In his role, Joe oversees teams of PWSA Field Operations crews. Above, crews operate a water valve to complete water main repair work.
Give us a brief description of your responsibilities at PWSA.
In my role, I lead a team of Field Operations Senior Managers who are responsible for managing crews and schedules to respond to issues in the field, including water main breaks, restoration issues, and other emergencies or customer complaints. There’s a lot of communication that goes into this and I work closely with other PWSA teams, including Water Production and Public Affairs for instance, to ensure we’re prioritizing our field work and resolving field and customer issues.
When did you join PWSA? What made the Authority an attractive career for you?
I joined PWSA in 2019 as Senior Manager of Field Operations at Brilliant Yard. I’ve made so much of my career in the field, and prior to that I spent about 10 years at the Pennsylvania-American Water. There I held a variety of roles, working my way up from Meter Technician to supervisor positions.
I chose to join the Authority because I was looking for an organization I could grow with and I knew PWSA was ramping up their hiring efforts. I was also attracted to PWSA’s focus on their water department and quality and by the visionary mindset of our leadership team.
What impact do you hope to have at the Authority?
PWSA is growing our workforce at a tremendous pace and that requires a lot of new hire training. I’ve really enjoyed this aspect of the work – I get to pass on my knowledge and expertise so these individuals can start their own careers.
Any crazy stories from working in the field?
In the field you’re sometimes seeing customers on a rough day. I remember one time I arrived at a customer’s house to find water running from the owner’s front door and coming out their back door. In those situations, what you really want to do is explain to the customer what’s happening and how you’re going to fix it. It requires lots of communication, and some education as well.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I’m a big sports fan and, for the past seven years or so, I’ve enjoyed coaching my son’s baseball team. I also like spending time with my family and high school friends, many of whom are still in the area (I’m a lifelong Pittsburgher!).
