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Lakey credits military education for preparing him to lead

Training for his new position as the transportation systems engineer started well before Caleb Lakey (pictured below) was considering a career with ITD.

"Caleb carries himself with a quiet calm, with confidence and ability that underlines his leadership strengths," said Blake Rindlisbacher, ITD's Division of Engineering Services manager. "Those things were evident during the interviews for the job, I fully expect that those same qualities will be embraced by his team here at ITD. It will be exciting to see in all unfold."

Lakey, who graduated from the United States Military Academy in 2006, said his education prepared him to seek out new challenges and opportunities.

"It was a great experience," Lakey, 34, said of his time at the academy in upstate New York. "I got to do a lot of unique things. The Military Academy challenged me to work with multiple objectives at once."

The environment at the academy also included developing the ability to work with, and lead, others.

"A large part of education there is about leadership," Lakey said. "We always say, 'We minored in leadership.' So much of what the Army does is about relationship building."

Caleb started his career at the Idaho Transportation Department in March of 2012 as a staff engineer in the environmental section. In 2014, he became the asset management engineer in the transportation systems section.

His first day as the new transportation systems engineer was July 18. His duties include managing the systems and staff that help inform the transportation department's decision making.

"It's a new level of management," he said. "There's a lot of technology involved with the job, and it involves balancing the strategic needs and wants of the department while staying current with systems that are useful."

Before joining the transportation department, Lakey worked as an environmental engineer for the U.S. Army from 2006 to 2011.