A message from the County engineer, Dr. Milton Rahman

Dear Colleagues,

I am honored to write this letter to you on my first official day of work at Harris County Engineering Department. It is a privilege to join a team of talented and committed people dedicated to serving the citizens of Harris County.

In my first few days and weeks as County Engineer, I will listen closely to you, our customers, partners, elected officials, and their staff. I want to ensure we understand the expectations of our stakeholders and are on a path to meeting them. I will actively seek your input as we move forward. As you all know, the Vision of the Harris County Engineering Department is to become the most respected and trusted infrastructure agency in the nation. I will be working with the leadership team and many of you to create the strategies, goals, and priorities that will position us to deliver our promises to the residents of Harris County. I am a firm believer in servant leadership.

Over the past two weeks, I have been meeting with a number of the outstanding senior leaders at Harris County Engineering Department. We have agreed on our commitment to improve customer service, improve capital project management, invest in our people, and focus on our core values. I will be counting on your support for these initial priorities:

Invest in our people

We will train and invest in growing leaders at all levels and continually empower, challenge, and promote a diverse, collaborative and inclusive work environment.

Improve Customer Service

We will create measurable customer service goals for each team to earn and maintain public trust. We will listen with empathy; seek feedback, and respond appropriately, urgently, and respectfully. We are defined by our responsiveness and commitment to providing excellent customer service.

Efficient Capital Project Management

We will be implementing capital project management best practices, which are critical for all project sizes and types. I challenge the leadership team to evaluate project delivery success by measuring bids received within construction cost estimates, change orders, and on-budget/on-scheduled project delivery. We will implement organizational improvements by streamlining business processes, developing quality assurance and quality control processes, and removing layers of bureaucracy.

Focus on our core values

We will foster an inclusive environment that embraces oversight, accountability, transparency, safety, quality, integrity, and innovation.

I want to close by thanking Loyd Smith for his professionalism and support during this transition. I'm thankful that Loyd and the senior leadership have been willing to share their insights with me. I look forward to working with the senior management team and each of you to steer Harris County Engineering Department into the future and serve the citizens of Harris County.

I am grateful to be on this journey with you,

Milton Rahman, Ph.D., P.E.

Executive Director & County Engineer

Harris County Department of Engineering