AASHTO Journal - Q&A Podcast: Sharing Public Works Leadership Experience

AASHTO re:source kicks off season six of its Q&A podcast by interviewing Steve Read, a civil engineer who just retired after a 20-year career with the City of Seattle. Read shares his experience as a materials engineer plus insights on leadership, quality management, and cross-agency coordination. He discusses his career journey from heavy-equipment operator to materials lab supervisor and the importance of developing communication skills in technical professionals.

[Above image by AASHTO]

AASHTO re:source is a technical service program offered by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials that provides services and tools through three major programs: the Laboratory Assessment Program, the Proficiency Sample Program or PSP, and the AASHTO Accreditation Program or AAP.

Season six of the Q&A podcast – which originally launched in September 2020 – will feature one episode per month, largely focused on interviews with professional from across the transportation materials industry, with an occasional “bonus episode” offering a variety of quality control insights.

The Q&A podcast episode featuring Read offers valuable perspective on the hidden complexities behind public infrastructure and the dedicated professionals working to ensure it serves the public for generations to come.

“I never really thought about my retirement in terms of educating my people, but that is what I am trying to do – get my people ready,” Read explained on the podcast. “You always want to bring your people forward. That’s really important. [So] I’m trying to teach the people that are with me the things that I know, share my experiences and hard lessons so they have them before they have to learn them.”

Read explained that, early on, he didn’t really worry about career development. However, he decided to take a different approach when he himself started moving up the ladder.

“If you’re just in it for the business purposes and not interested in the people you’re actually bringing along, I think you’re doing everybody a disservice [and] the business a disservice. You’re shortchanging your clients, too,” Read stressed. “You want your people to be as good as they can be. You want them to be successful. It is always about getting them ready for life and getting them ready to move forward in their careers.”

To listen to the full episode, click here.