McDonald Contracting 

Earning a Vice President title while in your early 20s comes with a high level of responsibility — and James McDonald was up for the challenge. After all, the trust had been placed in him by his brother, Ed McDonald, the owner of Arlington, Mass.-based McDonald Contracting and a 2017 Thirty Under 30 honoree himself. 

Ed started James off with “grunt work” but now relies on him to handle the management of 10 employees and numerous subcontractors as well as meetings with new clients. And as Ed’s right-hand man, James ensures that projects stay on budget and on time. “Working with my brother is both rewarding and challenging,” James admits. “Ed and I complement each other’s strengths and have grown together through the challenges of running a business. He is passionate, and his drive to make McDonald Contracting successful is genuinely contagious.”  

“Working with my brother is both rewarding and challenging. Ed and I complement each other’s strengths and have grown together through the challenges of running a business.”

Over the past eight years, James has led close to 200 kitchen and bathroom renovations, some with budgets of nearly $150,000, and has won praise for his poise, dedication and attention to detail. He describes himself as “optimistic” and says his favorite part of the job is turning designs into reality, especially the final walkthrough when “clients get to see their visions come to fruition.” His own personal design preferences mix authenticity with convenience. “The designs that speak to me the most are when we preserve the character of an older home while integrating modern touches,” he says.

The brothers shared a room when they were kids — James is still irked that Ed didn’t allow him to make any décor decisions — and his childhood hobbies were team sports and building endless LEGO and Lincoln Log structures. These days, his passions include skiing, hiking, golfing and cooking. He also gives back to Arlington Eats, a food pantry in his home town and enjoys weekend getaways in Portland, ME. In the future James envisions more travel, investing wisely and becoming a homeowner. Two other must-do’s: Helping to expand McDonald Contracting and one day having a family of his own.