MEL #32 | From Outsider to Trusted Leader through Listening and Learning with Randy Gibson

In this episode, I speak with Randy Gibson, senior advisor to the executive team of Gresham Smith, a multidisciplinary architecture, engineering, and design firm that delivers strategic people-focused solutions across the healthcare, aviation, transportation, water resources, and corporate markets. Randy began his career with a passion for buildings, originally considering architecture before pivoting to structural engineering. His professional path took him from small consulting firms to nuclear power then into a 27-year tenure with an AE firm where he rose from engineer to COO. He later served in C-suite roles focused on strategy and growth. In our leadership segment, Randy shared two pivotal leadership moments, leading a skeptical team at a branch office early in his career and later heading a new division with expertise outside his own. Both required overcoming deep mistrust, building individual relationships, and communicating vision with patience and consistency.Randy advises engineers to actively seek leadership experiences, embrace diversity of thought, find mentors earlier than he did, and continuously develop soft skills. He emphasizes that leadership is about people, not just organizations, and that investing in relationships is key.You can learn more about Randy, including reading his full bio, recommended resources, and links to connect with him in our show notes at https://drangeliqueadams.com/podcast/