The Hidden Power of Trust in Construction Success

In this episode, Karl Hroza shares insights from his 30-year career managing global mega projects in oil, gas, and mining industries. We discuss the importance of leadership, trust, and adaptability in project success, along with lessons for young professionals entering the industry.

 key  topics

The importance of early career flexibility and willingness to travel
How mega projects take 10-12 years to develop and the front-end work involved
The impact of sustainable development and community investment in resource projects
Leadership lessons learned from managing diverse teams worldwide
The significance of trust and relationships in project success
Remote work challenges and the importance of informal mentorship
The role of team alignment and core values in project execution
How to identify and nurture high-potential team members
The influence of sports background on leadership and teamwork skills
The industry’s trust issues and ways to improve collaboration

Mega Projects, Leadership, Trust, Engineering Careers, Global Infrastructure, Project Management, Energy Industry, Mentorship, Remote Work, Career Development

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:02

This is Under Pressure, Compressor Talk by Midwest Compressor. Strategies, systems, and stories from the compressor world. With your host, David Abshire. And now, on to the show.

SPEAKER_00 0:20

Good afternoon. This is David Abshire with Under Pressure Podcast, streaming out of Texas this afternoon. Today we have Carl Herosa calling in. Carl, thanks for jumping on today, buddy.

SPEAKER_02 0:31

No problem. Nice to be here, Dave.

SPEAKER_00 0:34

Absolutely. Well, Carl, we'll just jump right in. We'll start out with uh some questions here. It looks like you've spent roughly 30 years food between oil and gas mining major infrastructure projects all over the world from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela to Australia, Canada, and Chile. What originally attracted you to this kind of global project career that you've been in?

SPEAKER_02 0:57

Well, I I grew up in Nebraska. I finished my civil engineering degree at Nebraska. And uh it was just kind of like my last, my last year, maybe a year and a half. I was working for a little civil consultant doing some infrastructure projects. And uh we were in the engineering hall and I found this magazine. It was thought it was really cool. It's called ENR. I had no idea what it actually stood for. And as you do, you just kind of look at the pictures and you see these massive project mega projects all over the world, complex refineries and piping and equipment. And I thought, holy cow, that's that's what I want to do.

SPEAKER_00 1:32

That's super cool. So you worked on some enormous projects throughout your career, but you intentionally chased opportunities that would push you to new environments. Looking back, how important was that willingness to go anywhere and do anything early on in your career?

SPEAKER_02 1:46

It was important for me and it was what I loved to do. I've always loved to travel, uh you know, loved the sense of adventure, new experience, new cultures, new environments, and uh kind of always thought uh, you know, almost almost it's almost like a paid vacation, you know, in in some respect. Once when I was uh when I was a little bit younger, it did get a a little bit tougher in the in the uh the other years with uh obviously the responsibility kept on increasing. But um, yeah, it was just really stemmed from a desire to travel culture, you know, experience uh experience new places and just um a huge sense of adventure. That's what I've been brought up with.

SPEAKER_00 2:24

Absolutely. Well, I I love the huge sense of adventure. I think just being able to get out and see the world and all the different, you know, projects and just being being able to travel like that really gives you a different perspective on, you know, everything in general, especially especially when it relates to your career and your personal life. I think that's one thing that's been super cool that I've learned over mine.

SPEAKER_02 2:46

No, for sure. And I and I got lucky to meet my meet my my current wife uh on one of my project adventures and a and an RR, and she had a desire and uh still does a desire to travel and adventure, and our kids have grown up with that as well. So it's been a great opportunity.

SPEAKER_00 3:02

Nice, nice. Now, you've worked in both oil and gas and mining, and today you're advising projects tied to things like copper, power infrastructure, and energy systems. What similarities do people miss between those industries?

SPEAKER_02 3:17

Well, I think uh on mega projects, there there's so many common common common denominators, and it starts with just the project development process, which a lot of people don't really see or appreciate. It takes it takes 10 to 12 years sometimes to to develop these mega projects just because of that, the the infrastructure components, the power, the water, the you know, the the permits and you know and and that whole that whole process. So I think there's a there's a lot of similarities that I think people really don't appreciate all the front-end work that goes into the you know the planning and the development and the and the community investments before actual construction starts, which is really the fun part.

SPEAKER_00 3:59

Yeah, absolutely. Now, one thing you pushed back on was the perception that major energy and resource projects are purely destructive. From your experience, what do people overlook about those long-term impacts that these projects have on your communities?

SPEAKER_02 4:13

I I think, yeah, you know, again, you know, everybody sees the construction effort and you know, cutting in a pioneer road. It looks like it's actually kind of you know destroying the environment. But I I know for a fact, personally, I've worked as the contractor and as the owner, the the dedication and the commitment to sustainable development, um, you know, monitoring the environment, archaeological sites, preservations, you know, that that that type of development is just it's ingrained with every major oil and and mining company these days. And it's and it's not just words in the in the textbook. They they really do they really do live it. And then, you know, the impact, the positive impact on these communities. We go in small communities or regions and we train people and and give them skills and up upskill them for you know not only for the project, for servicing the long life of the operation. It's it's just an incredible feeling, the impact that uh that we make on these on these communities and in you know various countries around the world.

SPEAKER_00 5:16

Absolutely. No, I I completely agree. And that's one of the cool things that, you know, of course, being able to train somebody that didn't have a skill set that, you know, will create jobs and help that community and just pour back into those areas too to help them, you know, sustain throughout the years. So you mentioned that some of your proudest accomplishments were the facilities themselves. There were the teams you built along the way. When did you realize leadership mattered more than the project?

SPEAKER_02 5:43

Well, I grew up in a sports family and a sport a pretty passionate sports family. And um, you know, I was a quarterback in high school, and you know, you just kind of get you kind of get thrown. Some people can't can't take it. But if you've got a if you've grown up in a sports background and you've been pushed into various positions, you just kind of naturally figure out how to how to how to lead. So that's that's I've been I've been fortunate in that aspect.

SPEAKER_00 6:07

Absolutely. You know, I've seen so much in my career, and and I'm have the same kind of background with a sports background, and folks that you know participated in sports at a younger age and kind of had those kind of skill sets ingrained early on and being able to be coachable and teachable and and being able to work with the team too. There's some skill sets that go along that you know the kids unfortunately that don't play sports sometimes miss out on those. And I think too that that's one of the reasons for sure, like myself, I always push my kids to play sports when they were younger, whether they stuck with it or not as they got older and you know, kind of outgrew them. But for the most part, I always think those skill sets that you know like you're able to use, especially in real world situations, like you mentioned. So you shared a story about you know building and pre-commissioning and a turnover and turnover team in Venezuela from essentially scratch and growing into a high performing organization that helped deliver a major facility to Chevron. What what made that experience so memorable for you?

SPEAKER_02 7:08

I think uh like I said, we we we got down there and and uh just started interviewing some local local engineers and you know, both both young girls, young guys, and and uh you know, just really started from scratch. They had didn't really have any experience and I uh kind of you know got down there early enough where I had we had time to kind of train them up and onboard them you know properly and and uh just you know to see how they how they become became not only really good engineers, but also, I mean when you're in turnover and pre-commissioning, you're you're actually leading a contractor, you're leading the walk downs, and you know, so some of some of the skills that I uh that I had uh learned and developed over the years, I was able to share them as well. But uh it was just you know, one particular one really sticks with me because I was uh building this team and I kept on getting this one resume pushed to me and and there was a picture of the guy on it, and he had a you know suit and tie on, and you know, I just I just couldn't get over. I just kept on kind of pushing it to the side, bringing in a few other ones, and then uh you know, finally, yeah, finally the guy, you know, I he was pretty, pretty persuasive, came down, knocked on my door, had had his you know steel-toed boots on and uh and a and a polo shirt, and he became like my A-list, you know, turnover star. He was a machine, and I always I always think, you know, I was it always goes back to the you know, don't judge a book by its cover. And you know, I you know, I I I kind of felt bad, but I also felt like gr you know relieved that I didn't keep pushing that one aside and I would have missed out on one of the one of the one of the best engineers in in the country.

SPEAKER_00 8:48

So that's awesome. I love that. You know, that's that's one thing that I've seen over my career, you know, the guys that you're able to look back, you know, look back on and say, man, this guy was a good, you know, a good decision. And of course, too, just seeing their drive and their ability to want to grow and learn and listen to folks that are in the industry too, which just helps so more helps so much setting them up for success and helps helps everyone, you know, as a team as well. So you spent decades managing mega projects around the world. What separates these projects that run well from the ones that struggle, you feel like?

SPEAKER_02 9:26

Well, a lot of it is uh is kind of the the early alignment of of you know core values and relationships with the client and the and the contractors. I I think you know, you've got everybody's usually on the same page, but there's you know, there's always a few hidden agendas and or or commercial obstacles that are kind of built into some of these contractual relationships as well. But uh I think yeah, team alignment and you know the the you know good relationships with your client, everybody focused on the common goal of delivering the project safely, on time, on budget, and and you know, with a high degree of quality for you know for that long-lasting operation.

SPEAKER_00 10:07

Yeah, absolutely. Now you raised an interesting concern about younger professionals missing some of the informal mentor mentorship that happens in offices and project environments. What lessons do you think are the hardest for them to learn remotely?

SPEAKER_02 10:20

Well, I g I guess we're all kind of still learning some of that kind of post during COVID and post-COVID. And and uh, you know, I just think back to my own, my own, you know, younger days that the water cooler talk, the you know, being able to walk into your boss's cubicle, right? Because they didn't have doors back in the day. You know, you walked into a cube or you peeked over the wall and hey, how you doing, Bill? And you know, that that kind of stuff. I mean, I s I still have um, you know, some of my some of my best friends were from my early days of engineering down at down at floor, you know, some of my bosses, some of my peers, etc. And and yeah, I just you know, I I I struggle. I know it's you know, it's you know, everybody wants to do the work-life balance and remote and flexible work. And and it it be it to be honest with you, I think it does work these days, but I that is one of my concerns is that that that one-on-one, the collaboration, all of that, yeah, that that team building uh when you're when you want to deliver a project and you've got to get the you know, you've got to get the horses running. I I think it's a little harder and and I I feel for I feel for the for the younger generation, but I think uh, you know, I'm encouraging them to you know get into the office and and be a bit more proactive. I think they're gonna have to take it upon themselves more, you know, now to in order to make those um make those connections.

SPEAKER_00 11:39

So yeah, absolutely. I I think that's something, especially, you know, with the with the change of the landscape, with you know, so many different teams work remotely, you know, and there's so many people involved on these projects lots of times, especially the larger scale projects and just trying to get everybody to align sometimes where when you don't have everybody in one room together like we was used to when we was growing up. So I I completely agree. I've I've seen the struggles and I've seen I've seen the good and the bad, right? Where some some folks definitely uh you know are okay without that, you know, connection and that communication. But I'm definitely one of those, I'm like you, that water cooler talk goes so far and just building those relationships for the future too, to you know, because we all know that folks are gonna change jobs and as they continue to change jobs, definitely to know that they built relationships along the way and you know to be able to stay in communication because I'm like I I have great contacts from my first job that you know when I first got into the industry that I still talk to to this day, and you know, we've kind of talked about our different career paths and stuff.

SPEAKER_02 12:45

At least the ch the technology and the tools have advanced now and and allow us to you know to maintain those connections and and and you know build those relationships in kind of technological screen ways, but um yeah, that's also kind of the new generation. So I I'm happy that uh you know the tools are now supporting a you know a a more collaborative effort across the you know across the world.

SPEAKER_00 13:08

Absolutely. Now you often said your approach early in your career was essential. I'll go anywhere, do anything. How much does that mindset contribute to the opportunities that followed that?

SPEAKER_02 13:18

Well, I th I I think a lot. I mean, I I I always said that in five-year chunks, you know. I was I was out of school, I was single, I was mobile, and I just said, hey, uh, there's no job too big, too small, too ugly. And uh, you know, just having that, you know, you know, having the the flexibility and the and the and the pursuit in order to do that. And then, you know, the I just saw, especially with with Fleur, I just saw these huge windows of opportunity. There was a ma mega company, you know, working projects all over the world, and it's like that's that's just the space I wanted to be in and always encouraged that, always in my five and you know, ten year plans that you know had some degree of you know maintaining flexibility and and you know, again that you know taking on those challenges. That's how you get those opportunities.

SPEAKER_00 14:06

Um yeah, absolutely. I completely agree, especially when you're young and you're able to, you know, be able to, you know, live uh live remotely for a while and and be able to go out and spend time on these projects and kind of see them from start to finish. It's yeah, it's definitely uh definitely a different mindset because I think I think too, just that opportunity that it creates, it really advances, you know, how fast you learn too. I feel like by being out on these locations and being on these big projects like you've worked on, it really just kind of sets you up hard, you know, I think for for the future.

SPEAKER_02 14:41

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 14:43

You could wave a magic wand and improve one thing across the project projects world tomorrow. You said it would be regulations, it would be trust. Why do you think trust between owners, contractors, and consultants is still one of the industry's biggest challenges?

SPEAKER_02 14:59

Yes, yes. It's uh I think it's just you know, these mega projects, as you know, they involve lots of money. And uh, you know, they usually when things go good, they they they go good. When they go and they go bad, they can go really bad. And and it's just uh I think it's just because of the you know, the money, the financial impacts, the you know, there's a level of risk sharing amongst the owners and the contractors that you know, some again back to relationship and collabor collaboration. Some some owners kind of figure it out, some don't. And there's just I just see it. I've been through all aspects of the, you know, actually the the building constructor, the the managing contractor, the epcm, the owner. And there's just a there's a there's a barrier of trust, you know, throughout that whole supply chain. And it's just it's just frustrating because I I know that everybody on the project, and maybe not everybody, but 99%, they that everybody wants to do a good job. You're in this industry, we're all professionals. We actually want to deliver, you know, for ourselves, for our you know, our self-satisfaction, for our companies, for the owners, the clients. And there's just uh you know, there's always just this perception that the contractors are, you know, digging digging in the digging in the, you know, in the in the uh in the purses and just going after the money and not giving it their best effort, their best team. And it it's just it's just frustrating on my part. And I just I just try to that's what one one you know one of the things I just always try to focus on is that that team building aspect, uh really to build high performing teams amongst the amongst the project, not just your own team, but you've got to have that uh openness, trust, transparency, and that collaborative effort to to really I mean that's when you really see success just skyrocket.

SPEAKER_00 16:46

Absolutely. And I I think too, that's in every faucet of business, right? Where you just you have to have that trust and that relationship, especially if you want to grow. And it's extremely important. And just like you mentioned, sometimes, especially on large-scale projects, I've seen it over my career where you know everybody's kind of going after each other in different forms or fashions, unfortunately. And sometimes, you know, that trust is missed and lost along the way, especially if somebody misses one little deadline, you know, or or something happens or the delay and whatever it may be. And you know, there's a lot of moving pieces, but I think you're exactly right. Everybody that's in the industry, they definitely want to do a good job, right? I don't think anybody intentionally ever sets out to, you know, make a mistake or miss a deadline or anything on purpose, especially when there's lots of moving pieces, and I think that's one thing, especially on big, large-scale projects. We all know that one minor setback can, you know, change the game. You know, drastically across the end or across the project for sure. Yep. Well, Carl, thank you so much today for jumping on the podcast. We definitely appreciate it. You know, like we mentioned the other day, our goal is to, you know, share this kind of experience with young engineers that are coming into the industry, into the trades, being able to promote engineering, being able to, you know, talk about careers, talk about, you know, different stories, different things that we learned along the way, just trying to be a good positive impact to the youth today that are coming out of college or that are maybe looking for careers while they're in college and looking to you know transition into an engineering type role. So we definitely appreciate everything you've done in the industry. We we definitely appreciate your time.

SPEAKER_02 18:25

So no problem. And like I said, David, I've got a vested interest. I've got a young engineer in Nebraska. He's out here, took his first internship at Kewit. And you know, I feel proud that you know my our lifestyle, our you know, what we've done and accomplished has kind of inspired him to you know to also pursue engineering. So anytime, any anything you need. I'm uh I'm a huge advocate of uh the developing the next generation.

SPEAKER_00 18:51

So absolutely. Well, thank you so much, Carl, for jumping on today, buddy.

SPEAKER_02 18:55

Sounds great. Sounds great. Appreciate it, buddy.

SPEAKER_00 18:59

Yeah, that's exactly right. Have a good week, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:01

Yeah, you too. Cheers. Cheers.

SPEAKER_01 19:07

This has been another great episode of Under Pressure, Compressor Talk by Midwest Compressor, with your host, David Abshire. Until next time, keep pumping.