Katelyn Moore BUZZ OATES CONSTRUCTI


It may not have been the most obvious career move when Katelyn Moore decid- ed to pivot from an eight-year career as a paralegal into a project development role at at a Sacramento development company, followed a year later by a move into a development project management role for Buzz Oates Construction. But she will be the first to tell you that her only regret is that she didn’t start her career in the construction industry much earlier. “I always thought of construction


as a ‘man’s world;’ just dirt and heavy machinery, but had I known about the opportunities in this industry—especially for women—I would have made this move much earlier,” she said. “I wish someone had told me about it when I was in college. I look back and know my path got me here for a reason.” Moore earned her business degree in college and was building up her resume in the legal field (and even contemplating law school) when she realized she was ready for a career change in 2018. After “falling into” the development role at Domas Development in Sacramento, she seized the opportunity to move over to the construction side a year later after being introduced to Buzz Oates Construction. Over the past eight years, she ad- vanced to her current role as senior de- velopment project manager, where she primarily focuses on the preconstruction aspects of projects, including land enti- tlements and permitting. Moore said she loves the flexibility to manage and work in an office, but “still be able to get out there and literally kick the building that you helped create and see it come to life. I find that really rewarding.” Coming into the construction indus-


try, she found that there were plenty of transferable business skills between her legal job and project management, as well


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CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTOR SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2026


“I always thought of construction as a ‘man’s world;’ just dirt and heavy machinery, but had I known about the opportunities in this industry—especially for women—I would have made this move much earlier. I wish someone had told me about it when I was in college. I look back and know my path got me here for a reason.”


– Katelyn Moore, Buzz Oates Construction


STRUCTION


as ample resources and opportunities for on-the-job learning in construction if you’re willing to ask questions and learn from your mistakes. “I try to instill into newer team mem- bers coming into our company that there’s no such thing as a dumb question,” she said. “If you need an answer, there’s a resource, and you can always find it. It’s just knowing what question to ask and who.”


Among the leading resources Moore


has tapped for her own continuing ed- ucation, networking, and leadership development opportunities is AGC of California. At the urging of David Claveau, senior vice president at Buzz Oates Con- struction, who served on AGC’s Delta Sierra District board, Moore applied to fill a position on the Emerging Leaders Steering Committee. It turned into a now two-year stint that she said has been “extremely fulfilling.” “It’s really one of those positions that you get out of it what you put into it,” she noted. “It fit into my career journey in general to grow and expand my net-


work. What I’ve found most rewarding is the people and connections I’ve made through the Committee and the team at AGC.” Additionally, she’s participating in the


Construction Leaders (CLA) Academy as part of the 2026 cohort, served as a panelist during an ELSC quarterly forum sharing her journey into construction, and took advantage of mentorship opportunities through AGC’s College2Construct (C2C). Tose mentoring opportunities have been especially impactful, Moore said, with one highlight being the mentee she was paired with in the C2C program. “I assumed I’d be assigned to a young-


er student getting ready to finish college, but instead, my mentee was actually changing careers and had gone back to community college in San Francisco,” she explained. “She was raising young kids, so I could really relate. My kids are a little older now (10 and 7), but I was able to give her meaningful advice about juggling being a full-time working mom in this industry, sharing how I’ve been successful and how to prioritize both.”


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