Emma Flynn, 32

For Emma Flynn, working in the construction trades was a natural career path. Her father was a construction estimator in her native Dublin, Ireland. Getting to New York City, though, was wholly her own endeavor. 

She moved after graduating from University College Dublin in 2014, and, soon after, landed her first job at J.T. Magen, the New York-based general contractor. She’s now been with the company eight years. For the last six of them, Flynn has worked as a construction superintendent, overseeing monumental commercial interior fit-outs on projects ranging from the 150,000-square-foot Nike New York HQ to a 270,000-square-foot, 13-floor restack for a prominent law firm. 

It takes organization to act as a liaison between a project’s stakeholders while also addressing design team queries, managing material submittals, and overseeing project documentation. Luckily, such organization, Flynn said, is her best quality. 

“I’m super organized — like, I can’t leave something unorganized,” she said. “Everything has to be on task.”

Currently, Flynn is co-leading a 700,000-square-foot, multi-phase renovation project across 23 floors for a law firm in New York City. The space is remaining partially occupied during construction, which presents another layer of challenge and communication.

Flynn said it requires thoughtfulness, adherence to the schedule, and, especially, personality management to get things done with as few hiccups as possible, particularly with construction happening above and below building tenants. The estimated completion for the project is late 2028.