San Diego — Workforce Due Diligence™

Thesis

San Diego diligence must test federal-program key-person risk and clearance dependency — Elevated exposure with expanding demand.

Executive summary

Workforce DD on San Diego targets is favorable vs. LA on commercial work but federal-program concentration and clearance holders are deal risks on defense-exposed platforms.

Metrics

• WEI composite: 58 — Elevated tier
• Employment trend: Expanding — QCEW Q3 2025
• Wage position: Modest premium — vs. inland MSAs

Proceed with Mitigation

Clearance holders and federal PM bench are deal conditions

Commercial backlog is executable; federal key-person risk is not.

Key observations

• Federal Programs VP holds two largest Navy relationships.
• Single cleared PM for concurrent federal pursuits.
• Modest premium aids retention if addressed before poaching cycle.

Recommendations

• Clearance retention package. Structure retention for clearance holders with relationship transfer milestones.
• Federal PM redundancy. Fund second cleared PM before close on defense-heavy targets.

Exposure assessment

San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad · H1 2026 · Elevated exposure · expanding · modest_premium

San Diego markets read Elevated on composite exposure with expanding employment — defense, biotech, and coastal commercial demand compete for the same senior PM and electrical bench. Organizational exposure is demand-driven: adequate field depth today, tightening senior band as Navy and life-sciences capital programs accelerate.

Key roles

• Commercial PM (high) — Moderate — defense contractors anchor pool. Security clearance narrows passive pool on federal work.
• Electrical Superintendent (moderate) — Adequate for standard commercial. Watch LA poaching on life-sciences builds.
• Superintendent (moderate) — Adequate — strong local contractor base. Modest premium vs. inland aids retention on 90-day timelines.

Executive implication

San Diego is enterable with standard timelines on commercial work; federal and life-sciences scopes require clearance-aware recruiting and premium positioning. Expanding trend will compress the senior PM band within two quarters.

Data sources & scope limitations

Sources

• BLS QCEW
• BLS OEWS
• CSLB license feed
• Federal award momentum
• Permit velocity

Scope limitations

• Clearance requirements not modeled at individual level.
• Defense vs. commercial split not resolved in MSA composite.
• H1 2026 snapshot — expanding trend can tighten senior band quickly.