He resisted Civil Engineering, now he’s the Highways Sector Lead for AECOM EMEA
Costanzo is the Highways Sector Lead for AECOM EMEA, a holder of a PhD in Civil Engineering and the son of a legendary Italian bridge engineer.
It’s not unusual to wander off to the thought-to-be-impossible during a conversation with him. He is in a relentless pursuit for excellence in everything that he does. From his career, to his sports hobbies, to the four languages that he speaks, Costanzo is by every definition of the word inspirational.
During our podcast Costanzo shared deep career insights, the values that help engineers to get to the top, as well as his high-level insight for the construction industry.
Perfectionism can and will hold you back
He won 1 Billion Euros worth of work in his first role in business development, and he did that by being as pragmatic as he could be. Putting perfectionism aside, as he describes, enabled him to make realistic, fast decisions in order to achieve his goals.
It’s not about grand visions, it’s about the next challenge
Rarely are grand visions spoken about or described in conversations with Costanzo. He is always focused on the next challenge, and step by step, he is achieving big things. He got his PhD to differentiate himself from his father. He moved to the UK for work so that he could follow a different path than those around him. He then moved back to Italy and switched his career path from a technical direction to business development because he was feeling too comfortable. Then he moved from a contractor to consulting conglomerate AECOM as he felt that he learned all there was to learn at his current position.
When asked about how an 18-year-old him would look at someone in his position he said “I thought I’d never get there”.
Not knowing something, doesn’t make you stupid - it makes you real
It’s tempting to nod your head and act like you already knew. Costanzo’s ability to level with you and make you feel special is second to none. He is conscious of where he stands and who stands around him. Always humble, he repeatedly speaks about how important it is to invest time in your relationships with both your customers as well as your team members.
Make money (you need it)
He doesn’t shy away from speaking about the importance of profitable projects. A win for your company, as Costanzo explains, is not simply a technically challenging project, but a project that will help you be financially successful. In order to sustainably and consistently be able to deliver high quality projects, you need to be making money. The two go hand in hand.
Feeling inadequate can serve you well
Feeling inadequate is not usually associated with positive epithets. Costanzo actively selects to remind himself that there are people who are smarter than him, always. He uses these feelings as fuel to work harder, to challenge himself and to keep improving.
For all the above and more great stories and insights listen to our podcast here:
