Taylor Snow Interview

Wondering what a career in civil engineer might be like?  Btw hot field right now! Even if you don’t have aspirations to be a civil engineer, I think you will gain great insight for your own career readiness preparation.  

In this episode, I had the awesome opportunity to speak with Taylor Snow, a Civil Engineering graduate of Michigan State University.  Yes, he shares about his career, but even more importantly he shares the type of skills and character traits that he feels best foster success-leadership, communication, being coachable, and having a desire to plant roots and grow.  I especially love that last piece.  Plant roots and grow.  That just may be the key to launching your career.  Happy listening.

Taylor's Book Recommendations:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Getting to Yes

Learn more about Taylor's Employer
HNTB

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As you become career ready know that I am here to help with all aspects - resume writing, interviewing, job search strategizing, and networking.  

Check out my career readiness guide “Hired Happens” for more tips and tools.

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Transcript

0:01

Hey there and welcome to my podcast job shadow with Jody. Boggis where I interview professionals and ask the sorts of questions. You may be wondering. About their job, their career path, and words of wisdom along the way. Wondering what a career in civil engineering might be like by the way, Hatfield right now. Even if you don't have aspirations to be a civil engineer, I think you will gain great insight for your own career readiness preparation. And this episode, I had the awesome opportunity to speak with Taylor snow. Uh, civil engineering graduate at Michigan state university. Yes, he shares about his career, but even more importantly, he shares the type of skills and character traits that he feels best foster success leadership. Communication being coachable and having a desire to plant roots and grow. I especially love that last piece. Plant roots and grow. That just may be the key to launching your career happy listening

Jodie 1:00

Taylor, thank you so much for joining me and sharing with me about your role and kind of your career path to get to the current role that you have.

Taylor 1:09

So currently I'm a senior project manager. I work for H N T corporation. It's a, a national civil engineering consultant firm. And I've been in the industry for just under 15 years now. Okay.

Jodie 1:27

So are you in a civil engineering role or is that your yeah, yeah,

Taylor 1:32

I'm managing degree back. Yeah, managing large scale civil engineering programs currently. Okay. And kinda worked my way up to the ranks. I started off as like a, an entry level design engineer and then steadily took on more and more responsibilities. So it's been, it's been quite the ride, but definitely, definitely enjoyed it. It's a great profess.

Jodie 1:57

So you said about 15 years to be where you're at now. What was your expectation when you first started?

Taylor 2:03

I don't know. I, I guess coming out of Michigan state universities where I went to school I definitely wanted to work on large scale projects. Okay. And I actually thought I'd be out in the field more like outside working on jobs and stuff like that. So I actually changed my major about midway through probably just after my sophomore year from mechanical engineering to civil engineering. Okay. Because of that. I definitely got exposed to large scale projects, but I did not understand at the time that being on the design side of things, you're not really out in, in the field, you know, working on projects, it's still great work, but yeah. Design engineering, you are working with teams in the office coming up with different feasible designs to make that project. As effective as possible for transportation. So I work within the transportation industry mainly designing highways and bridges.

Jodie 3:02

Okay. And so is starting in the design role a typical beginning point with a civil engineering degree?

Taylor 3:09

Yeah. Yeah. It's a typical beginning. I. Within transportation. There's a lot of different avenues you could take. So design is one avenue you could work within construction. We actually are out, you know, boots on the ground, in the field. There's traffic engineering. There's hydraulics kind of water management that you get into as well. So I guess what I was looking for was to be a roadway. And that's what I was hired on. I, I hired on with yours corporation in Tampa, Florida. So it was a great, great job and definitely loved starting there in my career. I put together a lot of quantity calculations digging into plan sets, trying to figure out, okay, how is this gonna be. How many of this is it gonna take such, such as, you know, pavement or, you know, removing existing pavement and stuff like that. So it was a little mundane at times, not gonna lie, but as you kinda establish yourself, prove yourself to your, your colleagues, they give you more, more and more better work. I would. Okay. So

Jodie 4:16

How did you go about establishing yourself, improving yourself?

Taylor 4:19

I guess showing up every day, I mean, that's, that's the large part of it. If you're there present, eager to learn, you know And just willing to take on new roles and challenges, I think is a big aspect of that. So asking questions goes a long way, trying to understand the ins and outs and not just doing what you're told, but understanding why you're doing what you're doing. You know, kind of trying to see that bigger picture is what I always tell younger, younger engineers coming up. So would definitely recommend that.

Jodie 4:50

So tell me about, so you are in the highways and bridges portion. Tell me about the traffic portion.

Taylor 5:00

So I started off as a roadway design engineer. And that is basically looking at the geometrics of a, a roadway or bridge. Okay. Trying to figure out, okay, how wide does that have to be? What's the vertical profile look like? How do you minimize impacts to the surrounding environment is a big piece of that. So you're laying out basically the roadmap for the road. You know, as far as geometrics go, traffic is focused more on. The capacity of the roadway to serve all the motorists that are gonna use it. So you're looking at traffic demands, future projections for that roadway, applying that to a model that you might develop Saint rose, a common one that's used. So you're trying to understand the movements that are currently going on. And then once the, the project is built, how that's gonna improve things in the. So when you go ahead. So yeah, I was just gonna say, that's, that's a big aspect of it, right? Cause that's why we're building the road is to improve the functionality of it, the, the service life or, or level of service of that roadway for the public users that use it every.

Jodie 6:15

I can't help, but think of Atlanta traffic when you Yeah. When you, when you're describing this, I'm thinking, wow, that's, that's gotta be one of the biggest civil engineering challenges when it comes to traffic management and traffic design. And

Taylor 6:29

you know, that's a, a business forecasting. We travel that yearly. So yeah, I know all about that traffic. Whew.

Jodie 6:38

It's a, it's a big one. Did you, did you complete any internships or co-ops while you were in school?

Taylor 6:46

I did. Yeah. I worked for as an intern for the Michigan department of transportation. Okay. So MDOT as it's called up here and yeah, started off as a, I actually was involved with their design engineering side of things and then also got into their permit. Side as well. So whenever someone wants to install, say a driveway or a sidewalk, or even a sign within the right of way as it's called for, you know, within a roadway, that's basically the property that the state owns or local agency, if it's a smaller roadway, but. They need a permit to do that work. And so I would check their plans. I would go out after it's complete, make sure it met specs and all that. So that was actually, that was probably one of my best jobs ever. I would say, just traveling around Northern Michigan and it's it's a pretty beautiful part of the country too. So definitely enjoy.

Jodie 7:39

That's exciting. How many internships did you have?

Taylor 7:45

Just the one,

Jodie 7:46

Did you complete that junior year into senior year or.

Taylor 7:51

Senior year. Yep. Right. Okay. Right after my senior year. And then I kind of procrastinated a bit and went four and a half years in college. So ended up graduating then, but yeah, definitely wish I, I took on more internships actually. Okay. It's a great way to get your feet wet. Not only to understand if you might like a certain profession, but as you know, your employer takes notice of the good work you do too. So it's a. In, when you go to look for a full-time job after, after graduating. Absolutely. I would definitely recommend

Jodie 8:24

that. So what's your favorite part about this field?

Taylor 8:27

That's a good question. I would say the favorite part is seeing what you design actually built in saying, oh yeah. Look at that road or that bridge over there. I had a, a part in that, you know, I worked with a great team and we came up with a great functional design that's that's serving the public now. And I mean, these facilities last a long time, you got bridges that are designed to last 75 years and roadways designed to last, you know, 25 years in some cases. So they hang around a while and you're always able. To kinda show that off to, to other people. You know, that, that you might talk to and just say, Hey, had a part in that. So it's pretty cool to say,

Jodie 9:08

can you share an example of one?

Taylor 9:12

Oh, that's a good example. Worked on a lot of projects. So I guess just a local one up here. M 1 23. In Muskegon, I worked on, it's kind of a, a little urban AR arterial roadway. And then it, it gets to be more rural, further to the east, but I actually mentored a drainage engineer that was working on that job. And. It was great to, to kind of see him work and problem solve through the whole design process and I'd check his work, you know, and, and say, yeah, maybe look at this, look at that. It looks good type of thing. And it was a great, a great experience. That was actually the first time I mentored someone. So kinda seeing him, you know, go through that process and understand. Ins and out to design and, and helping him along in his career was pretty cool to see. And then I saw it got built and it, it turned out to be a great project so that it really served that community well. That's

Jodie 10:13

great. Is it typical to have a mentor in your field or is that kinda specific with your company?

Taylor 10:20

We try to do that in our, our current company quite a bit, actually there's a, a heavy focus in mentorship and it's actually one of our 17 leadership characteristics is developing others. So I'm always looking for You know, less experienced staff to kind of take under my wing and show them the ropes, if you will, on how to go about designing great projects. So I really enjoy that, that side of things. And you know, I, I feel like there's a lot of talent coming up and it's really hard to find good talent right now. So if you apply yourself and what you learn in college, It doesn't take long for employers to see the good, the good ones. I'll, I'll say, you know, for en up and coming engineers that, that wanna get into the industry. And are passionate about it. So well,

Jodie 11:10

on that. So on that note, what skills or characteristics would you say make a talented civil engineer?

Taylor 11:20

So H and TB has a, a very high standard And we talk about it all the time. I'm a, former people manager. I don't do that. Now. I'm more of a project manager, but back when I was managing people, we would look for students that were passionate showed leadership skills, such as being a good communicator was an easy one to pick up right away. That were coachable and, and it, you know, you could see they were interested in the field. It, wasn't just kind of a, a job they were seeking. They wanted to plant some roots and, and really grow that into a career. So that went a long way. So yeah, those would probably be the main things.

Jodie 12:02

Oh, that's good. I think it's, I always like to ask that question because I think it's really important for students to know what's expected of them and what can help them stand apart from, their peers

Taylor 12:16

and, yep. Yep. And I think as you As you get in the door and start to try to establish yourself if you go above and beyond, that gets noticed, you know, if, if you do the bare minimum that also gets noticed, you know, so if you want to accelerate your career, I would say early on volunteer for those extra roles we call, we were multiple hats is what we say at, at H NTB, meaning. We do our day job, but we're also involved with say recruiting or marketing or, you know, other aspects of the consulting business. So if you can get into a role that you're doing more, then you need to that certainly goes a long way and, and you'll be rewarded for it.

Jodie 13:06

Excellent advice. It sounds like you spend a lot of your time collaborating with a team

Taylor 13:10

yeah. I would say there's varying degrees of it. I mean, in no. Role that I've been in, in civil engineering. Have I ever worked alone? I'll just say that. And I've worked in quite a few different aspects. I've worked on the, the private sector, the public sector for large consulting firms, small consulting firms, you know, so but it does vary, you know, when I was working for a smaller consulting firm. You did more, cuz you just had to, there weren't weren't as many people on your team and you kind of had to pick up say drainage engineering for a project and, and learn that, you know, through mentorship and asking questions and, and doing your own research quite frankly, you know, kind of helping yourself out. So. So that's something to think about when you're looking for a job is do I wanna work in a small firm, large firm, small agency, if you're on the, the public side, large agency because you might get exposed to more, if you're on a smaller side now working for a larger firm, you you have more resources, so you, you have more teammates you need to collaborate with. So I feel like the team. Aspect and collaboration piece you get better at maybe with the, the larger firm set up, but you also become more of an expert in your chosen field. So that's one thing I would, I would actually be aware of is if you want to like starting off in your career, If you were to ask me, what's the best single piece of advice I could give is to get as much versatile experience as possible. Meaning if, if you're interested in transportation engineering, don't just get stuck doing roadway, design engineering, or bridge design or traffic engineering or drainage. Do all of it. Try to, you know, look for ways to get exposed to all of it because in the end People that move up the ranks start to become project managers. And so as a project manager, you need to understand what, you know, all aspects of every discipline and how a whole complete project comes together. And the best way to do that is having done that yourself. You know? So definitely we would stress versatile experience. And yeah, there's always gonna be teams to work with. So yes, you are gonna have to work with people. You don't like all the time. So you gotta get over that. You gotta figure out a way to make that happen and look for commonalities and, and align goals with, within you and your teammates to, to kind of help through that. So,

Jodie 15:52

That's great. I had a question about trends in your industry. What are the current trends right now? What do you see coming down the pipeline? Anything, you know, just kinda anything stands out to you.

Taylor 16:05

Yeah. One big one electric vehicles is a big one. You're hearing a lot about electric vehicles and how they're being the technology is just taking off, you know, so now we're having to, to look at and try to help our clients out with, okay, how are we gonna. Charge these things in the future, you know, what regulations do we need to enact or overcome? You know, that's preventing us from installing large scale charging networks or roadways that are more EV based, you know, to, to help facilitate those, those types of cars. And how does that interact with current gas vehicles and still on the road and all that. So that's a. Realm of my industry. Granted, I'm not in that realm. I've just kind of heard about it from the outside, but that's definitely a big trend going on right now with, with everything going on in the economy. So, you know, all these manufacturers are making more and more electric vehicles. It just seems that's, that's the way the future. So we'll see what happens, but Other trends, I guess it's, it's like I mentioned earlier, it's hard to find good talent. So if you do want to go into civil engineering, which I had to recommend you're gonna be highly sought after, you know pay is at an all time high. We're bringing on entry level engineers at, at a pretty high starting salary.

Jodie 17:29

Yeah. Definitely computer science and engineering are at the top of the pay scale

Taylor 17:34

so. Just blows me away. Anytime I look, look into that stuff, you know, it's, it's growing like crazy, but

Jodie 17:41

it is, it is for sure it can to be a graduate. Yes, yes it is. For sure. Definitely. And, and so, you know, so speaking of that, I hear so often that about talent wars and, supply of talent and sometimes I always like to prep my students to, not just assume that because there's a high demand for, talent right now that that's a sure way in the door and also not to ease up on your efforts in finding your job That don't, get lazy about it, to continue to have your goals, your career goals, you know, keep those in mind. Don't settle, but also not to be over confident and to not assume that they have the job, the minute they walk in the

Taylor 18:32

door. Right. That's great advice. I worry about that. Myself. Just seeing some of these applicants come in. Because it's a great time right now, economically. Of course. Yeah. And you know, everyone's able to get a job right now, which is great, but I've also been on the other side of things, you know during recessions and layoffs, aren't pretty either. So it does swing both ways. So you gotta, yeah. Stay hungry, you know, stay passionate, keep asking questions, keep trying to learn as much as you can. You know, it's, it's gonna go a long way cause. Not all of your peers are doing that. So if you do that, that's a great way to get a, a leg up maybe on the competition. But

Jodie 19:16

absolutely. So when, when you're interviewing a candidate, what stands out that works in your favor with a candidate? Like what's something that they say that just, really makes you think, wow. Okay. This

Taylor 19:29

person's. I like, I like when people, I can tell people have done their homework. Okay. Not only about like the company, that's easy, right. To look up a company and look at their about section and read up a little bit. But if they've dug deep, they've studied, they can recite stats maybe about the company and when it was founded and all that, but then also understand the industry. A little bit. And this is where internships might come in as a huge advantage, if they can relay that to their past experience and say, oh yeah, I worked on this project. And relate that to a question to kind of solidify their understanding of it and their response. I think that goes a long way. The other aspect too, is a connection. You wanna connect with your interviewers? It's okay to be personable. You don't have to be a robot, you know, kind of relax. I know it's high, high stress, you know, and some tough questions get asked, but try to be personable, relate to them. Humor goes a long way. You know, you don't wanna be you, you gotta kind of walk that fine line. You know, you don't wanna be goofy, but You know, make people laugh a little bit. They'll remember you for sure. So be, be memorable in your interview is you know what I would suggest memorable and relatable. Exactly. Yeah.

Jodie 20:53

And any organizations or events that students should consider participating in to kind of prepare themselves for this field?

Taylor 21:04

Yep. So if you want to go into civil engineering I would recommend American society of civil engineers, a S C E. Okay. I'm currently a member of that. It's one of the, probably the biggest professional organization for the field. And not just joining that, but seeking to be an active member or even a, a board member. Gets you noticed, you know, civil engineering is a small field. Everyone knows everybody, even across state lines at times, there's a lot of committees. There's a lot of conferences and so forth. So the sooner you get your name out there people are, even if it's a young member group, people are gonna recognize, oh yeah, he's the president of this young member group. And it's gonna do nothing, but, but benefit your career.

Jodie 21:50

It also demonstrates some good leadership too.

Taylor 21:54

It does. Yeah. Yep, absolutely. So, yeah, if you wanna demonstrate that on high, you know, just highly recommend being a board member you're, you're helping to manage that organization's budget perhaps, or organize events to get more people active and participating. And it just goes, goes a long way for sure. Throughout your career.

Jodie 22:17

That's good. Have you been a member of that since you graduated?

Taylor 22:20

I joined after. Okay. I graduated, they definitely had it at Michigan state and I, I do wish I joined earlier. Okay. In that organization, but there's different. Chapters and sections that, that you can become a member of. So, yeah, I joined shortly after I graduated.

Jodie 22:38

Well, that's good to know, and that's really good to recommend to students mm-hmm Because maybe there's someone listening that isn't aware of it Lastly, I always like to ask any book recommendations that felt like were a bit of a game changer for you.

Taylor 22:53

That is a great question. One book that in it's more like I've read a lot of leadership books, one that stuck with me. I mean, there's the seven habits of. Highly affected Steven Covey. Yeah. Yep. So that, that is one it it's a good leadership book, but I would say that the best one that I've read and it's the most recent one actually is getting to. Yes, it's a negotiation book. It just teaches you how negotiations. Happen, how to prep for them, what to say what not to say, what your approach should be. And when you get to a level where you're negotiating, maybe even multimillion dollar contracts for your company those are great skills to have it also. Works well with your teammates too, you know negotiating can be a part of everyday life actually. So even with your family, so that it is that it has applied to more, more facets of my life than I initially thought it would

Jodie 23:54

well, and, and think too, just like negotiating college period, right. And team in group projects. Right. So, yep. Those are, those are great recommendations. I always like to hear what books. Everybody enjoys reading and kind of what stuck with them the most. But yeah. Any, anything else you would add? I, I think you've provided some really good insight and some great wisdom.

Taylor 24:20

Yeah. One thing with recruiting. If you're trying to kind of expose yourself to more employers attend career fairs. Those are great ways of course, to to get your name out there, don't be afraid to go up and say hi, you know, maybe print a resume and give it to'em after interviews too. I would recommend writing handwriting. Thank you cards back to your your interviewers. I think the, the personal handwritten note touch goes a long way. So just a couple, I guess. Tips for, for getting hired at a great company. So I know it's competi.

Jodie 24:57

I like that. And so with the handwritten, thank you. It's important that you, that the student get the appropriate contact information. So it's okay to ask for a business card. If they don't have a business card, it's okay to ask what would be, a good way for me to get ahold of you?

Taylor 25:15

Yep. Yep, absolutely. I get, I get asked a lot for business cards. That's usually a good sign that, that they're on the right track as an interviewee. So I do like that.

Jodie 25:27

Well, I really appreciate it. Thank you so much. I may pick your brain down the road a little bit more if you don't mind.

Taylor 25:33

Yeah. Yeah. Anytime Jody, for sure. Thank you for the offer to be on your podcast.

25:38

Thank you for giving this episode a listen. I hope you enjoyed Ready to launch your own career connect with me on my website Jodi boggess.com or on instagram at jody Boggis underscore careers where i will equip you with job winning tools and strategies