ENR Unveils East Region 2026 Top Young Professionals
Group of rising stars in the region, which extends from Maine to Virginia, now expands to feature 25 winners
ENR East’s 2026 Top Young Professionals are emerging leaders shaping the future of design and construction across the region.
Judges evaluated more than 100 entries to choose the 25 winners, all under the age of 40. Aside from looking at career accomplishments, the judges also considered the nominees’ contribution to the industry.
This year’s winners were judged from a strong field of entries drawn from across the East region, which includes Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, the District of Columbia, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine. Judges did not score entries from individuals who work at the same firm as the judges or where any conflicts of interest existed.
The industry professionals who served as judges this year were:
- André Barbour, diversity and inclusion director, NEI General Contracting
- Brian Derr, vice president of infrastructure engineering, LiRo Group
- Qianyu Hu, assistant district engineer, Maryland Dept. of Transportation
- Rod Jones, senior project manager, Holder Construction
- Lili Liang, deputy director of Maryland Dept. of Transportation State Highway Administration
This year’s awardees include six who also were named to ENR’s national Top 20 Under 40 list: Rafiqul Chowdhury, president and founder, Quadrant Engineering; Lori Ferriss, executive director and co-founder, Built Buildings Lab; Freddys L. Hernandez, assistant commissioner, NYC Dept. of Design and Construction; Christopher Hoffman, co-business unit leader, DC-Baltimore, DPR Construction; Lauren Simone, director of learning and development and lean construction, W. M. Jordan Co.; and Gina Semerad, director-HVAC, Jaros, Baum & Bolles.
Keep reading to learn more about the Top 25’s career achievements, industry impact and contributions to their respective communities. Congratulations to all!
Marlon Bess
33, Hurricane Sandy recovery work launches PM’s career development
Project Manager
Leeding Builders Group
New York City
Bess began his career in architecture before transitioning into construction management to apply his leadership and coordination strengths. He launched his construction path working on Hurricane Sandy recovery in Queens, collaborating with AECOM Tishman on high-pressure projects that demanded complex logistics and tight team coordination. That experience set the foundation for work managing fast-moving, detail-intensive scopes.
Bess has advanced rapidly at his firm, managing interior trades on high-end, ground-up residential developments in New York City. He oversees carpentry, millwork, flooring, tilework, specialties and finishes, ensuring precision, quality control and streamlined communication across teams, he says. Colleagues say he consistently exceeds expectations by anticipating challenges and driving practical scheduling and workflow improvements.
A proactive mentor and active participant in industry groups such as Construction Management Association of America and National Organization of Minority Architects, Bess also is a diversity in construction ambassador at New York Build Expo and volunteers with Operation Impact, a nonprofit that supports children across five countries in the areas of health, education and development.
Rafiqul Chowdhury
39, Founder brings field-tested experience to projects
President and Founder
Quadrant Engineering
Astoria, N.Y.
A civil engineer and entrepreneur with a foundation in both construction and consulting, Chowdhury brings field-tested experience to major transportation and energy projects across the New York region. Launching his career as a project engineer for Grace Industries in Plainview, N.Y., he quickly advanced to managing a $45-million project—later shifting to consulting as a resident engineer on high-profile infrastructure work before founding Quadrant Engineering in 2019.
As president, Chowdhury has built a practice serving the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Con Edison while completing competitive accelerator programs with Hofstra University and the New York Power Authority.
A past president of the American Society of Civil Engineers Metropolitan Section in greater New York City and current regional governor, he has led more than 100 professional development programs and created inclusivity and mentoring initiatives. Chowdhury also set up an endowed scholarship for civil and construction engineering students at his alma mater, the University of Central Florida, and started a philanthropic program that links with community groups to support students and seniors in New York City.
Robert ‘Bob’ Dieterle Jr.
37, Cost expert mentors next generation
Associate Director
Delta Consulting Group
Abington, Pa.
Dieterle has resolved about 150 construction cost disputes totaling more than $1 billion, blending deep technical expertise with a passion for mentorship and professional development. He leads quantum damages training sessions and spearheads process improvements that boost the firm’s cost analysis practice.
Since joining Delta in 2023, he has also expanded it by launching a Philadelphia office to serve such clients as the Pennsylvania Dept. of Transportation, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Dormitory Authority of the State of New York and New York City School Construction Authority.
Beyond his project work, Dieterle holds leadership roles in several national organizations, including serving as vice president of the Construction Management Association of America MidAtlantic chapter and committee roles with the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering International and Construction Financial Management Association. He was recognized by the cost engineers group as a 2025 rising professional and also is a board member of One With Earth, which supports pro-bono construction initiatives for schools and other buildings in Haiti.
Kenneth Donald
35, Drives low-carbon innovation
Senior Project Engineer and Carbon Reduction Lead
VHB
Watertown, Mass.
With 12 years of structural experience and a growing national presence in low-carbon infrastructure, Donald has contributed to major inspections—including for Boston’s Zakim and Tobin bridges and Central Artery Tunnel—and developed complex bridge ratings and 3D modeling for multispan structures. He has been a VHB task manager on major design-build programs, leading curved steel girder designs up to 1,500 ft long and advancing innovations such as a self-propelled modular transport constructed bridge and geo-reinforced soil integrated bridge system abutments. As carbon reduction lead, Donald is developing firmwide tools and workflows as well as tracking systems to embed embodied-carbon analysis into everyday practice. He presents nationally, authors guidance documents and leads working groups for the American Society of Civil Engineers Infrastructure 2050 and the Carbon Leadership Forum, reflecting a commitment to advancing both bridge engineering and climate-focused design.
Lori Ferriss
38, Advances building reuse
Executive Director and Co-Founder
Built Buildings Lab
Boston
Ferriss is a nationally recognized leader in sustainable design, building reuse and climate-focused practices whose interdisciplinary career spans architecture, structural engineering and conservation. As co-founder and executive director of Built Buildings Lab, she advances research and design strategies that position existing and historic buildings as essential tools in addressing the climate crisis.
Her technical roots began at New York City-based structural engineering firm Silman, where she contributed to major cultural projects including the Harvard Art Museums with the Renzo Piano Building Workshop and the structural design of Grace Farms with design firm SANAA. She later led preservation efforts on landmarks such as Boston’s Christian Science Center and the Custom House.
At Goody Clancy, Ferriss became the firm’s first director of sustainability and climate action, integrating regenerative design and adaptive reuse into award-winning institutional projects. She now advises firms nationwide and plays influential roles in global organizations—from the Climate Heritage Network to Architecture 2030. A co-developer of the widely adopted CARE Tool (Climate Avoided: Retrofit Estimator) to measure carbon benefits of retrofitting buildings in lieu of demolition and new construction, Ferriss helped shape international policy discussions at the COP26 and COP28 climate events and other major forums.
Alicia Heinsen
39, Architect leads complex commercial and industrial projects
Senior Associate
KSS Architects
Philadelphia
Heinsen delivers large-scale commercial, industrial and mission-critical projects while driving firmwide improvements in planning, resource management and financial performance. She leads cross-functional teams and is primary client liaison on complex, sustainability-focused work, including an enterprise data center targeting LEED Platinum certification and industrial campuses recognized for contextual and environmental sensitivity.
A strong mentor and culture-builder, Heinsen has helped refine staffing models, strengthen project management practices and has guided the growth of junior designers across multiple KSS offices. Her commitment to education is reflected in more than 15 years of service to the ACE Mentor Program of New Jersey, where she now serves on the board and fundraising committee.
Heinsen has led major projects for clients in the commercial and industrial sectors, including Burlington Stores Inc., Hampshire Cos., Russo Development, Forsgate Industrial Partners, Trammell Crow Co. and CenterPoint Properties. Her recently completed industrial work includes the Arsenal Trade Center Campus in Parlin, N.J., and the I-76 Trade Center in Exton, Pa. She also leads delivery of a logistics center with rooftop parking in Nassau County, N.Y.; a mission-critical enterprise data center in South Brunswick, N.J.; and a new headquarters for Russo Development in Paramus, N.J.
Freddys L. Hernandez
35, Public-sector leader guides NYC’s largest design-build program
Assistant Commissioner
NYC Dept. of Design and Construction
Long Island City, N.Y.
Hernandez oversees the agency’s $16-billion borough-based jails program—the largest public works effort in decades in the city and its first major design-build procurement. He leads planning, design and execution for new facilities in Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan and the Bronx, aligning technical, budget and stakeholder demands across a politically sensitive program. His work has strengthened governance structures, reduced change orders and improved milestone tracking through early constructibility reviews, cost-control workflows and coordinated risk-mitigation strategies.
Before joining the department, Hernandez delivered more than $4 billion in development for AECOM Tishman, contributing to landmark projects that include the Waldorf Astoria renovation, International Gem Tower and the structural re-massing of 390 Madison Avenue.
A mentor to young professionals and a first-generation Cuban-American, he remains active in STEM outreach through the Stevens Institute of Technology’s STEP program and in community service in New Jersey.
Christopher Hoffman
38, Driving growth through lean, people-focused delivery
Co-Business Unit Leader, D.C.-Baltimore
DPR Construction
Reston, Va.
Overseeing more than $3 billion in backlog, Hoffman is steering one of the firm’s fastest growing business units. In the role since 2023, he has driven a dramatic increase in revenue, workforce expansion and operational discipline, supported by systems he helped develop across DPR’s Northeast operations. Hoffman previously served as Northeast preconstruction leader, scaling the team from 17 to 70 professionals and implementing lean estimating, target value design and early trade engagement that consistently kept projects within 5% of original budgets.
His leadership on major health care programs—including Children’s Hospital of Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University and Baystate Medical Center—demonstrates his ability to deliver complex work with precision and innovation. A board member of the ACE Mentor Program of Greater Washington, he champions mentorship and community service, reflecting a people-centered leadership style that shapes DPR’s culture as much as its project outcomes.
Michael Hopper
39, Engineer advances post-tensioned design and low-carbon concrete
Associate Partner
LERA Consulting Structural Engineers
New York City
Hopper has emerged as a national leader in innovative concrete design and post-tensioned systems. Since joining LERA in 2010, he has played a central role in some of the firm’s most complex cultural, academic and institutional projects, including the Vagelos Education Center at Columbia University, The Broad in Los Angeles, the David Rubenstein Forum at the University of Chicago and the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.
His expertise in post-tensioned concrete and voided slab systems has advanced industry understanding of how to reduce embodied carbon without compromising architectural ambition. In 2024, he earned the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s Global Innovation Project of the Year for pioneering work on voided post-tensioned slabs.
Hopper presents at the Post-Tensioning Institute and at council conferences, publishes widely and teaches concrete design as an adjunct professor at Princeton and Penn State. A dedicated ACE Mentor volunteer, he blends research, practice and education to inspire those becoming structural engineers.
Dimitra Karachaliou
38, Driving digital transformation across billion-dollar infrastructure
Associate Vice President
AECOM
New York City
A leading force in digital modernization of major infrastructure programs, Karachaliou is a key advisor to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. She helped drive a shift from static reporting to real-time dashboards and co-developed a digital transformation strategy that now supports more than 1,000 project managers and engineers in the agency.
Her expertise in program controls and lean- and design thinking–based process improvement has strengthened consistency, forecasting and governance across capital programs exceeding $2 billion. She also leads AECOM’s digital transformation advisory champions, scaling the firm’s consulting capabilities.
A certified Project Management Professional and Agile practitioner, she is an industry speaker, adjunct professor and longtime mentor through the ACE Mentor Program and Professional Women in Construction.
Kevin Khemraj
37, Guiding an infrastructure portfolio, advancing culture and mentorship
Vice President
Welkin Mechanical, an Iovino Enterprises Co.
Great Neck, N.Y.
Khemraj oversees more than $400 million in active construction work and leads projects ranging from complex public-sector infrastructure upgrades to high-value utility and facility improvements.
Rising from intern to a leading company operational role, he now directs business operations, drives strategic planning, manages major claims with New York City agencies and supports project teams across all stages of delivery.
Khemraj also continues to run some of Welkin’s largest projects while advancing safety, technology adoption, workforce development and company culture—helping it earn repeated recognition as a Fortune magazine Best Workplace.
Across the city’s infrastructure market, Khemraj plays a key role in industry forums and claim-resolution efforts with agencies that include the departments of Environmental Protection, Parks and Recreation and Citywide Administrative Services as well as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
A champion of mentorship, Khemraj is developing an enterprise-wide mentorship program and previously chaired Iovino’s diversity and inclusion employee resource group. He partners with Queens, N.Y.-based nonprofit Tools and Tiaras to inspire girls entering STEAM fields and volunteers with youth organizations in his community.
Caleb Krauter
33, Water-wastewater leader drives innovation and team growth at firm
Group Manager, Water and Wastewater
Herbert, Rowland & Grubic Inc.
Harrisburg, Pa.
Leading a 37-person team delivering high-quality municipal infrastructure projects, Krauter has risen from intern to team leader to group manager, earning a reputation for technical judgment and leadership. He manages staffing, resource allocation and project budgets while maintaining close client relationships, including with regional municipal agency Capital Region Water, one of the firm’s largest accounts.
Krauter has driven firmwide improvements through initiatives involving operations, technology adoption and innovation, helping to introduce virtual and augmented reality tools and the firm’s I.D.E.A. program, an initiative that empowers interns to propose company improvements and connect with staff across departments.
Krauter also contributes to the Central Pennsylvania Water Quality Association, serving as president in 2022. Now a member of its bylaws and special events committees, he further supports the organization’s commitment to wastewater education and safety.
He is also involved in organizing and planning association wastewater treatment plant tours, for which participants may be able to gain state Dept. of Environmental Protection continuing education credits.
Alison Love
35, Engineer shapes Boston’s bridges
Senior Associate and Engineer
STV
Boston
Enjoying a career defined by technical excellence on some of Boston’s most complex bridge projects, Love also demonstrates a deep commitment to advancing the next generation of transportation professionals. Since joining the firm in 2011, she has contributed to major assignments including the Longfellow Bridge Rehabilitation—supporting analysis of 100-year-old steel arch ribs—and design work on the Belden Bly bascule bridge and Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s North Station Draw 1 vertical lift bridges.
Love pairs project expertise with standout leadership for the Women’s Transportation Seminar’s Boston chapter. She revitalized the chapter’s Transportation YOU program, creating a one-day summit that has become its signature event and expanding outreach through customized programming with local schools, after-school initiatives and hands-on engineering activities.
She also volunteers at the Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts STEM Expo, judges Future City competitions and mentors students through the RAMP program. A former sailing instructor, Love brings the same focus and teamwork she learned on the water to her mentorship and community engagement.
David Samba
39, Transportation leader shapes community mobility solutions
Civil Engineer
Kimley-Horn
Herndon, Va.
With defined relationship building skills, multidisciplinary expertise and a deep commitment to elevating others, Samba is a shareholder in his 12th year at the firm. He co-leads a team that integrates multimodal planning, traffic analysis, safety evaluation, benefit-cost analysis and campus master planning to solve complex community mobility challenges.
As a client adviser, Samba is known for offering guidance on active projects and for cultivating rising talent—mentoring analysts, supervising teams and teaching culture, client service and career development across Kimley-Horn training programs.
A leader in the Institute of Transportation Engineers, he serves as Washington, D.C., area director and co-chairs major conferences. Samba helped write the institute’s equity action plan and also is active in the American Planning Association and American Council of Engineering Cos.
Dedicated to inclusion and growth, Samba helped to strengthen firmwide diversity and inclusion programs and was active in the launch of Khultivate, the company’s career development initiative for Black analysts. Samba’s community leadership extends beyond engineering. He has served as a Fairfax County election officer since 2019.
Gina Semerad
39, Health care engineer advances human-centered design
Director, HVAC
Jaros, Baum & Bolles
New York City
Semerad is known for performing technically rigorous health care engineering and has a deeply personal commitment to improving the patient experience.
Since joining the company in 2008, Semerad has helped lead a transformative, multiphase master plan for a major New York City hospital expansion—a project that includes a new energy building and an 830,000-sq-ft inpatient tower—and continues to support complex restack and renovation work across the campus.
Semerad has delivered some of the region’s most advanced electrified health care facilities, serving as lead HVAC engineer on one of New York City’s earliest outpatient projects that was designed for full compliance with Local Law 97.
Now design lead for a 500,000-sq-ft oncology and multispecialty center on the same campus where her daughter received cancer treatment, Semerad approaches every project through a human-centered lens shaped by personal experience. She has strengthened JB&B’s knowledge-sharing culture through an HVAC subject-matter-expert framework and contributes nationally as a member of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers’ committee for health care ventilation. Her family’s advocacy has raised more than $500,000 for pediatric cancer research through Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation.
Andrew Shalhoub
37, EPC project leader delivers billion-dollar power programs
Associate and Section Manager
Burns & McDonnell
Morristown, N.J.
Shalhoub is a rising project leader in the U.S. electrical substation and transmission sector, where he delivers some of the Northeast’s largest and most technically complex EPC programs.
A certified project manager, he oversees major high-risk transmission construction and power delivery work—including projects ranging from $100 million to $1.2 billion—and provides regional leadership across company EPC efforts in its transmission and distribution and global power practices. Currently, he leads an 80-person, multi-office team on a greenfield substation with a total installed cost exceeding $500 million, directing all aspects of engineering, procurement, construction, schedule, client engagement and financial performance.
Shalhoub’s impact extends beyond project delivery. A mentor and strategic developer of talent, he co-leads regional leadership programs, organizes large-scale training initiatives and presents regularly on project delivery, risk, client dynamics and career pathways. His dashboards and process tools have strengthened project predictability, while his efforts in youth sports, scouting and community service reflect his leadership philosophy.
Selected for the company’s elite emerging leaders program, Shalhoub exemplifies the technical excellence and skill in people development and industry engagement.
Sajid H. Sheikh
37, Building CM/PM division into a national infrastructure leader
Senior Vice President of Construction and Program Management
Enovate
Berkeley Heights, N.J.
Sheikh is senior vice president and head of Enovate’s construction and program management business unit, where he has built one of the firm’s fastest-growing divisions from the ground up.
Joining the company in 2019 to launch its construction management/program management practice, he transformed a one-person operation into a 30-plus-member team that is delivering major infrastructure programs nationwide. His portfolio spans some of the nation’s most complex initiatives—including the $19-billion JFK Airport redevelopment and $16-billion Hudson Tunnel rail project in the New York City region as well as multibillion-dollar bridge, transit, aviation and resilience programs—earning Enovate industry recognition and strengthened standing with public agencies, he says.
A licensed professional engineer with deep field and design experience, Sheikh blends technical rigor with strategic vision—driving operational systems, talent development and expansion into new markets.
He serves as chair of the American Council of Engineering Cos. of New York’s construction management committee and is a New York Metro chapter board officer for the American Society of Highway Engineers. Committed to community service, he takes on roles in capital planning for mosques, schools and cultural centers and is active in civic and volunteer initiatives.
Lauren Simone
38, Lean construction leader drives learning, innovation and community
Director of Learning and Development and Lean Construction
W.M. Jordan Co.
Newport News, Va.
Simone’s role at W.M. Jordan, a construction management and real estate development firm, enables her to lead companywide training programs and lean implementation across offices in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
Since joining the firm in 2015, she has advanced from project engineer to a senior corporate leadership role. She brings field-tested experience to her work from complex projects—including NASA Langley’s Measurements Research Lab and the Children’s Behavioral Health Pavilion at the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters in Norfolk—improving collaboration, predictability and workflow efficiency. She helped migrate W.M. Jordan’s pull planning process from sticky-note sessions to a digital platform, accelerating adoption among project teams and trade partners. Simone also is a statewide industry educator on lean construction principles. Her community impact is equally substantial. She co-founded Club Blue of Hampton Roads, Va., raising $300,000 for the Boys & Girls Clubs, and served on boards for EdMarc Children’s Hospice and Norfolk Academy.
Marilisa Stigliano
37, Engineering vision drives enterprise-wide operational excellence
Chief Operating Officer, Infrastructure Solutions
AtkinsRéalis
New York City
With a foundation in structural engineering and more than a decade of global project and operations experience, this rising leader has built a career transforming how major firms plan, deliver and manage complex work.
After advancing rapidly through project control and operations roles at AECOM—culminating in oversight of regional program management, resilience and major building portfolios—Stigliano joined STV to modernize business operations across the enterprise. The work reshaped project management practices, expanded training for emerging leaders and produced a firmwide digital dashboard system to guide project managers with real-time, data-driven insights.
She later moved into financial strategy, providing forecasting, modeling and enterprise-level analysis before stepping into her current executive operational leadership role overseeing national infrastructure sectors.
She also is a Professional Women in Construction board member and former member of the New York Building Congress board—also serving as a Columbia University associate engineering professor. Across aviation, transit, water and other major projects, Stigliano unites people, technology and delivery systems to drive growth and resilience. Her industry influence is reflected in several national awards recognizing innovation, leadership and advancement of the engineering profession.
Celine Sze
31, Driving change for a lower-carbon, resilient water future
Project Manager
AECOM
New York City
Driven by a commitment to environmental stewardship, Sze now advances some of New York City’s most critical water and wastewater initiatives. With eight years of experience, she delivers complex planning, design and construction-phase services that help agencies meet energy, carbon and resilience goals.
Her work on the NYC Dept. of Environmental Protection’s Ashokan Reservoir reconstruction project exemplifies a collaborative, cross-disciplinary approach—developing alternatives that minimized ecological disturbance and reduced capital costs by as much as 85%. Sze also is helping the agency to chart a path toward energy and carbon neutrality by supporting development of industry-first emissions estimating protocols and strategies to eliminate fugitive methane at 14 wastewater resource recovery facilities.
Beyond project delivery, Sze strengthens the industry through mentorship, technical presentations and active involvement on the New York Water Environment Association’s Young Professionals Committee.
Adnan Taqui
33, Project leader shapes modern, student-centered schools
Project Manager
Jacobs
Boston
Taqui has directed his skill in civil engineering and project management and a commitment to community impact to become a dedicated regional contributor to K-12 educational and civic infrastructure. Based in Boston, this construction project manager oversees public- and private-sector projects from feasibility through closeout, helping school districts across Massachusetts and Rhode Island deliver modern, sustainable and student-centered learning environments.
With deep experience navigating complex stakeholder groups—including municipal leaders, school committees, educators, architects and community members—Taqui brings clarity, structure and trust to every phase of project delivery. His work emphasizes 21st-century learning standards, daylight-filled flexible classrooms, collaborative zones and energy-efficient systems designed to serve communities for decades.
Beyond project execution, Taqui champions improvements to workflow, transparency and cross-team communication on public-sector projects. A certified Project Management Professional and active member of Project Management Institute and Construction Management Association of America, he invests heavily in mentorship, student outreach and STEM advocacy. His service includes judging the DiscoverE Future City Competition in multiple regions and mentoring young professionals entering the industry.
Recognitions—including the Indian Achievers’ Award and Outstanding Service Award from his graduate institution—reflect a career defined by consistency, empathy and purpose. Taqui played a key role in his company’s development of the new Gladstone Elementary School in Cranston, R.I., working with other project team members on a video and presentation to students and staff to showcase construction progress. Guided by the belief that construction is ultimately about shaping communities, he brings steadiness, collaboration and long-range vision to his projects.
K. James Taylor Jr.
36, Advancing infrastructure while championing education
Northeast Area Government Market Sector Leader
Verdantas
Wilmington, Del.
A career grounded in community impact and technical excellence has shaped an emerging engineering leader in Delaware. With experience delivering major public and private facilities, Taylor has served as civil engineer of record for several key projects—from pharmaceutical campuses and emergency response training facilities to new court buildings and waterfront infrastructure. A people-first leadership style drives his continuous improvement in project delivery, mentoring and market strategy, he says.
His industry engagement is equally far-reaching, including state and national leadership roles in the National Society of Professional Engineers, stewardship of the Delaware MathCounts program and service on the ACE Mentor Program board of directors. As co-host of a nationally ranked civil engineering podcast, Taylor reaches thousands with insights on career development and technical practice. He has a deep commitment to volunteerism—ranging from church service to highway cleanups and nonprofit support.
Lauren Underwood
35, Division leader drives growth and mentorship
Northeast Division Manager
Apex Cos.
Quincy, Mass.
Underwood has had a rapid career rise from entry-level engineer to division leader, reflecting her skill in financial stewardship, client engagement and organization-wide impact. After earning an ownership stake in her company at age 27, she advanced to principal.
Now division manager, she oversees budgets, backlog, forecasting, operational planning, business development and staff growth for one of the firm’s most successful groups. In 2024, the division’s highest revenue total was driven by strategic cross-selling, long-term client development and consistent on-schedule project delivery.
Underwood’s industry leadership includes service as the youngest-ever president of the Massachusetts Water Works Association, mentorship and networking roles across the New England Water Works Association, committee leadership in multiple regional water and public works associations and published technical work. A committed volunteer for her alma mater’s engineering program, she balances firmwide responsibilities with active industry engagement, professional development and a focus on building mentorship cultures.
Will Wagner
37, Strengthens megaproject delivery
Manager of business development
Bechtel
Reston, Va.
A career that began in diplomacy now drives Wagner’s impact across some of the most complex megaprojects in the engineering and construction sector. After nearly a decade negotiating U.N. Security Council resolutions and advising U.S. ambassadors on global crises, this leader transitioned into infrastructure—applying skills in negotiation, alignment and strategic communication to projects shaping national competitiveness and clean-energy development.
As contracts and project controls lead on a multibillion-dollar semiconductor plant, Wagner helped guide execution through fast-evolving scope—validating technical proposals, implementing offsite manufacturing strategies and refining change-management processes that cut cost-and-schedule estimating times by more than 50%. Earlier, Wagner’s service as chief of staff to the contractor’s CEO provided global exposure to project execution risks and helped strengthen enterprise-wide prospect reviews—contributing to a record year of new work.
His industry influence extends beyond project sites and includes efforts that supported passage of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021 and initiatives to clarify the company’s vision and values for its worldwide workforce.
Brigid Wright
35, Builder bridges complex project delivery with industry education
Project Manager
Leeding Builders Group
New York City
Wright’s technical agility and project leadership spans railcar manufacturing, veterans housing, casino expansion and one of the most complex supertall developments in Brooklyn. Her early contributions to an infrastructure design-build project included developing 3D models, refining installation logistics with international suppliers and creating testing procedures for intricate power systems. Moving into full project leadership, she led work on the Fisher House residences in Bronx, N.Y., for the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs, blending mission-driven construction with hands-on MEP coordination and clash detection.
Subsequent roles for Wright have included guiding amenity delivery for an ENR award-winning Manhattan tower and navigating forensic construction closeout and landmark requirements at the Brooklyn Tower, where more than 500 units have been turned over. Industry-facing initiatives include streamlining procurement systems, strengthening design–construction education, organizing New York City Local Law 97 compliance training and mentoring military veterans in civilian career transition through voluntary efforts linked to the nonprofit American Corporate Partners.
