Derek Johnson, PE

Experience

• 

  Manhard Consulting

  Jun 2004 - Dec 2011

  Project Engineer

  I supervised four staff members, including engineers and interns, and assisted in staff development by recruiting, providing career fair presentations, interviewing candidates, and preparing the intern manual. I focused on infrastructure design and development that met the needs of all parties involved. In addition, I completed hydrology and hydraulic calculations, stormwater reports, and FEMA submittals.

• 

  Schlotfeldt Engineering

  Dec 2011 - May 2013

  Civil Engineer

  I supervised the daily operations of a four-person office, including workload scheduling, administration, and direction of technical and non-technical staff. I also served as a project manager on all phases of municipal infrastructure and roadway improvement projects. In addition, I acted as the contract city engineer to design and manage infrastructure projects for several Iowa communities with populations ranging from 500 to 8,000.

• 

  City of Urbandale

  May 2013 - May 2014

  Senior Engineer

  Working closely with the City Engineering and Public Works staff, I helped administer the City’s sidewalk program, COSESCO program, and MS4 permitting. I coordinated plan reviews, reviews, permitting, and the design of capital improvement projects. I also worked with homeowners throughout the City to resolve drainage issues.

• 

  ISG

  May 2014 - now

  My passion for serving our communities, clients, and teams drives me every day to deliver an unparalleled client experience. As Public Works Business Unit leader, I guide ISG’s multi-disciplinary team to deliver exceptional service through a range of planning, street and corridor, urban stormwater, drinking water, and wastewater projects. I leverage municipal engineering and infrastructure project management experience to effectively serve communities across Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, and Arkansas. Show less I am proud of our accomplishments over my eight-year term. Together, we faced challenges, celebrated wins, and achieved great goals, including transitioning ISG to a 100% Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) in 2017. We navigated multiple mergers and acquisitions and that helped us grow and shifted to a true business unit approach. We also invited external directors to help drive strategy and apply outside perspectives to ISG. The Board invested in ISG’s employee owners by implementing a strategy for coaching, personal, and professional development. During my time on the Board, we provided influence and leadership to drive firm growth from 150 people in 2015 to 500 employee owners in 2023. Show less As executive vice president, I focused on emphasizing ISG’s key competitive advantages while directly supporting employee owner growth. Working closely with firm leadership, we reinforced ISG’s communication, messaging, and education surrounding our ESOP, which helped build ISG’s culture of employee ownership. I also assisted with implementing a firmwide alignment team, which consists of geographic leaders who are tasked to grow and improve the firm’s culture as quickly as the team grows. While our team grew with mergers and acquisitions, I introduced new team members to ISG’s culture, integrated them into our team, and made sure they felt like they belong in the firm. Show less

  • Vice President, Public Works Business Unit Leader

    Oct 2023 - now

  • Member, ISG Board of Directors

    Jul 2015 - Nov 2023

  • Executive Vice President

    Jan 2020 - Oct 2023

  • Vice President

    May 2018 - Jan 2020

  • Associate Principal

    May 2014 - May 2018
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  HRTLND - Heartland Companies

  Mar 2022 - now

  HRTLND Companies Board of Directors

  It is a privilege to serve the HRTLND team as part of the Board of Directors. External directors and I assist HRTLND leadership to plan, strategize, and help them continue their impressive growth while maintaining the culture that makes them so unique. My background as an employee owner helps me provide insight and an outside perspective to assist with major decision making and planning efforts.

• 

  Iowa State University

  Apr 2022 - now

  Iowa State University Civil & Environmental Engineering Advisory Council

  As a council member, I provide insights on tomorrow’s industry leaders and support to the Department, students, and research. I help the Department strengthen its education, research, and outreach programs, improve its facilities, develop and expand external support, and serve its many stakeholders. I continually assess the Department’s progress and development of partnerships.