Breaking New Ground in Kansas City

Jeff Bennett is opening the door to new opportunities across the Kansas City region.

Since joining the McCarthy team as business development director in 2019, his primary mission has been to forge new client relationships and expand the company’s footprint.

And his positive impact has been unmistakable.

Building on that success, Bennett recently broadened his focus to cultivate new client relationships in other market sectors, including science & technology and manufacturing/industrial projects. “Now that our healthcare team is thriving and we’ve got amazing people who have stepped into new leadership roles, I'm investing a larger percentage of my time in growing other markets,” he says. 

It’s a challenge that involves identifying and pursuing potential clients that will benefit from McCarthy’s specialized expertise and relationship-oriented approach. “We’re seeking clients that want a true construction partner rather than someone that just bids and executes a job and moves on,” he explains.

Bennett’s current role is the culmination of an eclectic career journey that began at Walt Disney World, where he worked in the front office of Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort after graduating from college. 

It was during that two-year Disney tenure that he secured a part-time gig with Martin K. Eby Construction Company, the firm overseeing construction of the new Animal Kingdom theme park. “I worked as an office engineer, which was kind of a grunt role, but it was pretty cool to be involved in building the new park,” he says. 

About a year into his employment with Eby, Bennett had a career-altering conversation with the company president during a jobsite visit. “He cornered me and asked why I didn’t work in construction full-time,” recalls Bennett. 

A couple of weeks later, Bennett received a formal offer to join Eby as business development manager in Dallas, Texas. “It was about five times more than I was currently making, so it was kind of a no brainer,” he laughs.  

Tasked with transforming the company’s Texas profile from a heavy civil contractor to a vertical building contractor, Bennett went to work. “I zeroed in on the University of Texas system, and within a couple of years, we won our first project: a design-build parking garage in Austin, which was a great segue into the university building world,” he says. “We ended up winning numerous jobs with the University, which led to work with UT MD Anderson Cancer Center and other projects within the Texas Medical Center in Houston.” 

Bennett’s next opportunity brought him to San Jose, California, where he led business development for the national general contractor Hensel Phelps in the Northwest U.S., including work in Hawaii and Guam.

In 2013, he and his family relocated to Kansas City. “My wife and I had recently had our two kids, and we decided that we wanted to be closer to her family in KC,” he says. 

Bennett worked for a couple of local contractors before connecting with the McCarthy opportunity. “I had competed against McCarthy a lot throughout my career, but I didn't really know the company,” he says. “I couldn't be more impressed with everyone I met. They were focused on smart growth, which was refreshing…and I wanted to be part of it.”

Making Moves

Born in Provo, Utah, Bennett and his family relocated to Austin and Georgetown, Texas; Wheatland, Wyoming; and Greeley, Colorado, by the time he celebrated his 10th birthday. 

That transient childhood helped Bennett develop valuable skills that continue to serve him, including resilience, adaptability and the art of building relationships. 

You might say that construction runs in Bennett’s blood. His grandfather, dad and brother all enjoyed successful building careers. “I always joke that between the four of us—my grandfather was an estimator, my dad was in operations, my brother's in finance and I’m in business development—we have our own construction company, generations apart.”

Despite the strong pedigree, Bennett wasn’t initially sold on a construction career. Instead, he was driven by a passion for golf. “I competed throughout the state of Colorado and went to Brigham Young University, with the goal of playing golf as a walk on,” he says. When that plan didn’t materialize as Bennett had hoped, he transferred to the University of Northern Colorado, where played on the golf team and completed a business degree with a marketing emphasis.

He pondered a career in the hospitality industry while completing an internship at Disney’s Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World and later managed a health club while finishing college.

Bennett credits his dad for challenging him to get serious about his career trajectory. “I had graduated and had a decent job, but in his mind, it wasn't a real career,” he says. “One day, he just came home and challenged me to figure out what I was doing with my life.” 

That frank discussion lit a fire under Bennett that steered him toward construction and reinforced one of his longest-held beliefs: that focus drives results. “One of the major themes that guides my life is that you achieve success where you put your energy,” he says. 

It’s a maxim that continues to pay dividends.