MEL #050 | From Underdog Engineer to Trusted Federal Partner through Steady, Approachable Leadership with Sherry Browder

In this episode, I speak with Sherry Browder, CEO and president of Pro2Serve, an employee-owned company founded in 1995 with the primary purpose of providing critical mission support services to strengthen our nation's defensive posture. Sherry shares how a simple eighth-grade declaration that she wanted to be an engineer, plus parents who were lifelong educators, set her on a winding path to civil engineering. She describes struggling academically at Tennessee Tech, switching majors several times, and needing five and a half years to graduate, but using that adversity to build grit and determination. From her first role at the Department of Energy to long tenure at SAIC/Leidos and now as president and CEO of Pro2Serve, her through line is program and people leadership rather than design engineering. In our leadership segment, Sherry's example story centers on emotional regulation and how leaders respond when people bring them problems, frustration, and bad news. She describes intentionally remaining calm, giving people a safe space to vent behind closed doors and modeling steady behavior so her teams continue to bring her information. Over time, this approach allowed her to build what one supervisor called fiercely loyal teams that trust her with both the work and the hard conversations. Finally, Sherry encourages engineers to play to their strengths, even if that means stepping away from traditional design roles into project program or organizational leadership. She emphasizes that you do not have to be the smartest technical expert in the room, but you must be dependable, approachable, honest, and consistent so people are not afraid to talk to you. Her closing message is that leadership is not all easy or glamorous, but if you surround yourself with smart people, keep learning from everyone, and let emotional intelligence guide you, you can have an impact over decades.Explore the full episode summary, including guest bio, key takeaways, transcript, and recommended resources in the shownotes at www.drangeliqueadams.com/podcast