Thursday, April 11, 8:45AM – 9:45AM

Career Paths that Attract and Retain Talent

Session Overview:
Today’s job seekers and employees seek a clear career path.  To attract and retain top talent, organizations and agencies need to provide clear career objectives and effective guidance along the path.  Learn the basic components of effective career paths and practical tools and tips for guiding staff through their growth.

Session Objectives:
*  Review and define the basic components of an effective career path.
*  Discuss the process for identifying and defining career levels within a career path.
*  Define clear performance and behavioral objectives that differentiate each career level.

Wayne H. Ottum MAOM
President and Founder
Ottum Enterprises, LLC

Speaker Bio: Wayne Ottum President and Founder of Ottum Enterprises, LLC and is a passionate consultant, author and speaker dedicated to creating extraordinary businesses and leaders.  With a Master’s in Organizational Management, he has over three decades of experience in the design, development, and delivery of personal, management, organizational, and employee development programs in the private and government sectors.

 

Thursday, April 11, 10:30AM – 11:30AM

RFQ vs. SOQ – Insights for Requestors and Respondents

Session Overview:
Do you write RFPs or SOQs? Ever wonder how the other half lives? Here’s your chance to find out. Our panel asks public agency and consulting professionals to request information from each other: How does your process work—and what makes an effective RFQ/SOQ?

Session Objectives:
*  Review the processes for creating RFPs/RFQs and SOQs and how SOQs are evaluated.
*  Identify challenges faced by each group.
*  Discuss ways RFP and SOQ writers can help each other.

Jen Koogler
Marketing Proposal Coordinator and Senior Technical Editor
Aspect Consulting, a Geosyntec Company

Rebecca Crouse
Marketing Specialist
David Evans and Associates, Inc.

Speaker Bio: After twelve years of collaborating with engineers and project delivery teams, Rebecca has an established passion for the A/E/C industry and the pursuit process. She supports proposal management and strategic planning for various consulting disciplines in DEA’s Puget Sound offices and the firm’s national freight rail practice. Rebecca advocates for big-picture thinking that raises public works professionals into the limelight so they can win and deliver work that is meaningful to them, their clients, and their communities.

Dustin Wittman, CPSM
Project Support Specialist
City of Pasco

Speaker Bio: Dustin was born and raised on a farm outside of Lewiston, Idaho and graduated college at Lewis-Clark State College with a degree in Business Communications. Over the past 15 years Dustin’s background has been in Supply Chain Management, whether it is procurement and contracting, logistics, or distribution of materials.  Dustin obtained his CPSM in 2016 and lives in Kennewick with his wife and two kids (8 & 5).

Bill Bullock, PE, MPA
Public Works Director
City of Sedro Wolley

Speaker Bio: Bill has worked as an engineer and administrator in local government for Washington cities and counties for the last 28 years. His responsibilities have ranged from transportation planning and project development, grant funding, design, project and construction management, operations management, and public administration. Transportation infrastructure is his main area of expertise but has managed several utilities in a number of jurisdictions, including wastewater, reclaimed water, water, solid waste stormwater, and power.

Tina Nelson, PE
Senior Program Manager
Kitsap County Public Works

Speaker Bio: Tina has 30+ years in the public works project arena, delivering projects as an owner, as well as a consultant.  She has procured for numerous consulting contracts via the RFP/RFQ process.  Being fair and clear from both sides, is essential, as a delivery team is created.

Jonathan Kreitler
Pursuit Manager and Interview Coach, Vice President
WSP USA

Speaker Bio: Jonathan leads WSP strategic pursuit efforts throughout the West with a focus on a variety of markets including transportation, water, energy, and buildings. He prioritizes technical and management preparedness along with team building and chemistry during capture planning, proposal development, and interview preparation. He brings 23 years of experience in the industry and is more than happy to talk about pursuits, interviews, music, or his cat.

Madison Pearson
Director of Marketing
Osborn Consulting

Speaker Bio: Madison Pearson is the Director of Marketing for Osborn Consulting, a women-owned civil engineering and landscape architecture firm. Madison leads a team of marketing professionals who work with technical staff to respond to RFQs/RFPs from public agencies throughout the Pacific Northwest, as well as oversees the firm’s overall marketing strategy. Throughout her nine years at Osborn, Madison has helped the firm maintain a 50%  win rate on project pursuits through strategic pre-positioning, customized proposal responses, and thoughtful interview preparation.

 

Thursday, April 11, 1:15PM – 2:15PM

Empowering Public Works Professionals through Mentorship

Session Overview:
This presentation will highlight the benefit of mentorship and how it can bring value to mentees and mentors.  The session will focus on how to facilitate meaningful relationships and conversations, provide guidance on how to effectively interact through mentorship, and create networking opportunities that foster professional relationships and career development.

Session Objectives:
*  Develop techniques to promote career development and create community within an organization through mentorship.
*  Define a framework for supporting mentorship relationships through tools and resources for open communication and sharing of knowledge.
*  Identify strategies to execute and facilitate a successful mentorship relationship.  We will share lessons learned and success stories from past mentorship relationships.

Caroline Barlow
CMOM Program Manager
Seattle Public Utilities

Speaker Bio: With 22 years of experience in the municipal utility industry, Caroline currently serves as the Capacity, Management, Operations and Maintenance Program Manager for Seattle Public Utilities’ Drainage and Wastewater Line of Business.  She leads a dynamic team that conducts asset management, establishes programmatic and planning strategies, and delivers $40M in annual capital investments to rehab drainage and wastewater pipes.  Caroline currently serves on the APWA Washington Chapter Mentorship Committee and helped establish the Chapter’s Emerging Professionals Committee.

Alyssa Ardourel, PE
Civil Engineer, Vice President
Huitt-Zollars, Inc.

Speaker Bio: Alyssa Ardourel, PE has 10 years of experience in consulting performing roles in civil engineering design, project management, and construction administration. Alyssa serves as Vice President and Managing Principal at Huitt-Zollars, Inc. leading public works and transportation practices in the Puget Sound Region. Alyssa is currently serving as the APWA Washington Chapter Mentorship Committee Chair and is a past chair of Chapter’s Emerging Professionals Committee.

 

Thursday, April 11, 3:00PM – 4:00PM

New Manager Essentials: Thriving in your Role

Session Overview:
Are you a new manager or supervisor? Do you feel overwhelmed by your new responsibilities and unsure of how to effectively lead your team? Join us for our panel discussion, where we’ll tackle the challenges and opportunities that come with transitioning into a management role.

Session Objectives:
*  Gain confidence and competence in your new role.
*  Develop effective leadership and communication skills.
*  Prepare for the challenges of being a new manager.

Rawley Voorhies
Municipal Business Development Manager
Century West

Speaker Bio: Rawley Voorhies, PE has 20 years of experience providing municipal engineering for public clients. His experience providing design, management, and inspection for private and public clients has provided insight into infrastructure’s cost, constructability, functionality, and long-term maintenance. This experience has provided exposure to a wide range of tasks, from working through the intricacies of stormwater quality and quantity analysis, grading design, and utility layout as a design engineer, to leading entitlement and permitting efforts for multidisciplinary consultant teams.

Grace Richardson
Puget Sound Marketing Manager
DEA

Speaker Bio: With 25 years in the A/E/C industry, Grace Richardson has experience in all aspects of public works marketing, including pre-positioning, proposal development, strategy, coaching, and interviews. Grace’s passion is mentoring—fostering the development of project delivery and marketing professionals alike. She is an active member and leader in various organizations, including the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) at the local and national levels and the Washington State Chapter of the American Public Works Association (APWA).

Jordan Ottow
Operations Manager
City of Monroe

Speaker Bio: Jordan Ottow, with 16 years at the City of Monroe’s public works department, has progressed from a water quality specialist to his current role as Operations Manager, overseeing Streets, Stormwater, Facilities, and Fleet divisions. Actively engaged with the American Public Works Association (APWA) for nearly a decade at both state and national levels, Jordan attributes his career growth to seizing professional opportunities. His commitment to excellence and leadership has made him a valuable asset to the City of Monroe and a respected figure within the APWA community.

Thomas O’Dell
Senior Engineer
GRI

Speaker Bio: Thomas O’Dell, PE, is an experienced project manager for GRI and has worked on over 200 projects throughout Oregon and Washington. In late 2022 he became a group supervisor for GRI’s young engineers where he has gained enhanced leadership skills and has implemented new initiatives to support additional professional development efforts. He takes pride in helping our next generation of engineers navigate the pre-professional phase of their career, hoping to help them find success and professional growth as early as possible.

Jeanette DaLey
Senior Project Manager
Jacobs

Speaker Bio: Jeanette DaLey has over 28 years of experience in transportation project management and design, specializing in highways, municipal roadways, intersections, and roundabouts. Her portfolio of transportation and civil engineering experience ranges from managing General Engineer Consultant Contract with WSDOT to multi-jurisdictional projects to municipal roadway and sidewalk improvement efforts, including the design and review of contract documents for state routes, municipal roads, signalized intersections, roundabouts, sidewalks, and utilities.

 

Thursday, April 11, 4:10PM – 5:10PM

Ensuring Public Well-being: The Crucial Role of Operations and Maintenance in Public Works

Session Overview:
Join our panel discussion, “Ensuring Public Well-being: The Crucial Role of Operations and Maintenance in Public Works,” and delve into the essential functions that keep our communities thriving. Our expert panelists will unveil the intricate world of public works operations and maintenance, highlighting their impact on our daily lives.

Session Objectives:
*  Gain a comprehensive understanding of the critical role of public works operations and maintenance.
*  Identify how you can better work with public work departments.
*  Discover the impact of public works on your daily life.

Allyn Rwamashongye, ENV SP, REP – Moderator
Resident Engineer
WSP

Speaker Bio: Allyn is a resident engineer with the Program Management Construction Management team at WSP. She has been a member of APWA since 2019 when she began her career in construction management and now serves as member on APWA’s Emerging Professionals committee. She values the APWA’s ability to bring together professionals of diverse experiences towards a collective goal of improving our community. Of the many facets of public works, Allyn is particularly passionate about the intersection of health outcomes and the built environment and promotes the value public works projects provide for improving public health.

Nolan Sijer – Moderator
Civil Engineer
Jacobs

Speaker Bio: Nolan is a licensed civil engineer with experience supporting various agencies around the Puget Sound and across Washington state. His project experience spans from local street improvements, large multi-modal corridor upgrades, and major programs targeted at improving transit through our communities. Outside of Jacobs, he actively attends and participates in the APWA Emerging Professionals Committee since 2021.

James Turner
Road Maintenance Managers
Snohomish County

Speaker Bio: James Turner is the Operations Manager of District 1 of Road Maintenance for Snohomish County Public Works. His story began in the United States Air Force where he received formal training in taxi way/runway maintenance. This led to private sector work in Antarctica and eventually to the operation manager position he has now with Snohomish County.

Lane McAllister
Retired Road Maintenance Supervisor – Thurston County
Thurston County

Speaker Bio: Lane McAllister spent 25 years working at Thurston County Public Works. He started in April 1986 and retired in June of 2021, in those years he served as a road maintenance supervisor. He graduated from Washington State University with a BS in Agricultural Mechanization. He is active in the APWA O and M committee over eight years as the co-chair with Patrick Zellner.

 

Patrick Zellner
Street Maint. & Solid Waste Maint. Services Manager
City of Renton

Speaker Bio: Patrick Zellner worked his way up to Sergeant in the US Air Force, CES & RedHorse Heavy Construction Squadron, and was with the City of Renton Street Section for just over 37 years, starting as a Maintenance Worker III, then Lead for 17 years, working up to the Supervisor for 13 years and Street Manager since 2016.  Prior to working for Renton, he worked in road construction, site development and home construction.  He has vast experience in road construction and maintenance, as well as a positive take on leadership, service and duty.  His heart is always with our Maintenance Workers across our country and the responsibility we have to our communities.  “I am very proud of our service, work and dedication, and I will always be a Maintenance Worker”.   He is honored to have coined the phrase, “OUR HEROES WEAR DIRT” to honor and distinguish our workers as “EMERGENCY FIRST RESPONDERS” and to have given it to our national APWA to use.

Paul Bucich
Public Works Engineering Director/City Engineer
City of Lakewood

Speaker Bio: Paul Bucich has been a public servant for the majority of his 37 years of work history.  He has worked for the City of Tacoma, Pierce County, City of Federal Way, City of Bellevue, City of Lakewood, and spent a portion of his time as a senior consultant working on the SR 520 HOV Bridge Replacement Program as the Environmental Lead and Stormwater Design Manager for the program.  Paul has been a design engineer, Surface Water Manager, Assistant Director of Utilities (Storm, Water, Wastewater, NPDES Phase II, Long Range Planning, Development Review, etc.) and currently serves the City of Lakewood as the Public Works Engineering Director and City Engineer responsible for Transportation design and construction, ROW permitting, Engineering Services, and general all-around “get it done” task manager.

 

Chris Collins
Assistant Public Works Director
City of Longview

Speaker Bio: Chris Collins grew up in Prineville Oregon on the family ranch. He started in civil construction at a young age working for 15 years in civil construction on mostly municipal projects. He started with the City of Longview in 2012 as a public works supervisor in charge of street and stormwater maintenance during this time he earned a degree in business management. He was promoted to public works maintenance manager over street, storm and traffic and most recently promoted to Assistant Public Works Director.

 

Scott Egger
Public Works Director
City of Lacey

Speaker Bio: Scott Egger has served as Lacey’s Public Works Director for over 16 years and he was our 2018 APWA Chapter President. Scott’s career in Public Works spans over 40 years. He has worked in the private and public sectors in construction, design, operations, and maintenance. Prior to being hired by the city of Lacey, Scott worked for Morrison Knudsen, Spokane County, and the City of Spokane. He attended the University of Washington and Gonzaga University.