SEPTEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Dakota Cail

Dakota is a project engineer and has been with JR Merit for nearly five years. He joined us in January 2020 after graduating from Oregon State University with a degree in civil engineering. “I met JR Merit at a career fair. I was initially intrigued by the hydropower work that JR Merit does. I was actually just walking around the career fair and saw the picture of a dam on JR Merit’s banner and thought, ‘That’s cool, I’ll talk with them!’ I always thought I’d want to do something with rivers and hydropower. I started out studying the design side but ended up more interested in construction.”

Asked what initially got him interested in design and construction, Dakota said he enjoyed playing with Legos as a kid. “I always liked building stuff not using the instructions, just being creative. The wide range of work we do allows for creative problem solving. What I like about construction is being able to see things built—to touch it and feel it rather than just see it in my mind’s eye. For that reason, I think going into construction was the better choice for me.”

Dakota loves the team aspect of our work. “I really enjoy working with the different project managers, superintendents, and other project engineers. Everyone has different experiences and skillsets; we’re kind of a melting pot in that way, and we get to bring those experiences together in a creative way to solve the problem at hand. I also enjoy sharing my lessons learned. I like teaching, and the openness to learning at JRM is surprising. It’s not just about teaching down but teaching up. I didn’t expect that coming out of college. Nobody here has an ego about it; everyone is humble about learning from each other.”

He also enjoys the diversity of projects we do. “In my first few years here, I worked primarily on our food and beverage sustaining works projects. Recently in the last year or so I’ve gotten to do more hydro projects, including turbine overhauls and fish passage work. I really enjoy the diverse work we do.”

I like teaching, and the openness to learning at JRM is surprising. It’s not just about teaching down but teaching up. I didn’t expect that coming out of college.

Dakota finds the diverse amount of work we do can be a bit of a double-edged sword. “Some of the work we do is really challenging because of how old the facilities are. Many hydro facilities were built in the early 1900s, and they don’t always have good records; there aren’t a lot of written manuals for how to take apart the unit and put it back together! This creates the challenge of knowing where to find the tribal knowledge of people who have done these kinds of projects before you, and from the documentation that does exist, to be able to get things back together and get it running again. But I get bored easily doing the same thing over and over, so the opportunity to dive into different problems, different scopes and jobsites, and different clients is really rewarding.”

During college, Dakota worked in one of the onsite dining centers all four years. “I worked a lot of breakfast shifts. I’m not a morning person but I figured I could come in half asleep and knock out work before class. I guess it got me ready for the early mornings in construction. This morning, I left my house at 5am while the sun was coming up over Mount Hood.

“In my last two years at the dining center, I was one of the more experienced employees, so I was assigning duties to other people. It gave me a chance to work on my management and delegation skills. Now, working with other project engineers and project managers, I find myself being able to apply those skills as we all work together to accomplish projects.

“I was also a trainer—because of how long I’d been there, I was happy to train and coach others. I was probably training people before it was official, too. I like teaching and seeing the light bulb turn on when something I taught them clicks and they get it. It’s kind of a high for me!”

In the next five years, Dakota wants to lead projects that require creative solutions and offer opportunities to teach and support the team. “My personal goal is to help team members develop their skills while working through challenges together. If you foster a collaborative environment that emphasizes learning and growth, successful project results will follow.”

Working on hydro projects takes our teams out to some remote and beautiful areas, and Dakota has found ways to maximize the experiences. “Last winter I was in eastern Idaho fishing on my lunch break. There was snow on the ground and mountains in the background…what more can you ask for?!”

Dakota does a lot of bass fishing when he’s off the clock, too. “I fish a lot in the Columbia and Willamette Rivers. I also enjoy playing with my dogs and going on walks with them and my wife—we have a German shepherd and a loveable one-of-a-kind mixed breed dog. My wife and I also like hosting events at our house and playing board games with friends. I try to ski as much as possible in the winter. But it’s mainly lots of fishing. Wait, lots of hanging out with my wife, and a little fishing. I have to make sure that’s in here if she reads this.”