Strategies for Delivering a Presentation to a Hostile Audience
As engineers we often get the opportunity to work on great projects. We often transform the landscape through construction and make life safer and more efficient for the people using our infrastructure. However, not everyone is going to see it that way. Many of us have had to deliver a presentation to a hostile audience […]
Why Engineers Make Great CEOs
Engineering is the most common undergraduate degree of the Fortune 500 Chief Executive Officers (CEOs). It has been for some time. Approximately one third of CEOs majored in engineering and only 11% graduated from business school. The Harvard Business Review has a list of the 100 best-performing CEOs on the planet. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos topped […]
One Engineer’s Plan for Recovering from Burnout – Ep 181
In this episode, I provide coaching and guidance to an engineer struggling with career burnout. By the end of this episode, he is inspired and has a plan to change his career for the better. He then also adds a twist to this episode and starts asking me some career-related questions on the decisions I […]
Business Development Skill Building for Civil Engineers – Ep 092
In episode 92 of The Civil Engineering Podcast, I am taking you with me to visit T&M Associates headquarters in Middletown NJ, where we are going to sit down with Ihsan Al-Fayyomi to talk about business development skill building for civil engineers. Here are some of the questions I ask Ihsan: Can you talk about how you […]
4 Opportunities to Grow Your Leadership Skills
Leadership skills are crucial for engineers looking to take on more responsibility, and move into management. If you’ve ever read this blog, or anything I’ve written on leadership in the past, you’ll already know that. What you might not know is how to develop your leadership skills. This is a constant struggle for engineers looking […]
How to Handle Conflict Resolution Questions During Engineering Job Interviews
In any type of interview, but especially in engineering job interviews, hiring managers ask questions about how you would deal with technical conflict. They want to know about your interpersonal skills and how you would deal with a problem in the office if it should arise, especially if the conflict is of a technical […]
Negotiating for Success: Essential Strategies and Skills with George Siedel – Ep 180
In this episode, I talk with Professor George Siedel, who is an expert on the topic of negotiation. Professor Siedel gives some great advice around negotiating for success based on his writing, books, research and experience. He takes a complex topic and provides some very practical strategies around it. Engineering Quotes: Here are some of […]
Assessing Risk on Infrastructure Projects with Michael Burns from AECOM – Ep 091
In episode 91 of The Civil Engineering Podcast, which is the third episode of our 5-episode infrastructure series, I talk with Michael Burns, PE, PgMP from AECOM. We talk about many things related to infrastructure. One of the main topics we discuss is assessing the risk associated with infrastructure projects in deciding whether or not to move […]
LGBTQ Inclusion in Engineering…When We Embrace Diversity, We All Win – Ep 090
In episode 90 of The Civil Engineering Podcast, I talk with Joseph Barker, PE, PTOE, a licensed Professional Engineer and Traffic Operations Engineer from Stantec. We discuss the topic of diversity and why firms should embrace diversity for engineers which provides inspiration and typically leads to them being happier and more productive in their careers. […]
Developing a Plan B When Giving Engineering Presentations
The mutter of the crowd begins to subdue as the moderator asks people to settle into their seats for the next engineering presentation. After a brief intro, the presenter steps to the front of the room. After a smooth speech introduction, the speaker is just going to his first slide when the projector light […]