Category Archives: Collaboration

Transportation and Infrastructure Executive Daily Operations: a Generic Outline and Primer

28 Friday Dec 2018

Posted by in Collaboration, Leadership, Learning and Success, Management, Results, Team-Building, Transportation, Trust

≈ Leave a comment

Executive leadership requires a complete and evolving set of tools, including maintaining a big picture perspective and delving into details as necessary. This spectrum of leadership, management, and oversight manifests itself in daily activities. As such, I have borrowed from my own experience in developing the generic outline below for conducting daily activities. Every person develops their own unique daily routines. Thus, I emphasize that this is simply a generic outline and primer based on my own experience.

Leadership Style

People-Based, Results-Driven

A basic premise

Opportunity + Preparation = Success

Personnel Management

People-based: You lead people and manage things, but it is all about people: first who, then what (Good to Great).

  • “feedback loops” and continuous improvement
  • trust
  • relationships
  • collaboration
  • alignment
  • humility
  • listening
  • common courtesy
  • consistent communication

What’s most important? Employees. Select the right people, set the right expectations, provide the right tools and training, provide opportunities, help them succeed and develop leaders. They will take care of the clients. “We listen, we solve.”

Overall, set the vision, values, direction, culture, priorities, and coach within a framework where people can flourish.

Results-driven

  • “feedback loops” and continuous improvement
  • strategic plan: goals and performance measures
  • the future of transportation is at a “tipping point”
    • public-private partnerships (ramped up collaboration)
    • digital technology revolution

Daily Operations

  • “feedback loops” and continuous improvement
  • outreach to employees, clients, client’s clients, stakeholders and partners
  • ensure trust/relationships
  • ensure collaboration
  • leverage emerging technologies
  • ensure alignment
  • identify issues, problems, obstacles and fix them: continuous improvement

Goals

  • routine goals:
    • ensure linkage to strategic/long-term and near-term goals
    • balance everything against risks
    • do an assessment of employees, new and existing clients, stakeholders and partners
  • new goals to consider:
    • expand market share with existing clients…understand client interests and issues, win work, exceed expectations, repeat clients
    • develop new clients and expand transportation (roads, bridges, rail, transit, aviation, ports etc), through planning, design, construction management, CEI, program and project management, and other services as the preferred provider, including through staff augmentation
    • be a tier 1 provider of planning, design, construction, operations, maintenance, and support services
    • build image-increase visibility with various interests, including existing and new clients-legislatures, city councils, county commissions, transportation commissions, dots, aeronautics/airports, economic developers and departments, emergency management, AGC/contractors, ACEC/consultants, ASCE, AASHTO, ARTBA, ITSA, ATA, APWA, PMI, IHEEP, universities/colleges, MPOs, ACO/counties, LOM/cities, UP, BNSF, short line railroads, USDOT, FHWA, FAA, FTA, FRA, USACE, and others
    • assess the efficacy of acquisitions/mergers
    • support and collaborate with other line business sectors
    • monitor and assist growing bridge programs…design and construction
    • assess the efficacy of alternative delivery…DB, CMGC, PPP
    • assess economic stimulus of work…jobs created, taxes generated, spending/re-spending, etc
    • prepare, emphasize and execute sustainability across all business sectors
    • explore/expand:
      • teaming with contractors, consultants, and others-collaborate to win business
      • efficacy of targeted acquisitions/mergers
      • efficacy of new markets

The world is changing and we must change with it. Traditional engineering and construction are not enough.

Commit to the success of team, organization, clients, partners, and stakeholders.

Good to Great by Jim Collins, 2001, HarperBusiness, NY

Collaboration – The World of Partnerships

10 Thursday Sep 2015

Posted by in Collaboration

≈ Leave a comment

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines collaboration as a noun “to work with another person or group in order to achieve or do something.” Paraphrased, collaboration enables individuals to work together to achieve a defined and common business practice. Simple, right? Not at all. The challenge becomes the ability for people to work closely and avoid the interference of hurt feelings, misunderstandings, and differing opinions. Collaboration is “all about people.” I believe it is largely about listening, finding common ground and finding a way to achieve mutual business benefits. It may be more of a challenge with clients since their interests must be served first and foremost. This is especially acute when serving as the owner’s representative on complex mega-programs.

So, how is collaboration achieved? Through open and honest communications, lots of listening, feedback, alignment, relationship-building, mutual respect, trust and the achievement of mutual benefits and serving the client.

This can be difficult, and there are bumps along the way, but strong relationships will weather the storm and allow collaboration to flourish for the greater good. In fact, as relationships build it should be agreed upon that the relationship will be retained regardless of  disagreements. Although difficult to achieve,  it is very possible if all parties really want it.

While collaboration can and should occur between all people, its roles continue to shift between the public and private sectors. For example, as the digital revolution continues, it is unlikely that the public sector is sufficiently nimble enough to cost-effectively manage these rapid changes. The private sector is much better suited. Conversely, it is likely that the construction industry will continue its traditional construction role but with increasing use of machine control and other digital efficiencies.

In the main, the public sector, as the owner, may increasingly manage the transportation system while the private sector may increasingly be responsible for delivery of products and services. This evolution has already begun in such places as the Oregon Department of Transportation where a private-sector joint venture delivered a long-duration, complex mega-program to repair or replace hundreds of Oregon bridges. Similar programs have been undertaken in Missouri, Pennsylvania and elsewhere.

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

– Helen Keller