Becoming a 'Better, More Well-Rounded Version of Myself'

The sharp cliffs and picturesque landscape of La Jolla, California—located along the coast of the Pacific Ocean—have earned the neighborhood the nickname "a jewel" of the larger San Diego area. 

What makes the hilly coastline so attractive also makes it particularly challenging for those working to develop its built environment, as Jon Walsh (EMDC '25) knows. The founder and president of J Walsh Construction has lived in and built projects throughout San Diego for the past 20-plus years. 

His firm, which specializes in residential building, has worked on many complicated hillside home projects — each brings a unique set of challenges, including engineering, site logistics, access, and runoff prevention. 

"We’ve had to do major shoring, below-grade waterproofing, and complicated crane work," Jon said."That’s before we even get into achieving the quality of work on the finishes that make the homes inspiring."  

Jon is responsible for business development, client interfacing, contract writing, negotiations, and oversight of the company's estimating, project management, and quality control teams.  

In an effort to broaden his professional perspective and potentially scale his organization, Jon turned to Northwestern Engineering’s Master of Science in Executive Management for Design and Construction (EMDC) program.  

"In highly custom work, it's easy to get lost in the weeds or pulled deeply into the business," he said. "While I've learned a ton in the business world, I figured that getting back to a traditional academic environment would help balance my experience after all this time." 

Those experiences have been varied. While J Walsh Construction routinely performs major historic renovations and builds contemporary single-family homes from the ground up, the company has also branched into consulting and management on multi-family projects ranging from eight units to more than 50 units.  

Jon is also the founder and president of R5 Management, a company he started in 2016 that focuses on construction planning and consulting. That firm is shifting to expand its work in real estate acquisitions and speculative development projects. 

"I have always been extremely passionate about the intersection between design and building," he said. "I enjoy the never-ending process of finding solutions, putting together puzzles, and learning lessons." 

The learning opportunity is what drew Jon to EMDC. He appreciated the program's hybrid curriculum that features online and in-person experiences, including four weekend intensive sessions in Chicago. 

Getting to meet his classmates and work face-to-face with them was one of the highlights of Jon's EMDC experience. 

"Collaborating together during each trip to Chicago really drew us together," he said. "We've mused a few times that a company made up of our cohort would be a winning organization." 

Jon learned significant tactical and strategic approaches in classes like Leadership and Organization, Construction Law and Risk Management, Due Diligence Considerations for Engineering Firms, Alternative Dispute Resolution, and Finance and Accounting for Executives. Looking back on his time in EMDC, he found that the "soft skills" such as self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and systems thinking were the most valuable. 

"At the end of the day, we are in a people business, and our relationships and interactions have the greatest influence on our success and our satisfaction," he said. "I’ve developed into a better, more well-rounded version of myself through the EMDC program."