Interview with Civil Engineering Manager, Ed Wilkes

This week, I sat down with my good friend, Ed Wilkes PE, for The Omar Project’s first-ever interview. At Ware Malcomb, a national architecture and engineering design firm, Ed is in charge of their commercial real estate site development/civil services in the northeast, with a territory extending as far north as Boston and as far south as Washington, D.C. Anything that has to do with groundworks and land development— Ed has done it all, and his experience spans across office, retail, industrial, self-storage, multi-family and senior living asset classes. Here are some highlights from our talk, but if you’re hungry for more, you can listen to the full interview (organized by discussion topic) below.

The industry impact of COVID-19

According to Ed, COVID-19 has affected different industries in different ways.

“Naturally when it first hit, there was a lot of uncertainty. Things started shutting down. New York construction came to a halt, and then New Jersey, Pennsylvania—they all went in line across the country. One of the industries we haven’t seen slow down is distribution and the leaders of the online marketplace world. Older generations were previously less apt to order online, but since stores have closed down, everyone is [using online ordering].”

Ed also discusses a reluctance to spend money in private development, as a result of COVID-19.

“Multifamily developments that have been booming in the past 4-5 years in the northeast, have taken a massive hit. Big name developers are putting things on hold. There’s a lot of people struggling to pay rent in existing multifamily housing. Rental rates have been lowered in the last few months.”

The biggest game changer for him in project management

For Ed, it’s hard to narrow down just one thing that’s made him a better project manager — it's a “laundry list” of things that he’s learned over the years. But one that has stood out is the power of optimism when leading teams.

“What do I mean by that? Staying positive. Most people in project management have pretty strict budgets or deadlines, and oftentimes they’re either too tight or too soon and people are working a little above and beyond to keep pace with it. It can become stressful and people get burnt out with too much on their plate. You ask them how they’re doing and they get cranky.”

This negative attitude will weigh on your team—but turning it around starts with the manager.

“If you have a group of people who are upbeat and happy to help each other out—it goes a long way to create a culture where everyone’s on the same team. And it starts with the manager. If a manager is grumpy, doesn’t check in and only critiques, that weighs down on people and it’s something you should be conscious of.”

Ed’s secret for motivating teams

If you’ve been following The Omar Project, you know how passionate I am about taking great notes. And it’s interesting to hear Ed’s take on how he uses notes to motivate people on his team.

“The purpose of notes is more than just [documenting] what you’re doing.” Ed acknowledges that it may only serve as a checklist for some, but for others it can be used to delegate and communicate expectations. '“I agree wholeheartedly [in] sending out action item emails because it holds people accountable.”

He adds, “The secret to motivating people is making them have ownership over something. If they feel like they’re necessary, that this [task] is theirs—you get a better product and you have better workers. That email with notes declaring who needs to do what is key.”

The full interview, organized by discussion topic: 

Interview with Ed Wilkes: Part One

1:00 — Ed’s role and employment as a private developer 

4:30 — The impact of COVID-19 on industry 

11:30 — How working remotely has made him a better manager

14:45 — The biggest game changer for him in project management

26:10 — The most important tools to him as a project manager

29:37 — Real deadlines vs. fake deadline

33:00 — Why having done the work makes you a better project manager

Interview with Ed Wilkes: Part Two

0:00 — Why OG’s and mentors are so important 

2:23 — Can you have a perfect project? 

4:30 — What software does a project manager need? 

7:05 — Ed’s note taking process 

15:55 — Ed’s secret to motivating teams

20:05 — Contract management and change orders 

22:00 — How to structure your contract  

30:00 — More on COVID-19 industry impact

35:00 — More on working remotely 

43:00 — Best piece of advice for project managers to learn