LEAD: WE’RE PASSIONATE ABOUT OUR MISSION Cody Sullivan, Chair, Leadership Engagement & Development Committee Over the past several months, LEAD members have been hard at work determining practical actions that will positively impact the association and provide value to its members and the industry at large. Understanding that it is important to start any journey on firm footing, LEAD took the time to establish a formal mission and vision that provides clarity and focus when making decisions and provides a beacon to guide us into the future. MISSION: To foster a culture of leadership, engagement, and continuous development among rising leaders in the asphalt industry to drive innovation, sustainability, and industry excellence. VISION: To equip rising leaders with the trust, confidence, and opportunities to steer the success of the asphalt industry by uniting people and ideas for a better future. The committee has formed three working groups: the Mid-Atlantic Asphalt Expo, the LEAD Workshop, and the Highway Worker Safety Awareness Campaign. The Mid-Atlantic Asphalt Expo (MAAE) team has focused on raising awareness of LEAD and its mission and recruiting future members at this event. LEAD members will moderate many sessions, and a LEAD booth will be set up in the expo where attendees can meet current members. Stop by and talk to us about our mission and learn how you or others at your firm can get involved! The LEAD workshop team is developing an event that provides great value to rising leaders of the asphalt industry. You can expect a guest speaker who will delve into leadership, what it takes to achieve success and insight into technological and general industry developments. Since engagement is a founding tenet of LEAD, time to connect with industry peers and build your personal and professional network will also be an important element of this event. The workshop is tentatively planned for the day before the 2025 regional Asphalt Seminar in Fredericksburg. This opportunity will be open to all, so watch for registration to open in the coming months. During one of the early LEAD meetings, before the committee decided how LEAD would function, a lively discussion took place around the dangers highway workers face during their everyday duties and the limited awareness of the public. Understandably, this ignited a passionate response from the committee and a drive to make a difference for the highway workforce. LEAD’s last working group has moved to initiate a campaign to increase public awareness of highway worker safety. The campaign’s firsthand stories told by highway workers are testimonials of near 28 FALL/WINTER 2024
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