A design-build general manager runs one market for the firm and owns that market's profit. They lead the sales, design and project teams there, keep local permit offices, trade partners and referral sources working with the firm, and report the market's results to the CEO.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Annual pay: 10th percentile $56,880, middle half $79,320 to $177,210, 90th percentile $259,820. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
Reports to
Chief Executive Officer
Department
Operations
Schedule
8 to 5 in the office, some on-call · The template sets 8 AM to 5 PM in the office, with longer days in busy project phases, site travel and some on-call duty
Also called
Market manager · Branch manager · Regional general manager · Division president
Design-build general manager job description template
This is our Role Blueprint, word for word. Replace the highlighted fields and adjust the example targets and pay to fit your company.
The General Manager leads design-build initiatives by directing integrated design and construction teams to achieve operational excellence and client satisfaction. This role is pivotal in overseeing project execution, ensuring measurable KPIs are met, and fostering a culture of innovation and accountability across all teams.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Oversee and coordinate the work of design and construction teams to ensure project milestones and client expectations are met.
Develop and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) to drive operational efficiency and profitability.
Provide strategic leadership and create robust processes for optimizing project delivery and resource allocation.
Cultivate strong client relationships by ensuring clear communication and timely resolution of project issues.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Conduct daily briefings with design and construction teams to review project progress and address challenges.
Analyze performance data and prepare reports to support decision-making and continuous improvement.
Engage in proactive business prospecting by meeting with potential clients and partners.
Ensure adherence to quality standards and regulatory requirements throughout all project phases.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Revenue per project: Achieve a minimum of $150,000 per project.
Client Satisfaction Rating: Maintain an average rating of >4.8 stars.
On-Time Project Completion: Ensure at least 95% of projects meet scheduled deadlines.
Gross Margin: Sustain a target gross margin of 30% or higher.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Engineering, Business Administration, or a related field.
Minimum of 7 years of progressive leadership experience in design-build projects or similar industries.
Strong analytical skills with experience in KPI monitoring and process optimization.
Excellent communication, leadership, and problem-solving abilities.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience in managing design-build projects within the home services or construction sector.
Proven track record of successfully leading multidisciplinary teams in a fast-paced environment.
Familiarity with project management software and ERP systems relevant to design and construction operations.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to occasionally lift 25 lbs. during on-site inspections or team meetings.
Comfortable working in various environments including on construction sites and office settings.
Occasional exposure to outdoor elements during site visits.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Regular office hours from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM with occasional extended hours during peak project phases.
Moderate travel required for site visits and client meetings across regions.
On-call responsibilities may be required for urgent client or operational issues.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Base salary range: $110,000 - $140,000 USD per annum, commensurate with experience.
Eligibility for performance bonuses based on key milestones and company profitability.
Comprehensive benefits package including health, dental, and vision insurance.
Participation in a 401(k) plan along with other fringe benefits as applicable.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we are committed to excellence, innovation, and growth. Our dynamic environment empowers every employee to contribute to high-impact projects and career development opportunities.
We foster an inclusive culture where creativity and collaboration drive success, and where your unique perspective is both valued and essential.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
Need help filling this role? HireBus posts the ad, Iris interviews every applicant by phone before you do, and you decide who to hire. Start hiring now
The CEO picks the markets. The GM makes one of them pay: enough design clients, build prices local buyers accept, and local partners who show up.
A second office may need its own license
Michigan, for one, requires a licensed residential builder to keep a place of business in the state, and the state issues a branch office license for each extra place of business. A firm opening a design studio in a second city plans for that license before signing the lease. Rules vary by state, and a market across a state line starts from that state's own rules. Source: Michigan Compiled Laws 339.2404: builder exam, place of business and branch office licenses.
Zoning can stop an addition before design
Additions run into local limits on setbacks, height, lot coverage and historic districts. When a plan needs a variance, waiting for a hearing date can add months before a permit. The GM learns each town's rules and boards, and makes sure designers check the lot before a client gets attached to a plan the town won't allow.
Salespeople may need a license of their own
Michigan, for example, requires anyone paid to solicit or secure business for a licensed residential builder to hold a salesperson license, after an exam, tied to that one builder. The law leaves out the qualifying officer and people whose sales are only occasional and incidental to their main job. A GM hiring salespeople, or designers who also sell, checks who needs the license before their first appointment. Rules vary by state. Source: Michigan LARA: residential builder salesperson license.
Local trades decide the schedule
Plumbers, electricians, HVAC installers and drywall crews are local, and the good ones are booked. A GM keeps a short list for each trade in the market, pays them on time and gives them steady work, so the firm gets their crews when the season is busy. Opening a market without that list means slow starts and missed dates.
How much design-build general managers make
The closest BLS group for design-build general managers is general and operations managers. General and operations managers who work for building contractors earned a median of $123,080 a year ($59.18 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s above the $105,770 median for general and operations managers in all industries. About 72,580 of the 3,503,020 general and operations managers in that survey work for building contractors.
Base salary plus bonuses on milestones and company profit, per the template. Pay part of the bonus on the market's closed-job margin, so sales can't grow on prices the crews can't build to.
Building contractors
$123,080$123,080 median Middle half $79,320–$177,210 10th–90th $56,880–$259,820
All industries
$105,770$105,770 median Middle half $72,320–$167,280 10th–90th $50,090–$253,390
$0k$50k$100k$150k$200k$250k$300k
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Building contractors
$56,880
$79,320
$123,080
$177,210
$259,820
All industries
$50,090
$72,320
$105,770
$167,280
$253,390
BLS doesn’t publish pay for design-build firms on their own. These figures cover construction of buildings, which include them. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Has run a remodeling or design-build market or branch with profit responsibility
Presents and sells large remodels or custom homes to clients
Acts on a market's monthly results and its backlog of signed work
Has hired and led designers, salespeople and project managers
Knows local permit, zoning and inspection practice
Teach these on the job
Your design agreement and pricing rules
Your preferred trade partners and supplier accounts
Each town's zoning and permit staff
What the CEO expects in each month's market review
The CRM and job software your market uses
The GM follows the market in the CRM, from first call to signed design agreement, and in the project management system once a job is sold. Ask finalists how they knew a market was slipping before the monthly numbers showed it.
Design-build general manager interview questions
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Finding lost margin
Revenue is on plan, but gross margin on finished design-build projects is well below what the estimates showed. Walk me through how you find out why.
A strong answer: Compares estimate to final by project and cost code, separates design overruns (unbilled redesign hours) from construction overruns (unpriced changes, allowance overages, labor), reviews with project managers and designers, and sets fixes with owners and dates.
Behavioral · Warranty and callbacks
Tell me about a time you changed how the company handles warranty requests after projects finish.
A strong answer: Tracked warranty calls by cause, crew and trade partner, set response times, assigned an owner, held trade partners to their warranties, and fed the causes back into design and field standards.
Score only the GM's own market, quarter by quarter. Set the bars from that market's own closed jobs, since a new market won't match an old one.
Revenue per project
Average signed construction contract value in the market, design fees left out, shown by project type so a few custom homes don't hide shrinking remodels.
Client Satisfaction Rating
Ratings from the market's clients a month after move-in, compared with the firm's other markets, plus how many of those clients send a referral.
On-Time Project Completion
Jobs in the market finished by the contract date, counting days added by signed change orders, with permit and zoning delays tracked apart.
Gross Margin
Closed-job margin for the market after its local costs, compared with other markets, to show whether prices fit local labor and sub rates.
Career path
Project managerRuns remodels and additions and the client relationship on each.
The COO writes the rules every job follows: when estimates are checked, what a job needs before it starts, and the quality standard. The GM applies those rules in one market and answers for that market's profit, sales and clients. When the two disagree, the GM speaks for the local client and the COO for the firm's standard, and the CEO settles what they can't.
How much does a design-build general manager make?
General and operations managers who work for building contractors earned a median of $123,080 a year ($59.18 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $79,320 and $177,210 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
Should a design-build GM sell jobs?
Some. The template has the GM meeting prospects and partners. In a new market the GM often sells the first large jobs and gets to know the agents and interior designers who will refer. Once signed work is steady, the GM's time goes to coaching salespeople and designers on pricing and closing, and to the partners who send the biggest projects.
Does a design-build GM need a builder's license?
The firm needs one; whether the GM holds it is your choice, within your state's rules. If the GM will qualify the license in a new state, add the exam and any course hours to the hiring timeline. In Michigan, for example, a residential builder applicant must finish 60 hours of approved prelicensure education before taking the exam or applying.
What should a GM line up before a new market opens?
The license, a few trusted trades, and a feel for the local permit offices, before hiring a full team. Then the first clients, through past clients' friends and local agents and designers. A full office with no signed design work burns cash for months, so start with a project manager and a designer and grow as work is signed.
