Alex Nance, project manager at Charter Construction, is a rising star in Nashville’s construction industry. Originally from Glasgow, Kentucky, Alex followed a natural progression into construction management, driven by a passion that began in high school and has since evolved into a full-fledged career.
“I had a lot of family members in the industry, which is why I’ve always wanted to be in construction,” says Alex. “Even back in high school, I knew that it was what I wanted to do for a living.”
After attending Western Kentucky University, he began his professional journey at Whittenberg Construction, a general contractor based in Louisville, Kentucky, where he first gained on-the-job experience in concrete construction.
“The old-school general contractors used to do their own concrete work,” he explains. “As construction has evolved, it’s becoming more specialized, but I knew that I really enjoyed the craft involved with concrete work and the relationships I was able to build out in the field.”
In 2015, Alex relocated to Nashville, Tennessee to join Bell Construction, where he spent six years as a project manager before joining the team at Charter Construction in 2021. Within a short time span, Alex’s careful attention to detail, forward-thinking approach to work, and communication skills have led to the successful completion of several major projects in the Nashville area.
One of Alex’s most notable projects was Parcel 3 at Nashville Yards, a massive 19-acre mixed-use development in the heart of the city’s urban center and the site of Pinnacle Tower, a 42-story-tall architectural marvel and one of Nashville’s tallest skyscrapers.
“We topped out in February of 2024, but I got involved as early as November 2021,” he recalls. Initially, Charter Construction was engaged as a design-assist contractor. Alex worked with the company’s estimating team and senior leaders, providing structural feedback and value engineering support to optimize the building’s design.
“They tell you what they want it to look like, but we detail how to build it,” Alex says, explaining the collaborative process between the construction team and design professionals.
In January 2022, Alex became heavily involved in the front-end work, from creating a daily construction schedule to submitting shop drawings and managing materials procurement.
For Alex, the job was particularly exciting due to the use of cutting-edge concrete mixes. “We used a 16,000 PSI mix, which to my knowledge was the first project in Nashville to do so. It was cool to work with that material since that’s really where concrete is going based on the most recent building codes.”
Beyond his diligent work ethic, Alex’s natural sense of curiosity and his keen interest in the science behind concrete work demonstrate other qualities that make him a perfect fit for his profession and an invaluable member of Charter’s project management team.
For Alex, being a project manager is more than overseeing work schedules, budgets, and inventories—it’s about being on the ground and ensuring the job is done right. “I actually spent more time out on the job than in the office,” Alex says, noting that he prefers being on-site, where he can be closer to the action.
As he closes in on a decade of experience as a project manager, Alex is proud of the work he’s done and excited about what lies ahead. “I wouldn’t want to do anything else,” he says. With his passion for construction and a solid foundation of experience, Alex is poised to continue driving Charter Construction to new heights in Nashville and beyond.