DPR Construction

DPR Construction is a self-performing general contractor that concentrates on highly complex and technical projects rather than commodity contracting. Founded in July 1990 by three construction veterans - Doug Woods, Peter Nosler and Ron Davidowski, whose initials give the firm its name - it was launched with $750,000 pooled from the founders' own resources and a first-year team of 11 professionals. It is now a multi-billion-dollar, employee-owned organisation and consistently ranks among the top 50 general contractors in the United States.

The firm works principally as a negotiating contractor and performs much of its work with its own forces. Its project portfolio spans advanced technology, life sciences, healthcare, higher education and commercial facilities. The company describes construction as a service business built on great teams, great projects and great relationships, rather than a manufacturing business, and says it aims to take care of customers in ways others would not.

For prospective employees, the most relevant features are its employee-owned structure and its stated values: Integrity, Enjoyment, Uniqueness and Ever Forward. The last of these reflects a deliberate stance in an industry the founders considered resistant to change. The company's purpose - "We Exist to Build Great Things."® - was articulated in 1992 with the help of Jim Collins, then a Stanford professor. DPR operates across the United States; further information is available at dpr.com.