McGrath leaving ITD for consulting firm
in Green Bay, Wisconsin

Leaving behind a big pair of shoes to fill after several significant safety initiatives and a list of impressive achievements, ITD Chief Operations Officer (COO) Travis McGrath heads to an Engineering News Record national top 100 design firm in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where he will be the COO for a private consulting company starting in early April.

McGrath joined ITD in March 2017 from the private sector. He had been at Golder Associates in the Seattle area for nearly 20 years before joining the agency.

He also served as a Combat Engineer Officer for more than a decade on active duty and as a reserve for the U.S. Army. He led a platoon during both Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm.

“I’m sad to be leaving ITD," McGrath said. "I’ve really enjoyed working with so many great people to advance ITD’s mission and vision.  I’m most proud of collaborating with colleagues to shift our safety mindset to our employees and to implement several statewide initiatives within One Highways.”

“I appreciate how employees everywhere in ITD were always willing to share how they do their jobs, their innovations, ideas, and concerns with me.  It’s a matter of personal pride for me to quickly respond to employee feedback.  I hope by doing so, the Executive, Senior, and Highways Leadership Teams were able to bring ITD a little closer to an ideal workplace.”

“I learned just how committed ITD’s employees are to providing good service to our external customers, from ice-free roads to safe bridges to timely driver services.  And I also saw how much pride our support folks take in enabling ITD’s 'internal' customers, whether procuring road salt, paying vendors on time, upgrading our software systems, or flying us around the state (go Aero!).”

“But sometimes life gives you an opportunity you can’t pass up.  So I’m headed to private industry for an employee-owned consulting company, which is another environment I really love.”  

McGrath was a tremendous asset for ITD.

"His commitment to timely delivery of high-quality highway projects benefited both the agency’s operations and also delivers these products more quickly to Idaho’s taxpayers and road users." ITD Director Brian Ness said. "Thanks to him, nearly all infrastructure projects are now delivered at the beginning of the fiscal year."

"He was instrumental in bringing on and mentoring four new district engineers statewide over the last nine months. During his tenure, Travis was also committed to safety, spearheading the Fatigue Management Policy and providing better safety gear for employees."

"Travis had a huge impact on ITD in a short period of time," Ness added.

Published 02-27-20