Mike Siebieda is a project manager for the Inland division at C.A. Murren. October 22nd is his third anniversary at the company, so we sat down with Mike to found out what lies behind blue eyes.
Before he came to C.A. Murren, Mike was a business owner himself. “I’ve been in management most of my life. Even in high school. I started out delivering pizzas then became the store manager. My goal will always be to move up, learn and grow.”
Perhaps the owner’s mindset is what makes Mike such a successful project manager. “There’s a lot of similarities between owning your own business and running a project—you literally own the project: permits, licensing and insurance have to be in order, scheduling subs, cost/budget, and even in dealings with our clients—you own the project.”
Mike started out in West Virginia on a job called Victory Gap. He was hired on as a project manager but stepped up as a project engineer because that’s what was needed at that moment. This willingness to do what is needed is just one of the qualities that makes Mike such a valuable team member. He’s also very positive, always kind, and thinks highly of others. “I love my job. I’ve been fortunate to get to work with some great superintendents here and I love it, because collaboration with the superintendent is crucial to a job going smoothly.”
He also thinks highly of his family. He met his wife, Ashley, in college. When asked when he knew he wanted to marry her, he said, “Not too long after we met. She was a travel agent, and just as passionate as I was about traveling.”
They still like to travel. Now they travel with their daughter, Brontae, who is 12 and likes doing anything involving design. They’ve been to many places across the ocean and up and down the Americas, but Mike says his favorite place is still Chincoteague, an island in Virginia that he has gone to since he was a kid. It is a national reserve and holds a population of wild ponies.
His two favorite fundamentals are number 17—think and act like an owner, and number 27—collaborate. His teammates tend to agree. Some say they love Mike because he’s so organized. Others say it’s because he’s a great communicator. But no matter who you ask, you’re always going to see the underlying message: that Mike is one of our best team players because he’s a fabulous guy. “Mike is dedicated, motivated, and takes pride in his work. He’s not afraid of hard work, either, not scared to put in the work. He’s somebody who, at the midnight hour, when you need something done, he’ll be right there with you getting it done. You don’t have to look around wondering ‘where’d Mike go?’”
Mike, thank you. We love having you on our team. Happy anniversary!
