The Civil Engineering Podcast - Subscribe in iTunes In this special episode of The Civil Engineering Podcast, I interview some of the most successful civil engineers in the world during the American Society for Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2015 Annual Conference in New York City. Below is the list of interviews with timestamps and bullet points, click on the timestamps below to view a summary of the interview: [3:27] Jon Magnusson, P.E., S.E., F.SEI, Dist.M.ASCE - CEO for 25 years [7:27] West Point Cadets [10:43] Mackenzie, graduate student from Arizona State [13:53] Michael Goodkind, Ph.D., P.E., S.E., F.ASCE - 40 years of experience [17:38] Kurt from Bentley Systems [20:38] Albert Pozotrigo, P.E. - President of ASCE-MET Section [31:47] Stefanie Reichman from City College of New York – ASCE-NY Chapter [35:22] Dr. Bob Stevens, P.E., F.ASCE - Current (at time of interview) ASCE President [36:08] Jonathan Richards, West Point Student [39:02] Jose Acosta, P.E. - Vice President of Chen Moore and Associates [48:04] Tony Begin, President of Canadian Society of Civil Engineering (CSCE) [52:47] Tom Smith, ENV.SP., CAE, F.ASCE - Executive Director for ASCE [54:16] Norma Jean Mattei, Ph.D., PE, F.SEI, M.COPRI, M.ASCE - Newly Installed President-Elect of ASCE [1:00:57] Mark Woodson, P.E., L.S., D,WRE, F.ASCE - Newly Installed President of ASCE [3:27] Jon Magnusson, P.E., S.E., F.SEI, Dist.M.ASCE - CEO for 25 years Magnusson started out in structural engineering, he has worked on big projects like stadiums. He didn’t set out to be a manager; he started doing computer analysis but found management and client interaction were rewarding. He became a CEO, 25 years ago, at age 34. His advice: The number one thing to do to improve your skills is to find good mentors, watch what people are doing and pick out best thing that they do. Don’t sit down and plot out “what do I need to do to advance” but instead ask yourself “what can I do to make my firm better.” Instead of focusing on yourself, focus on your organization and you will be rewarded. Have a broad interest in your career because you’ll have to learn about leases, law, accounting, etc. [7:27] West Point Cadets Here’s a summary of the interview with three students from West Point (please see photo on top of the page): Emilia – joined Civil Engineering department Robinson – West Point has a lot of extracurricular or other classes Erin – thinking of different infrastructure types of work after graduating All cadets agreed that the physical training aspect has really helped their education; it helps improve critical thinking, prepare and give them more energy for their days. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); [10:43] Mackenzie, Environmental Engineering Graduate Student from Arizona State Mackenzie is studying environmental engineering focusing on water/wastewater resources. Here’s her story: Going to conferences provides huge networking opportunities; she got her summer job from a connection she made at the ASCE Conference in Panama. She explained her decision process for getting an MS in Engineering. One key takeaway from graduate work that will help her long term: learn from professors in industry, pass your FE/PE, implement what you have learned and push technology further. [13:53] Michael Goodkind, Ph.D., P.E., S.E., F.ASCE - 40 years of experience Goodkind started out as a structural engineer and then went into management. He was a president of a company for 19 years. Here’s his advice: