2021 Men of the Year: Ty Alexander

Ty Alexander is a geotechnologist and the principal engineer of the Springfield office of Terracon Consultants Inc. – but when he looks in the mirror, what he sees is a mentor.

Alexander began his career with Terracon in 1996, serving as a field technician before he had even graduated from college at the University of Wyoming. The national geotechnical consulting firm turned to Alexander when they wanted to establish a Springfield office in 2007.

Alexander’s focus is on strategic and intentional hiring of staff. The Springfield office is consistently one of the top-ranked offices out of Terracon’s 160 locations when it comes to employee engagement and satisfaction.

“I believe strongly in hiring talented people based on their shared values of servanthood and positivity,” Alexander says.

He says this results in a focus on personal development.

“We look for people with a servant’s heart who love helping each other and serving our clients and community, and then we invest in them through weekly discussions on leadership development and personal growth to help them grow both at work and at home,” he says.

Because of Alexander’s passion for mentoring, Terracon asked him to assist with leadership development in other parts of the company. He travels to mentor up-and-coming leaders in their offices, and he has developed a yearlong department manager training program for Terracon.

Terracon’s Springfield office has been in growth mode for the last year, in a period when many businesses were contracting. In the last six months, the office added eight new employees, bringing its total staff to 28 engineers, geologists, scientists and engineering technicians.

“We did so safely and, despite the challenges of 2020, were able to maintain ‘best in class’ results from our client feedback survey,” Alexander says.

Outside the office, Alexander is an adjunct professor at Missouri State University, where he teaches a construction soils and foundations class to juniors and seniors, while also helping students with their professional development and financial planning.

Alexander’s mentorship continues with his contributions as the professional adviser to the MSU and Missouri University of Science and Technology Cooperative Program of the Student Chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers. He also serves as a board member and volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Ozarks Inc.

He is president of the Springfield Contractors Association, whose signature project, Build U, offers high school students job-site tours and hands-on experience in multiple areas of construction, including heavy machinery, carpentry, flooring, welding, roofing, plumbing, electrical, masonry and concrete.

“Professionally, I would like to continue to invest my time into development of future leaders, helping to prepare them for opportunities both within Terracon and the community,” he says. “I am committed to continue to exert my limited influence in the most productive way possible to help young people see and reach for a life they never thought possible, and to do my best to help them gain the tools they need to achieve that life.”