Michael Rodriguez Takes A Winding Road to Success

Sometimes the road less traveled can lead to the most fertile grounds. Michael Rodriguez’s road led him to an internship, NJIT, construction management and back. College and a career don’t always follow neatly one after the other for him and for many NJIT students. 

Rodriguez, 40, started class at NJIT in 1999, majored in architecture at the Hillier College of Architecture and Design, and completed his last physics class online in the summer of 2015 while working as a project director at Bedminster-based Sordoni Construction. He earned his degree that summer, a few years before being promoted to project executive.

For those who have to work and go to school, it gives you a great understanding of time management and organization. It’s the only way to be successful.

Rodriguez accomplished many of his professional goals without having first fully completed his college degree. He’s overseen procurement, scheduling, cost management, and project management on $650 million worth of projects ranging from sports facilities, commercial retail, and commercial residential. 

“They finally offered the physics class in a summertime afternoon, which was in between projects for me,” said Rodriguez. “I knew that I had to get my degree and finish.”

Rodriguez graduated from high school in Jefferson Township, NJ, started an internship at a civil engineering firm, and enrolled full-time at NJIT within a few short months. At the time, he was still unsure whether he would apply the skills he would soon learn at NJIT to construction or design. It’s a choice that most architecture students face at some point. At his internship, while cutting his teeth on construction projects, the choice became clear. 

“At the internship, I decided then that I didn't want to go back to design,” said Rodriguez. “I liked that in construction, everyday was a little different. I got to touch a lot of different types of projects that I wouldn’t have been able to do otherwise.”

One path isn’t more challenging than the other, just different. Rodriguez says that being a student, an intern, then transitioning straight into construction management was very difficult, but he regrets nothing. 

“Some people leave the construction industry because they run out of the love and time needed to put in. It really wears on you,” said Rodriguez. “The idea of doing something different every day makes my job very rewarding.”

“In the construction field, while education is important because it gives you a foundation, the experience of the field is such a large portion of your education to move forward in the industry,” said Rodriguez. “Doing both at the same time, you’re always being educated. Even at my level, I'm always seeing something new and changing the way we are doing something.”

Rodriguez is celebrated at his company for the vast knowledge he accumulated slowly over time since he was 18. He’s proved capable of exceeding expectations and goals time and time again while managing multiple projects at once. Sordoni Construction released a press release when he was promoted this year with a comment from the company’s chief operating officer. 

"Over the last 12 years, I have worked with Mike Rodriguez successfully completing many challenging projects," said Seth Levy, Sordoni's COO and executive vice president in the press release. "Mike's drive, leadership and ability to energize his project teams make him a great leader.”

Rodriguez’s most valued skill that enabled his success is no secret, but difficult to learn nonetheless: time management.

“For those who have to work and go to school, it gives you a great understanding of time management and organization,” said Rodriguez. “It’s the only way to be successful.”

While at NJIT, Rodriguez also served as the vice president of the student senate and made plenty of friends and close connections that benefited him later in life. He encourages current NJIT students to take life by the horns like he did and to be open to new experiences and career paths. 

“Always explore your options,” said Rodriguez. “I was instructed to gain experience in design and it turns out I loved construction more. While you’re in school, that’s when you have the opportunity to change your career. Find what you love and find it while you’re there.”