Around Town: Alumni Impact
Around Town: Alumni Impact: a podcast highlighting the people and stories that shape our engineering community in the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering or CCEE at Iowa State University.
Around Town: Alumni Impact
Around Town: Alumni Impact with David Doxtad of ISG, Inc.
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On this episode of Around Town: Alumni Impact, we’re excited to welcome David Doxtad, a proud Iowa State University civil engineering alumnus and the 2025 Outstanding Young Alumni Award recipient.
David serves as President of ISG, a nationally recognized, multi-disciplinary design and engineering firm, where he has spent more than 15 years growing as a leader—from intern to principal to president. His work focuses on helping communities move forward through thoughtful planning, infrastructure design, and strategic investment.
A Cyclone through and through, David earned his degree in civil engineering from Iowa State and remains deeply connected to the profession through leadership, mentorship, and service. We’re thrilled to have him join us today to share his story and impact.
Welcome to Aroundtown Alumni Impact, a podcast highlighting the people and stories that shape our engineering community in the Department of Civil Construction and Environmental Engineering for CCE at Iowa State University. In each episode, we sit down with Cyclone Alumni to talk about their journey, from their time as students to their careers and the ways they continue to give back and make a difference. These conversations celebrate the impact of engineering, the power of connection, and the lasting role alumni play in supporting future generations. I'm your host, Linda Dainty, Alumni Outreach Specialist for CCEE. Today on Aroundtown Alumni Impact, we're excited to welcome David Doxted, a proud Iowa State University civil engineer alumnus and the 2025 Outstanding Young Alumni Award recipient. David serves as president of ISG, a nationally recognized multidisciplinary design and engineering firm, where he spent more than 15 years growing as a leader from intern to principal to president. His work focuses on helping communities move forward through thoughtful planning, infrastructure design, and strategic investment. A cyclone through and through, David earned his degree in civil engineering from Iowa State and remains deeply connected to the profession through leadership, mentorship, and service. We're thrilled to have him join us today to share his story and impact. Welcome, David.
SPEAKER_00Thank you very much. I'm excited to join you.
SPEAKER_01Yes, this is great. So we'll just start off, what what inspired you to pursue your civil engineering degree at Iowa State?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Um, I grew up in Northwest Iowa. Uh so my cyclone passion started pretty early. My civil engineering passion, on the other hand, was different. Um grew up on a farm, youngest of four boys in love farming with my dad. Uh, got to play with big toys in the dirt. Um, but so that probably planted some of those interests. But also a pre-calculus teacher made a statement to me that math was a strength and that engineering would actually align with that strength. And then a whole bunch of luck, and I guess I found my way into civil engineering.
SPEAKER_01Nice. Teachers have that kind of impact, don't they?
SPEAKER_00They do. They do.
SPEAKER_01What's your favorite memory or memorable story about your time studying at Iowa State?
SPEAKER_00Well, there's there's a lot of them. Some funny ones, some awkward ones for sure, and probably ones I shouldn't share on this podcast. But um, in general, in general, though, um, my brother Lucas had a slight change to his degree path, and that led him to Iowa State for education. And we had never had the opportunity to be in the same school at the same time. Um, it was awesome to see him take that leap to find his true passion guiding elementary kids, and just he really pours into them. Um, so dramatic to see someone find really that perfect place. My brother being on campus, showing me the ropes is a memory that I will cherish forever. Um, because we just never were on the same campus uh because he was a little bit older than me. So um outlining him that we could put athletic tickets on our U bill uh was transformational as well and resulted in some amazing memories, tailgating, attending games at Jack Trice and Hilton, or connecting for lunch on campus on a regular basis. Just so many of those memories um I will cherish forever.
SPEAKER_01So you did you start right off into the civil construction environmental engineering department?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I did. I I did. I thought I thought I was pretty lucky with that. You know, I and and found out pretty quickly that my favorite classes were my engineering classes. Um, so that was um, and I and I say luck just because I didn't I didn't know near as much about uh civil engineering uh until going into it. Uh, but the more I learned, the more I loved it. And and it's such a versatile um uh engineering degree that there's so many areas to focus. Um so that I thought that was always interesting. There were so many different aspects that you could really focus in on that you know the opportunities within civil um were kind of endless to begin with. So loved it, absolutely loved it, and um, and really have enjoyed my gracious uh opportunity there um to go through that program.
SPEAKER_01So was there any any person or any memory from civil construction environmental engineering that you think really showed you that you're on the right path?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Um I thought it was interesting. It was Civil Engineering 104. Um, I I think, you know, it's been a long time ago, so not I'm not perfect with the numbering, but it was a it was a class that really had a significant number of um, I would say professionals within the industry come in. And that was really where the rubber met the road for me on understanding some of the opportunities. And uh it was it was transformational for me when there was a there was an individual that came in that was doing, I was thinking it was nuclear power plants, um, so very impressive, and just kind of asked us a lot of questions around like, how often do you think I use what I learned at Iowa State, you know, going through some of the difficult like physics and calculus and things like that. Um, and you know, naive freshman um civil engineers, we were we were really thinking that he was hitting on that, hey, this is really important and you need to make sure that you're paying attention. Um, so we were we all kind of said, Oh, I'm sure they're sure it's all the time, and especially power plants and and how you know the level of safety and things like that. He's like, never, I have computer programs. Yeah, you are here to show your ability to learn, not what you're learning is going to be necessarily applicable to what you're going to do. It was just massively impactful for me, but I think it it definitely proved true that I learned so much coming out um and getting into the industry that was very applicable, but you still you could go back to how you learn and um and that ability to learn that was that was most certainly what you were really honing in on. And I think that you know, that's also the belief that we have with the growth mindset that you always need to be learning and you always need to be advancing. And and whether that's in your technical uh capabilities or your leadership capabilities, um, I think that that's something that's been very impactful for my career. And it's something that's always, I would, I would say, anchored me that you're not always gonna have the answer, but having the desire to seek out that answer is really, really important.
SPEAKER_01Oh, that's great. So we're transitioning here to your professional career. What what has been thus far your proudest professional accomplishment?
SPEAKER_00I've been graced with a few awards that are most certainly appreciated, to say the least. You hit on one from Iowa State, and that one, that one definitely hits me because being a cyclone that was uh most certainly impactful for for me and being able to enjoy that with my family uh memorable. Opening and growing in office was amazing. Uh, not easy, and you feel like you're you're not making the progress uh by any means that it's taking so much time. But in my position now, nearly all of my accomplishments are really helping others exceed their own expectations, uh getting them to believe in themselves and say yes to opportunities. I compare it to fishing. Um, when you start, it's always about how many fish, how big a fish, and that adrenaline rush uh adrenaline rush of the catch. Now, uh give me someone excited in the front of the boat and let me help get them on top of the fish. The perfect setup and the joy you see through them lasts way longer. So, in both work and life, you know, teams and family, it pretty quickly flips from me to we, and man, it's way more fun to do it together.
SPEAKER_01Oh, that's awesome. That was a great analogy. So, why do you think staying connected to Iowa State and the CCE community is important, even years after graduation?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, good question. I I think it specifically ties to our mission as an organization. Our mission is really simple. It's to make a difference. We look at giving either time, effort, or dollars uh as ways to complete our mission. They'll always be completing as there's always more difference to be made. Um, but we have a number of ISU graduates at ISG. So, how can we make that difference in the communities that helped us? As an ASOP with 600 employee owners, our community is vast. It's not just our colleges, our universities, it's our cities, it's our states. And with our volunteer hours in our impact fund, it's our nonprofits, our clients, and our passion. So being able to make that um that difference at Iowa State, I think is really important to us. Um, and it's really empowering to our employee owners.
SPEAKER_01You've been extremely supportive of the CCEE program, the town engineering renovation project, and our students. Was there a specific moment or experience that sparked your decision to support students?
SPEAKER_00A culmination of our mission, our people, our passion, and our desire to give back uh to our beginnings. In regard to the town engineering renovation specifically, uh, we have an amazing group of folks that made their way through the halls of town to our company. Impressive individuals. And frankly, that facility is not representative of the talent in the halls. Uh, if a tornado were ever to hit campus, I think I would know one spot that I would hold up is in town, but I'm not exactly looking for a bunker to learn. So it's not the place I would go for an amazing student experience in a dynamic uh learning environment. Um but it's needed to represent the quality of those students and provide that environment. We see it all the time, that that environment can really impact individuals and can be somewhere that you see creative ideas, the juices really flowing, and really want to create that type of environment for those particular students. And I think that you know it's a start. I think there's a lot that can be done. And I'm really impacted by what that means for those people and the different experience that they can receive going through the the program in that environment.
SPEAKER_01So how do you hope, I think you kind of answered this, how do you hope your generosity will impact future engineers?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, as a comparison to the town engineering improvements, we believe extensively in creating collaborative environments, exactly what you hit on. We do this for our clients all the time, uh, whether it be a commercial building and creating that culture for employees, uh, or all the work we do ourselves with the design of super dynamic learning environments in schools. You want to create something special, somewhere people want to be. For us internally, our offices are our heartbeat. The energy you get from others, the impact for our multidisciplinary teams to learn from each other with wildly different perspectives is really where we see the creative juices hitting. So we're proud in person, we are a proud in-person place to work firm and truly believe that it is important to our culture and facilitates the greatest ability to learn quickly. So really creating that same type of environment uh for students is is really what we're looking for in uh in this uh this particular project.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I follow you on LinkedIn and so I get to see some of your projects and click on them, and they are beautiful.
SPEAKER_00What when we even when we when we do look at our offices though, um I think it's really important that if people want to get people into an office and and we really believe we're you know that's gonna be the greatest ability to learn, you better make it a pretty special place to be. And I think I think our office locations and the offices themselves are really in a testament to that. That that's our ASOP dollars. That's our employee owners um putting their money out there to make sure that we have that type of environment to work in. But it means something to the people that we're recruiting as well of like, okay, you require me to be in the office, but at the same time, you're gonna provide a really fun space to work. Okay, I can get behind that in a little bit easier fashion. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01What advice would you give to current students or young alumni?
SPEAKER_00I feel like going back in time, there's plenty of things I would have told myself. Um, but uh to that point, uh, don't feel like your course coursework, your organizational involvement, or heck, your GPA equate to the only value you bring to an organization. Uh technical abilities are great. Uh, but you can show value in all kinds of experiences. You know, when you're coming out of school, list the various areas where you had legitimate experiences. There's something to be said about the individual that worked their tail off through college at a bar or construction site, or was the captain of their high school volleyball team. They don't teach you people skills in that last chapter of your calculus book. It's really the experiences throughout your life that that really show that. So don't be don't be scared to list those particular items. I pay attention to that um that involvement. Um, say yes to opportunities within your strengths. It's a big saying by us. Um, but the the real reason is because you don't want people to stop asking. If people are asking you to take a leap, they're asking for a reason. You still need to get accurate if it aligns with your strengths, but those are also very empowering opportunities. I'd also say use your internships to really hone in on what you want. If you find somewhere right away that you love, cool. That's awesome. If you feel like you need to try something else, do it. It's significantly less commitment to try it out as an intern than starting full-time. I think this is also important because I perhaps disagree that you need to work for three firms in the first five years of your career. Uh, I don't know exactly the number that they say nowadays that they convey to students, but really if you find the right spot and spend the right time, hopefully you can find the right spot the first time and really have a spot that will embrace you and support you. So um I think really taking that time through your internships and your opportunities. And then I just also say don't be scared to ask about the ownership ownership structure of potential companies. I never knew to even ask, and I wish somebody gave me the input, but being a previous uh S-Corp owner and then now an employee owner in 100% eStop, um, it's a huge benefit. And it's something that's not told uh to many. And I think it's really hum uh humbling, but I'm also empowering to m to ask that question and and see what people have to say because it becomes really important later in your career.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and such a benefit to know what that you're putting hard work into something and you're actually seeing the reward of that.
SPEAKER_00Agreed.
SPEAKER_01So when you think about the future of engineering or the next generation of cyclone engineers, what excites you the most?
SPEAKER_00I think it aligns specifically kind of across our industry, the architecture and engineering industries. Um, but I think our next generation's ability to embrace technology even greater allows us to focus on where we can really provide value. And what I mean by that is their that next generation's ability to really embrace that technology to take as many menial tasks or menial uh duties off of them to really focus where their creative juices can provide massive value. And I think that's really empowering to engineers. I know that empowers me to see where we can provide the greatest value. I think is is such an opportunity. It really empowers me each and every day because, you know, as a as the president of our firm, I think the often I can get mired down into the the running of the business and and I love I love the business that we run. But at the same time, the proudest moments are most certainly seeing projects come to life. And and we get a we have a really fun industry that you actually get to see and feel what we do. I think that's really empowering. You get to see the impacts that it makes on your community, you get to see the impacts that it makes on your family. Uh, those experiences are just experiences are just super empowering and impactful. And and I love that uh I think that next generation is really gonna find more and more time to do that creative work and use technology to eliminate some of the more menial tasks, hone in that value.
SPEAKER_01Well, that wraps up our conversation today, David. Thank you so much for taking the time to join us today and for sharing your story. Your journey from Iowa State to leading ISG is a powerful example of how engineering, leadership, and generosity can shape communities and create lasting impact.
SPEAKER_00Well, I appreciate that, Linda. It's been uh it's amazing to be able to speak about my own experience. Um hopefully it hopefully others hear that and see the opportunity that is in our industry. It's a super impactful degree, um, super impactful time at Iowa State, and most sure most most certainly enjoy enjoyed my time there, um, enjoy your time there, and um most certainly excited about the opportunities that are ahead of you. We're in a really exciting um industry that has opportunity and endless opportunities, and should be excited about those uh ahead of you. That's great.
SPEAKER_01Well, we're grateful as well for your continued support, your commitment to thoughtful design community partnerships, developing future leaders aligns closely with the values at Iowa State and CCE. And again, just working with your team. It's been wonderful. So thank you for being part of this first inaugural episode of Aroundtown Alumni Impact and for everything you do to support the next generation of Cyclone engineers.
SPEAKER_00Thank you and go Cyclones.
SPEAKER_01Thanks for listening to Aroundtown Alumni Impact. I hope today's conversation showcased the many ways CCE alumni give back, stay connected, and help shape the future of our department. Join us next time as we continue highlighting the alumni impact happening all around CCE.