“ If you want to be a structural engineer, you have to be passionate about what you are doing” said Max Lee. As a structural engineer, Max Lee has over 20 years of experience in the government agency, working up to the deputy commissioner position in Department of Building. However, he is now a managing partner in a private inspection company; managing the marketing team, expediting paperwork and performing special inspections for existing and new building projects. I sat down and interview Max at his office in East Broadway, New York. As a managing partner, he said “I type a lot every day, and there is a lot of pressure, especially when there are multiple projects to work with. But communication with the team and client through email and phone is the key to finishing our projects.” I agreed, as an intern working under Max, I felt pressured when multiple projects goes wrong in every aspect. He then gave me advice on how to alleviate the stress. According to Max, spending time on your hobbies is a great way to release stress, for example his favorite hobby is to go out and play tennis because it lets him release his stress onto the tennis ball.
Max had to make many difficult choices before becoming a deputy commissioner, he chose to become a civil engineer because he was influenced by his family. His father and uncle were an engineer; therefore, he grew an interest in engineering. He studied structural engineering in Polytechnic Institute of New York and worked hard in school. As he became a senior in college, he was confused about his career path. There were two career paths he had to choose, become a construction manager or a structural engineer designer, but he said, “School had never guided me in making career decisions and had very little advice when I graduated.” It was a difficult decision for him, but he chose to become a structural engineer designer while many of his friends went into the construction management field.
He began his career at the New York City School Construction Authority, his first government agency job, overlooking documents and construction drawings. He was passionate about working in NYCSCA, but there were times he grew bored because government agency takes a long time to process their work. Later he was even laid off, “I can’t believe I had been laid off, I thought it was a stable job because it was a government job, who would’ve thought I could get laid off” said Max in a surprising tone. But this didn’t stop Max from changing his dedication from working in the structural engineering field while his friend was all changing their career paths because their interest changed. Max continued to search for jobs until he was accepted by the Department of Buildings. The work environment was different from when he worked as a NYCSCA even though the Department of Buildings was a government agency because there were more projects to overlook. Like me, he was a quick learner and is meticulous about his work, he moved up the ladder quickly. He became the deputy commissioner in the Department of Building.
After 10 years of working as a deputy commissioner, he made many connections with clients and decided to partner up with his friends to open an engineering inspection firm called Project Tactical Solutions Inspections. I asked,” What made you open an engineering inspection firm instead of an engineering design firm?” He told me there would be a greater amount of liability. As a engineering design firm, you would be an obstacle for the clients. He states if anything goes wrong with the project the engineer is responsible for everything. However, as a special inspection engineer, you won’t have to be an obstacle in the project, the clients are easier to deal with and the inspections are easier to manage.
Max feels more comfortable since he doesn’t have to follow any dress code, he wears casual clothing to work. But when he is meeting with a client, he prefers to dress in a business attire. Max inspects constructions daily, as well as have meetings with Department of Building to be update with the latest rules and regulations. He also states that he like his current work environment because he gets to travel everywhere in New York City. He prefers traveling around to different field environments and that’s why he chose to open an inspection firm. In my experience, I felt that customers always had the authority over me and was told customers were always correct. I asked if this was the same for a special inspection engineer, he told me he had always felt the same but as an inspection engineer, I get to decide if a project is a pass or fail. The client is not always right and as an inspection engineer, you have the authority over the client.
In a closing interview, Max gave me some advice along my career path as a structural engineer. He told me if I had a strong passion for structural engineer, stay in the field, if not, there are other fields that I should pay attention to because I will end up wasting my time. He added try to enter a private company first and gain valuable experience since the work environment is faster. But, switch to a government job for a slower work environment. I thanked him for the interview and asked him if he had any regrets being a structural engineer, Max replies “ Not at all, there is always something new to learn, especially when the world is always changing.”
