Carrie Stokes went from Intern to President and CEO at Barge Design Solutions and she’s not done innovating. In this episode, Ryan Englin dives into Carrie’s 30-year journey in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) world and the leadership principles that helped her rise.

Carrie shares actionable insights on how to retain and grow your talent, why mentorship isn’t optional anymore, and how to integrate innovation like AI without losing operational excellence. From workforce development to building strategic industry pivots, this episode is packed with lessons every construction leader needs to hear.

Tune in to learn how to lead with purpose, build culture that scales, and make change stick.

Key Takeaways with Timestamps:

• 00:50 – Carrie Stokes’ journey from Intern to CEO at Barge Design Solutions.
• 03:45 – Why career paths in construction aren’t always linear and shouldn’t be.
• 05:48 – The power of cross-functional exposure in growing leadership skills.
• 07:00 – How one mentor’s red pen transformed Carrie’s leadership approach.
• 08:24 – The importance of communicating the “why” to motivate construction teams.
• 10:40 – Why employee ownership has changed how Barge makes decisions.
• 14:30 – Strategic pivots: How Barge is navigating uncertainty in the data center boom.
• 18:00 – What it takes to adopt AI effectively in construction and design.
• 23:41 – The secret to nurturing young engineers in a high-growth firm.
• 28:06 – Carrie’s three must-have traits for the next generation of AEC leaders.

Connect With Carrie:

Website: https://www.bargedesign.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carriestokes1/

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