Future Focus Task Force

Status Report – February 2024

What is the Future Focus Task Force?

What’s Our Future? How Can You Contribute?
It’s been a great ride!   We have surely made this a better world through the projects completed with our clients, innovations, and professional service.  During this ride, many strong and cherished friendships evolved amongst employees, family members and colleagues. But where do we go from here? To answer that question, a “Future Focus” Task Force is leading efforts to help define aspects of what CHAA members want our future to be, and to help forge that future working together with Board of Directors leadership.  This new segment on our web site will provide information about this initiative, and how individuals can be involved.

Future Focus Task Force (FFTF) Vision and Mission
The FFTF was convened in February. with guidance from Rick Luebbers to start with the foundation and concepts of the Association to date but with the directive to be creative going forward. Rick provided the following poignant statements in a document launching this task force:

“It is becoming increasingly clear that CHAA, as it is now configured, has a limited lifespan. We are at a turning point and need to decide if the future course is to continue current services to existing and potential CHAA members for as long as possible, and let the organization expire as comfortably as possible.  Or should CHAA change directions and begin to focus on relationships and activities beyond the current organization, with the goal of extending the future of CHAA, in some form, well into the future.

“It is proposed to initiate a Task Force to investigate options for growing beyond the current limits of CHAA. The vision is to share our CH2MHILL legacy more broadly and to facilitate a long-term future for the organization.  As the future of CHAA is re-envisioned, the goal is to make the organization more attractive to a wider range of people. In the process, we will have to revisit our current goals, mission, and value proposition. Membership in CHAA must provide some intrinsic value to current, and especially to prospective, members to remain viable over time.”

As a result, a team was formed to consider the possibilities for the CHAA’s future.

Overview
The following graphic, which morphed from the January brainstorming session, provides an overview of the task force’s focus and schedule.  The intent is to work closely with alumni association committees through which changes in our organization will ultimately flow, particularly the reunions/regional activates and membership committees.

Phase 1 – 2023
The initial thrust will be towards recognizing and nurturing Pay it Forward endeavors by alumni. Such activities can provide continued growth of our legacy, and most importantly enhance opportunities for purposeful sharing, communication, and nurturing. There is urgency in so doing as a part of sustaining our membership growth at this pivotal time.

Phase 2 – 2024
Activity extending into 2024 will focus on identifying organizations envisioned to endure beyond that of CHAA, within which CH2MHILL’s history and legacy might be sustained.

Future Focus – Living the Legacy and Paying It Forward
Included in Exhibit 1 is a sampling of examples wherein alumni have and/or are Paying it Forward. Their contributions include skills, knowledge, and wealth-sharing which in many cases can largely be attributed to their careers with CH2MHILL.

The purposes of this exhibit are to briefly recognize the amazing accomplishments already being achieved by alumni, to encourage other alumni to share their examples, and especially to inspire others to undertake similar endeavors. The intent is this exhibit will become a “living document”, updated periodically along with progress reports by the FFTF, and a permanent listing of Pay it Forward contributions by CHAA members.

CHAA Future Focus – Paying It Forward Examples

We hope that the individuals listed in the exhibit will eventually provide articles that provide more details of their activities, and enrich the educational and inspirational value. There are already a number of articles posted on our web site over years wherein alumni have shared in greater detail their Pay it Forward type endeavors. A link is provided to a listing of such articles, with coupled links to the articles. https://ch2mhillalumni.org/alumni-history/alumni-contributions/#proBono.

One of the key areas of advocacy to date can be found in this description of the work of the CH2M HILL Foundation (It presents activities by the CH2MHILL Foundation, formed in 1992, the Company itself, and Individual endeavors recorded in newsletters from 2002 -2022 (see individual hyperlinks). Most notably, the CH2M HILL Foundation provided a $1M grant in 2016 for supporting STEM and community development and sustainability to such organizations as Bridges for Prosperity, Water for People, and Engineers without Borders. Our hope is to include more activities you can join in and more acknowledgements for these kinds of “living the legacy” activities. Here is a link to the CH2M HILL Foundation description. https://ch2mhillalumni.org/alumni-history/alumni-contributions/ch2m-foundation/

Two new articles are included with this revision of the web site. Dave Dunagan takes us to Nashville, TN to visit Tom Simpson during his recovery from two recent strokes. In addition to two friends from Tom’s photography club, Dave brought along video greetings from  several CHAA members: Doug Baughman, John Caldwell, David Dunagan, Steve Gong, Don and Lee Holmes, Bill Kreutzberger, Regina McClintock, Mike Mynhier, and Ronald Vaughn. Another 23 greetings from members of Tom’s photography club were also included. David also showed Tom a humorous wildlife video he made, “That Wascally Wabbit!.” The link to these supporting videos is: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FMV6lUTi9CUmW6oPGHB3SGaywg9Hbq02

Deanne Faucheux takes us into the world of Taj Bakare as he recounts his adventures on his journey to becoming an engineer and the coach and mentor he wished he had had as a young engineering student in Nigeria and later in New York.  Both exemplify the spirit of CHAA and the power our relationships and advocacy can have in making the world a better place.

Links to the David Dunagan and Tajadeen Bakare articles are provided below:

Legacy In Action, by Deanne Faucheux
Alumni and Friends Rally to Support Tom Simpson, By David Dunagan

Get Involved!
Sounds like a bright future with new opportunities to live the legacy. How can you contribute? Help create the CHAA of the future by joining the Future Focus Task Force. Bring your ideas and the connections you have with your favorite friends, service projects or organizations, and institutions where advocating for our industry is needed and make a difference as we go forward.  Volunteers to join our Task Force are most welcome!

If you have a passion to leverage your years of experience to get really involved in the Pay it Forward aspects of CHAA’s future, please connect with a FFTF member. Other contributions that would be highly valued include:

1. Share Pay it Forward examples where CHAA members are engaged in living the legacy and making a difference. Please send either a brief highlight to be included in the exhibit of examples, or an article for inclusion in on the website and/or future newsletters. Use the listing of possibilities in the graphic as a checklist, and add further ideas.
2. Share your vision of the future function and future value of our CHAA to both alumni and to association.
3. Check out the CHAA website for news and information on activities you might enjoy in your local or regional network.

Future Focus Task Force Members
The current members of the Future Focus Task Force are presented in the table below, along with their roles, and email contact information. The membership reflects one of the task force’s early adopted tenets, to proactively start integrating the development of Pay it Forward aspects with other priority initiatives. These include sustaining membership and membership growth with an emphasis on regional bonds and activities as a valued part of our future.

The CHAA belongs to all of us and all of us can share in its mission. To get involved and contribute, contact any of our task force members.