Career Path of a Development Associate at a Real Estate Development Family Office
George's career path began with hands-on construction experience in high school and college, "working for custom home general contractors" and later building ADUs part-time. This foundation led to roles as an assistant superintendent and then a project engineer, evolving from directing subcontractors on multifamily construction sites to encompassing project management, financial responsibilities, and communication with architects and engineers.
Real Estate Development, Construction, Project Management, General Contracting, Assistant Superintendent
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
George Champion
Development Associate
Family Office - Real Estate Development
UC Santa Barbara
University of San Diego - Knauss school of business
History, Art History
Architecture, Construction & Design, Real Estate
Operations and Project Management
Worked 20+ Hours in School
Video Highlights
1. Early experience in construction: Started working in construction at 16, gaining hands-on experience with custom home general contractors and remodels.
2. Part-time work during college: While in college, worked part-time for a general contractor building ADUs (accessory dwelling units), indicating early career focus and adaptability, especially during the pandemic.
3. Progression from field to office roles: Career progression from Assistant Superintendent (field-based, directing subcontractors) to Project Engineer (office-based, project management and financial focus) demonstrates a well-rounded skill set and career advancement.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Did you have any internships or jobs before your current role?
Absolutely. I started in construction when I was about 16 or 17 in La Jolla, working for custom home general contractors and also doing remodels. I did that most summers in high school, and then in college at UC Santa Barbara.
I started working for a local general contractor part-time, about three days a week. We were building ADUs, which are accessory dwelling units. This was during the pandemic, so a lot of people were not working, or they had some extra money saved up to where they could afford to spend money building and hiring a contractor to build an ADU for them.
I did that for about a year and a half, and then I graduated. I landed a job as an assistant superintendent back in San Diego, working for a multifamily general contractor where we were building anywhere from 20 to 100 unit apartment buildings. I was the second in command on the job site, directing subcontractors.
After that, I got a job as a project engineer, which is more project management and financially based. I was communicating with architects and engineers. It was basically an extension from what I had done at my earlier job, but now I was involving more office project management and financial-based skill sets.