September 11, 2025

Our Continuous Improvement Journey: How We Lead (Video)

As we celebrate earning the presidential Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for the second time, this series chronicles our continuous improvement journey and how we do business.

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I joined Freese and Nichols in 2010, and that’s the first time I had heard about companies having a strategic plan and an individual development plan (IDP).

I was fortunate to have good leaders who took the time to invest in me.

When I joined the firm, I was a design engineer, and all I wanted was to be the best design engineer I could be. I didn’t know what opportunities were available, from project management to client development.

My leaders took the time to sit with me when we made the IDP plans and, exposed me to different opportunities and encouraged me to pursue them.

Then, they took those IDPs from what we discussed and made sure they aligned with the annual operating plan that the company is developing. And, by doing that, I was able to take on more roles, and I started growing in the company and gaining more experience.

It’s phenomenal, and I find myself very fortunate in how seamless the company makes it for someone to come in at a design level and slowly grow into a leadership role.

If you have a good leader, you have a good company. If all leaders behave the same way, you have a great company. I believe that’s why our LEADS values matter so much.

For me, ‘Engage as Family’ is very crucial. I love my team. I love engaging with them. If you can develop that strong relationship, you will truly know if they’re happy or not. And if they’re happy, things go really well.

I think of continuous improvement as a culture. It has to be top down and bottom up.

It’s important for leaders to behave the way they talk or follow their own guidance. Learning and getting involved need to be integrated into the onboarding of our staff. When someone comes in, we present our culture, which is one of continuous learning. And I believe if you do that, you don’t have to try hard. It becomes normal.