Editor’s Note

In the last two “Editor’s Notes,” I described a plan where both new and experienced professionals would be able to work together as we continue on our mission toward excellence in our journal. In the future I plan to use the “Editor’s Notes” to provide introductions to these new participants and share information about the institutions they currently work for. They will be introduced in the order that information and space becomes available.

The Labor and Personnel Issues area will have three cospecialty editors: one in the Safety area, one in the Productivity area and one in the Workforce Issues area. Dr. Paul Goodrum will deal with the Workforce Issues area. The other editors will be introduced in subsequent issues.

Dr. Paul Goodrum is an associate professor of civil engineering at the University of Kentucky. He has conducted extensive research on work force and technology issues in the construction industry, particularly in the area of productivity. He has directed over 14 research projects over the last six years with various industry groups. Dr. Goodrum has published well over 40 referenced journal articles and conference papers. He teaches at both graduate and undergraduate levels in the Construction Engineering program and has received four teaching awards over the past six years. Having worked full time in both construction and design prior to earning his doctorate degree from the University of Texas at Austin, he is a licensed Professional Engineer in the state of Kentucky.

The University of Kentucky provides graduate education in the field of Construction Engineering and Management (CEM). This program allows students to focus on specific skills and knowledge needed to be successful in the ever changing engineering and construction industry. The CEM program awards both MS and Ph.D. degrees. Currently, the CEM program includes three tenure track faculty members, including two academic chairs in construction. The combined faculty expertise includes, highway construction, safety, productivity, and work force issues. The CEM program offers financial assistance to many of its graduate students through numerous research grants funded by state and industry agencies. The CEM programs also awards a number of construction engineering fellowships. The program’s courses and research focus on infrastructure, industrial, and commercial construction.

Drs. Kelly Strong and John Taylor will be working in the Organizational Issues area. They are introduced below:

Dr. Kelly Strong has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Iowa State University, an MBA from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., and a Ph.D. in Strategy/Entrepreneurship from the University of Colorado. He is currently an associate professor of construction engineering at Iowa State University. Dr. Strong is a Designated Design-Build Professional (DBIA) and a member of ASCE, AGC of America, and DBIA.

Dr. Strong’s primary research interests are in the areas of innovative contracting, sustainable management practices, and the scholarship of teaching/learning. Prior to joining the faculty at Iowa State University, he taught at the University of Colorado, Illinois State University, and Michigan Technological University,and received teaching awards at all three schools.

The Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering at Iowa State University administers construction engineering and civil engineering BS, MS, and Ph.D. degree programs. The ABET-accredited undergraduate construction engineering program at Iowa State University is the largest in the United States and has received recognition as the top-ranked construction program in the United States by the Gourman Report. There are approximately 113 students pursuing MS and Ph.D. degrees in the various areas of civil engineering, including 12 in construction engineering and management. There are 35 full-time faculty members and 24 staff and professional members associated with the department with nine faculty members specializing in construction engineering and management.

Dr. John E. Taylor earned his Ph.D. in civil and environmental engineering from Stanford University in 2006. He joined the faculty of the University of Texas at Austin in that same year. In 1996, he won a Fulbright Scholarship to Switzerland where he worked at the United Nations in Geneva and studied at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. Dr. Taylor researches change processes in global project networks. His recent research focuss on innovations in computer-aided design, supply chain integration, prefabricated wall systems and elevator systems. He has identified critical issues relating to project network structure that must be addressed to enable implementation and widespread use of technological, organizational and work process innovations. He uses both in-depth field research and computational simulation modeling to extend organizational innovation theories. His findings are used by industries to develop strategies for improving innovation and organizational change outcomes.

The Construction Engineering and Project Management (CEPM) program at the University of Texas at Austin was initiated in 1972. Housed in the Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, its mission is to provide a state-of-the-art education, new knowledge, and service in construction engineering and project management to university students, the industry, and the research community to create an environment of continuous advancement of the capital projects industry. The continuing growth of construction volume and the demand for more sophisticated managerial talent has led to a dual emphasis on capital project education and fundamental construction engineering research. The CEPM graduate program is designed to integrate the technical education of engineering with the financial, legal, and administrative skills of business management. The unique demand for management personnel at all levels in the construction industry offers excellent career opportunities for graduates with construction companies, construction management consultants, companies purchasing construction services, government agencies, educational institutions, building material companies, real estate firms, etc. The vision of the CEPM program is to be recognized as the world’s leading program in practical and cutting-edge construction engineering, and project management research and education, and to be a key player in changing the capital projects industry through new knowledge generation and by creating leaders. In pursuit of this vision, the CEPM program established the Construction Industry Institute with industry leaders in 1983 and the Center for Construction Industry Studies in collaboration with the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in 1998.