As the head of Stantec’s “Idea Machine,” John is responsible for surfacing, developing, and disseminating innovative ideas across Stantec as part of the Office of Innovation. A civil engineer by training with a doctorate in construction engineering and management, John has focused his research on the organizational design of global AEC firms, evaluating where they have network silos and figuring out how to break these silos down to create productive collaboration.
John believes that creativity comes from “boundary spaces” where people are exposed to ideas and opinions that they wouldn’t otherwise see in their daily work. In his design of the idea submission and refinement process, he encourages employees to be relentlessly curious and to span the boundaries of their business lines and geographies. Once ideas have been developed, John uses networks, business processes, technology, and internal communications to disseminate and implement these ideas across the company.
John has a passion for building things, whether that’s process system improvements, real estate investing, or woodworking. He also helps his brother run a coffee roasting company called Jubilee Roasting Co.
