nuecareer.com/careers/construction-and-building-inspector) — median $74,690
- [Architect](https://nuecareer.com/careers/architect) — median $99,280
- [Industrial Engineer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/industrial-engineer) — median $102,440
- [Architectural and Engineering Manager](https://nuecareer.com/careers/architectural-and-engineering-manager) — median $171,270
- [Project Management Specialist](https://nuecareer.com/careers/project-management-specialist) — median $102,320
- [Facilities Manager](https://nuecareer.com/careers/facilities-manager) — median $106,660

## Sources

- **O\*NET** — O\*NET 30.3 Database, May 2026. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS OEWS** — BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS EP** — BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, 2024–2034. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **BLS OOH** — BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–2034 edition. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/
- **BEA RPP** — BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024. https://www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area

---

This bank includes information from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology

JSON representation of this page: https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/construction-manager