Empowering Young Professionals:  West Yost’s Approach to Career Development and Mentorship

By Lucas Russell, Engineer, Groundwater & Stormwater & Morgan Lane, Engineer, Water 

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The engineering industry is rapidly evolving, and it can be daunting to navigate as a young professional. West Yost acknowledges the struggles many young professionals face when it comes to career development, mentorship, and networking. In turn, West Yost developed a professional working group to help staff navigate their careers and work-life balance.  

The West Yost Young Professionals (YPs) group provides a variety of development opportunities for new team members, including the facilitation of knowledge transfer between YPs and more senior West  Yosters in areas of technical work, project management, firm operations, and business development. The YP group plays a crucial role in fostering collaboration, growth, and innovation across all sectors from engineering to human resources. It is an open platform for early-career team members to connect, share ideas, and develop their personal and professional skills. 

“Joining the various groups at WY has been helpful in finding my own path. I have helped direct Tiny Desktops, joined the book club, and sat as co-leader of the YP Group.” – Sabrina Marson, Technical Specialist II

 

As the 2024/25 YP Co-Leads, we are in the unique position of encouraging the exchange of ideas within the group by identifying professional wants and needs that emerge in our monthly YP group lunch meetings. During our term we have focused on offering additional networking opportunities through mentorship discussions, in-person collaboration, and career planning. It was brought to our attention that there was a desire for more insight into career trajectory planning and growth.  

To promote open dialogue around this complex topic, we engaged three West Yost team members with diverse professional experiences to sit as panelists at our August Monthly Meeting for an hour-long discussion. Each panelist provided their unique perspective and advice on career milestones, professional development, and mentorship. Sabrina Marson, Technical Specialist II, Michael Mamara, Talent Acquisition Lead, and Kami Tiano, Senior Engineer II, were chosen given their varying level of involvement in technical engineering work, the unique roles they hold at the company, and the wide range in their career trajectories. Leaning on this diversity allowed us to facilitate a comprehensive discussion with significant applicability to YPs in every role.

“I desire to be an expert rather than a jack of all trades. At WY I have found a very supportive manager that focuses on training and understanding. The dedication to quality, knowledge, and pride in our work at WY is appreciated.” Kami Tiano, Senior Engineer II

Michael shared about his transition from the Marine Corps into college and a subsequent role as a recruiter in an unfamiliar industry. While discussing his work-life balance, Michael acknowledged his dedication to his role while heavily emphasizing that working more than 40 hours a week is made sustainable through a flexible schedule. Sabrina demonstrated how significant career pivots have diversified her perspectives and have contributed to her success in her career and at West Yost. Sabrina and Michael joined West Yost with limited knowledge on the engineering industry, but with tenacity and confidence they have thrived. They noted the importance of networking and mentors. Mentors can help provide a strong network of guidance, support, and valuable insights based on their experience.  

Sabrina and Kami highlighted how detrimental a toxic workplace environment can be, especially for younger team members who are still learning. This struck a chord with many YPs who have experienced similar difficulties in previous roles. Kami expanded on this topic by detailing the stark contrast between past struggles with managers at previous firms before highlighting the significant improvements in her career and personal happiness after finding a manager and mentor who looked after her best interests.

“At the end of the day it is the initiative piece. No one else is going to do it for you. You must direct your career and stand up for what you want to do. If it is not voiced, then people will not know what you want and what you want to do. It’s very helpful to come up with a solution and a path on where you want to go. Bring up some ideas to discuss and potential routes to pursue. Don’t be afraid to have your voice heard.” Michael Mamara, Talent Acquisition Lead

To conclude the discussion, the panelists underscored the importance of initiative, tenacity, and self-advocacy in furthering career goals and overall progress; being confident and honest with yourself while making your voice heard have proved successful in improving and advancing the careers of all three panelists.

The panel and subsequent discussion were well received by the YP members, and we are continuing to establish meeting topics that invoke similarly positive reactions from the group. This meeting was eye-opening and there were many takeaways that we believe resonated with many of our team members. Consulting is a demanding field, and it can sometime require extensive time and dedication. Kami gave a great reminder that the hours of arduous work are truly an investment in yourself. As young engineers, we can feel overwhelmed with a busy workload, but we forget how much we grow personally and professionally in times of struggle. We are grateful for the passion and willingness of our panelists to engage with the YP group, and we look forward to providing opportunities that facilitate the continued professional development of our young team members. Reach out to Morgan Lane or Lucas Russell with any questions about West Yost’s Young Professionals Group.  

By Lucas Russell, Engineer, Groundwater & Stormwater & Morgan Lane, Engineer, Water 

Lucas Russell is a civil engineer specializing in analysis and design of stormwater systems. His experiences include; hydraulic modeling; open channel and closed conduit hydraulics; analyzing watershed hydrology; sea level rise and coastal hydraulics assessments; drainage and improvement plan review; and digital mapping and drafting. Lucas is proficient with, XPSWMM, EPA SWMM, HEC-HMS, HEC-RAS, ArcGIS, and AutoCAD.

Morgan Lane is experienced in water resources engineering, bid and construction support, and Civil 3D drafting. She is proficient in preparation of design documents for various public municipality improvement projects and drafting preliminary design reports documenting technical findings. Morgan is experienced in Infowater water distribution modeling and master planning.