Keeley'n Spotlight: Jacob Schaefer

Keeley Construction offers a world-class internship experience to numerous college students from across the country every summer. We pride ourselves on welcoming these students and giving them the tools and resources they need to find their passions in the industry. We love being able to foster a new generation of Keeley’ns including Jacob Schaefer, Assistant Superintendent in the Building Group.

Jacob joined the Keeley Family as a Project Engineer Intern with the Building Group during the summer of 2019. After working and learning all summer, Jacob was offered a full-time position as a Project Engineer upon his graduation in May 2020. He officially joined the Keeley Team, but quickly learned during his time as a Project Engineer that he loved being out in the field, so he decided to pivot and pursue the Superintendent route. He was given full support from leadership and was recently promoted to Assistant Superintendent on Keeley Construction and Keeley Properties’ exciting Olive Crossing Development. In his two years at Keeley, Jacob has continuously felt empowered in his work. He feels comfortable stepping out of his comfort zone and taking on new tasks that are outside of his typical role. When he wanted to spend more time in the field, his Project Manager encouraged him and worked to get him to some jobs in Tennessee. This experience in the field helped Jacob learn even more about the ins and outs of the business and gave him a deeper appreciation for our craftspeople that are out there every day.

Jacob knew he had an interest in the construction industry from a young age. He always enjoyed watching projects progress around him and started to work some smaller construction jobs during his time in high school and college. He is grateful to be at Keeley and loves that he is able to work with so many different people on a daily basis. He enjoys spending time with the field crews, listening to the team tell stories about their past experience and how they learned from their mistakes to grow their careers. This is a booming industry and there is always a need for construction, so if Jacob could give a piece of advice to those just starting out, it would be:

“Take the time to sit back and listen to others and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Be a sponge and soak in as much information as you can from leadership to craftspeople in the field and everyone in between. Keeley is great about giving you a lot of responsibilities and when you need help, all you have to do is speak up and ask.”

Jacob may just be starting out his career, but he has a strong vision for his future. He wants to continue his personal and professional growth to get him into a Superintendent role. He enjoys the day-to-day tasks of coordinating with subcontractors and working with Keeley’s self-perform crews, so he is excited to continue to gain more experience on Keeley’s large projects as the Building Group continues to grow.

After his internship and joining the team full-time, Jacob knew that he found his career destination. He strives to live out Keeley’s core values – PRIDE – every day and he sees Empowerment lived out in every Keeley’n. Everyone is empowered to set career goals and with the support from leadership and team members, you are able to achieve those goals. Keeley places such a strong emphasis on safety and every team member, no matter their role or title, is empowered to stop any unsafe act and correct the work if it does not meet our expectations.

As for why others should make Keeley their career destination?

“I get to come into work every day and work with people from all different backgrounds and experiences. Everyone at Keeley is invested in the growth and development of the company and so many opportunities are available to our people. As Rusty always says, ‘If you get the people right, the results will follow.’”

Jacob, thank you for your passion for growth and development. You are exactly the type of Keeley’n we need with an excitement for growing the Building Group. You are going to achieve amazing things!