Civil engineering is perhaps a profession in a perpetual state of evolution. The Earth spins; populations grow; civil engineers design and build new infrastructure for the changing times.
So too must ASCE be prepared for the pace of change and lead the industry boldly into the future.
It’s been the common thread running through the ASCE Board of Direction’s work this year, particularly at its quarterly meeting Oct. 7-8 in Seattle ahead of the ASCE 2025 Convention.
Governance reframing
The board approved recommendations from the Task Committee on Governance Restructuring that aim at better equipping leadership to act more nimbly; a board that is more strategic and agile.
The approved measure would reduce the board from 18 members to 12. It would create a new Geographic Board of Governors comprising the chairs of each Region Board of Governors, similar in structure and function to the current Technical Region Board of Governors.
This would expand leadership roles at the region level. Meanwhile, with the Geographic Board of Governors and the Technical Board of Governors assuming greater responsibility for operations and leadership of the geographic units, the members of the ASCE Board of Direction would be freed up to focus more of their time on the Society’s larger strategic direction.
The changes would also enfranchise more members during the annual election cycle, giving nearly all voting members the chance to vote for geographic directors, technical directors, and the president-elect.
The board instructed the Governing Documents Committee to draft changes to the Society Constitution for consideration at the January board meeting. The amended constitution must pass with at least two-thirds board approval in January on the first reading and in March on a second reading, followed by two-thirds approval of voting members in the Society election in May, before taking effect.
Workforce development
Workforce development continues to be a major point of emphasis at ASCE.
The board voted to approve a series of recommendations from the Board Strategic Advisory Council – based largely on recent work by the Task Committee on Transforming Our Workforce.
The approved focus goals for ASCE’s workforce strategy are:
- Understand how to implement new roles, education pathways, AI, and flexible work.
- Help members become “employers of choice” to retain talent.
- Strengthen the pipeline into the profession.
To accomplish this, the board approved the creation of a Committee on Workforce and Education that will coordinate several groups, including the Committee on Pipeline and Pathways, the Committee on Advancing Accreditation, the Committee on Developing Faculty Excellence, and the Committee on Career Advancement. Essentially, it’s a synthesis of existing workforce initiatives into a more streamlined, focused, and collaborative framework.
As 2025 Past-President Marsia Geldert-Murphey said during the meeting, “This is far beyond an esoteric concern. Civil engineering workforce is a five-alarm fire we have to address.”
Holistic leadership training
Leadership (personal career growth) and ASCE leader training (Society-specific guidance) are not the same things, though they often get conflated. The Task Committee on 2028 and Beyond Leadership Development made a point to distinguish between the two as it presented a final report to the board.
Among the group’s findings: the importance of ASCE developing a more cohesive training journey for individuals from student to senior leader. There are many Society leadership offerings but perhaps not a clearly enough defined, holistic structured approach across career stages.
The board approved the recommendations and directed ASCE staff to implement them in building a more integrative training model.
For career leadership growth, ASCE has a new leadership and management training certificate program set to launch in 2026.
Getting meta
An update on implementation of the Society’s strategic plan took an interesting, meta turn as the board was challenged to engage in a strategic future-scanning workshop led by Mike Chester, Ph.D., M.ASCE, director of the Metis Center for Infrastructure and Sustainable Engineering at Arizona State University. The process – designed to disrupt and innovate – put board members in an open headspace, considering the ASCE of decades from now while allowing for all kinds of change agents, from large-scale cyber attack on infrastructure all the way to alien invasion.
Communications possibilities
In an ongoing effort to improve Society connectivity, the board had two separate conversations to consider new means of member communications – first on Younger Member and Student Member Communications and another exploring the possibility of building an app for easier access to ASCE Collaborate.
Getting ready for ASCE2027
Plans for ASCE2027: The Engineering and Infrastructure Experience, March 1-5, 2027, in Philadelphia, are well underway. The board received an update on all the moving parts, including its new website. The call for content is now open through March 4.
Time of transition
As with every ASCE autumn, the October board meeting marked a transition with outgoing board members saying goodbye, followed by induction of the incoming class of directors at the annual business meeting.
“It was the honor of a lifetime and one I will never forget,” said Carol Martsolf, outgoing Region 2 director, in her farewell to the board.
Geldert-Murphey, whose three-year presidential cycle concluded, bid farewell with a piece of advice for the new directors: “Don’t be constrained by what is, but think about what can be.”
Additionally, the meeting was the last for Tom Smith, who will retire Dec. 31 after 11 years as the Society’s executive director.
“I feel privileged and honored to have been in this position,” Smith told the board. “And I thank you for letting me serve.”
