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Every position, project, and metric from 14+ years across military service, Fortune 500 programs, federal healthcare, pharmaceutical facilities, and tribal nation construction. This is the single source of truth.
$26B+
Portfolio value managed
951
Projects delivered
21
States & territories
6
Employers
25,000+
Copilot users
100,000+
Lbs relief delivered
Founder, President, and CEO
Bellevue, WA
SDVOSB | OMWBE-certified MBE | 60+ construction projects | $60M+ portfolio | 17+ states and territories
Founded Weigh Anchor in March 2022 to build a technology services firm for the built environment. The firm has grown into a national multi-practice operation: AI and Business Process Engineering as the primary practice, with seismic resilience programs, federal program framework architecture, direct federal construction and owner's representation, security infrastructure, and AI tooling rounding out the bench. Engagements span Fortune 500 pharmaceutical clients, federal agencies (DOJ, VA), 40+ tribal nations directly served plus 80+ tribal nations executing against frameworks Weigh Anchor designed, healthcare systems, and life sciences companies, across 17 states and territories.
Founded with Roxana Forghani (CPA, former Deloitte Senior Manager) as CFO and co-owner. The decision to establish CFO-level financial leadership as a founding ownership position was deliberate, drawn directly from the lessons of Alpha CREW: legal and financial structure are engaged from day one, not added after the fact. This structure has held through every subsequent stage of the firm.
Certifications: SDVOSB (Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business) and MBE (Minority Business Enterprise, OMWBE-certified). Not DBE. Virtually all work won to date has been private sector and competitive federal, not federal set-aside.
The firm's primary practice. BPE-led, not automation-led: the work begins by defining the business process, gathering and organizing the data, designing the system, and building stakeholder buy-in. Automation is the final layer applied after the process has been engineered. Automation count is a downstream artifact of the actual work, not the value proposition.
Stakeholder coordination on a typical engagement spans facility directors and engineering managers (program ownership), Health and Safety leadership and process owners (subject matter authority on the underlying assessments and risk frameworks), IT and platform representatives (Smartsheet, Power Automate, Power BI, DocuSign, SharePoint, ServiceNow governance and integration approvals), business process owners (operational ownership of the workflows), and end users (risk assessors, safety owners, reviewers, contractors submitting work orders, scientists).
Ongoing Business Process Engineering support across Pfizer's Global Workspace Experience (GWE) and EHSS organizations: workflow automation, custom dashboard development, automated reporting, process improvement, and platform integration. Engagement renewed across multiple purchase orders since 2025. Active and growing across three Pfizer campuses in the United States. Solutions are built on client platforms (Power Automate, Power BI, Smartsheet, SharePoint, DocuSign, Microsoft Forms) with documentation and training designed for staff handoff and long-term ownership by Pfizer staff. David Kendig leads delivery; he previously served as a Seagen/Pfizer FTE in the same BPE role and transitioned to Weigh Anchor with continuity of service.
Joey originally architected the instrumentation and operations workflows during his Arcadis/Seagen tenure (2021-2023). The Weigh Anchor BPE practice extends and rebuilds inside that same infrastructure. David Kendig (former Seagen/Pfizer FTE in the same BPE role) and Chibuzor Ejimofor (Site Works workflow automation lead at Seagen, with Joey continuously since 2022) form the delivery core.
Separate enterprise platform engagement entering the practice in 2026. Scope includes platform consolidation strategy, license reconciliation, user governance, and operational handoff for Pfizer's Velocity EHSS software environment. Joshua Nolt, CHMM, leads as Senior EHS Consultant. T&M structure with $40K NTE.
Weigh Anchor functions as WCGi-Nexava's enterprise IT and modernization partner. Scope includes enterprise IT support, AI implementation, SharePoint deployment and migration, AI-augmented documentation workflows, and advisory on field software for site data collection and standardization. Engagement reaches approximately 10 healthcare clients via the WCGi-Nexava partnership and demonstrates delivery in regulated, multi-stakeholder healthcare environments.
Two distinct engagements delivered in sequence over approximately one year, together comprising a full Seismic Resilience Program at the Pfizer Bothell campus. The deliverables were subsequently implemented across two additional Pfizer campuses (La Jolla, CA and Chesterfield, MO), making this a multi-campus enterprise program scaled from a single-campus origin.
Comprehensive seismic resilience program for every scientific instrument across the Bothell campus. Surveyed every instrument in every lab, visually analyzed condition against criteria, placed observations on a risk matrix, and produced a gap analysis. Engineering report developed recommendations using a multi-criteria framework: egress, weight, location, business continuity, lab criticality, and code compliance. Established standards document for seismic restraint solutions across the instrument portfolio. Anchoring SOP delivered for instrument installations. Methodology proven on instruments and reused as the basis for the nonstructural program six months later.
Returned at Pfizer's request to complete the seismic resilience picture by addressing everything that wasn't scientific instrument: MEP systems, furniture systems, storage systems, and all other nonstructural items across the campus. Over 1,000,000 square feet analyzed across the engagement, surveyed twice (sample survey for pattern identification, then in-depth survey of individual items).
The deliverable was a complete repeatable program, not a one-time analysis:
PIC: Joey Duren Lopez. Two Weigh Anchor employees on the delivery team. Subconsultant team of seven managed by Weigh Anchor: three structural engineers across Degenkolb and a second engineering firm (providing the engineering stamps), two product solution experts from Saf-T-Proof (providing seismic restraint solution expertise without bias toward proprietary solutions), and two product solution experts from QuakeHold (providing additional solution expertise).
Duration: One year combined across both engagements. The duration reflects the reality of standing up SOPs for installation, verification, and training in a regulated pharmaceutical R&D environment, where every step of the program had to be validated and integrated into existing workflows.
The Seismic Resilience Program deliverables were adopted by Pfizer beyond Bothell, with implementation extending to Pfizer La Jolla (San Diego, CA) and Pfizer Chesterfield (St. Louis County, MO; the $236M BioTherapeutics Pharmaceutical Sciences R&D campus). Implementation depth varied by campus. This multi-campus scaling is the credential that makes the program more than a local engagement: it functioned as a transferable enterprise resilience asset.
Provided seismic best practices documentation to Tune Therapeutics (Greg Bond, Director Facilities and Lab Operations) ahead of any installation work, as a value-first relationship move. Subsequently performed seismic restraint installation work consistent with those best practices at Tune's Durham, NC facility. The Tune engagement is multi-state by structure: relationship and methodology held at Tune's Seattle headquarters, installation work executed in Durham. Whether Tune internally adopted the full program is not confirmed.
Weigh Anchor Role: Construction PM Technical Assistance subconsultant (under Blue Trident as construction TA prime); program-wide methodology authorship by Joey as the most experienced construction operator on the multi-prime TA team.
Architected the stage-gate project delivery framework that the OVC TVAG construction grant program uses to support its tribal grantees. The framework was adopted by OVC and is currently used to support 80+ grant-receiving tribal nations executing federally-funded construction grants. The framework is designed for autonomous execution by sovereign tribal entities under TA oversight, which means it had to be self-enforcing: gate definitions, gate requirements, and standardized approaches all designed to operate without continuous SVP-level intervention.
This work is distinct from the direct service work Weigh Anchor performs for individual tribes. Weigh Anchor did not directly serve the 80+ tribes operating under this framework. Some of them were also direct Weigh Anchor clients via separate engagements (captured in Practice 4); most were not. The 80+ number reflects the reach of the framework, not the direct client base.
The OVC TVAG TA program operates with multiple primes by discipline. Blue Trident held the construction TA prime contract; Weigh Anchor was their subconsultant. Clark Group held the environmental TA prime contract. Other primes covered other disciplines (legal, victim services, financial management, etc.). The construction program methodology work was led by Joey across the multi-prime team because of operating seniority in construction and federal grant administration, not because of contract structure.
The OVC TVAG program supports federally-funded construction at sovereign tribal nations across the United States. Each tribe operates independently; each grant award executes independently; the program staff cannot directly manage 80+ grantees through individual escalation. The framework Joey architected is the mechanism that lets the program function at that scale. It is, in operating terms, an accountability and quality system that enforces standards across 80+ autonomous executing entities without continuous oversight from the program SVP.
This is the same operating principle the 2HL SVP role describes for managing 35+ campuses through VPs: "properly designed systems and empowered VPs remove the 'ask the SVP' dependency." The OVC framework is that principle applied at greater scale (80+ entities, not 35), in harder operating conditions (sovereign tribal nations, each operating independently, often in remote or Arctic geographies), with federal compliance consequences.
Weigh Anchor Role: Owner's representation, construction TA, programming, procurement support, construction oversight, delivered directly to tribal and federal clients.
Direct service delivery to federal and tribal clients across multiple contracting vehicles. Weigh Anchor has operated as: subconsultant to NTTAC, subconsultant to Blue Trident, and prime contractor under direct tribal contracts. 40+ tribal nations directly served. 17+ states and territories of geographic footprint, including Alaska Native villages accessible only by bush plane and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
This practice is distinct from Practice 3 (the OVC framework architecture). Practice 3 is methodology design adopted at program level. Practice 4 is the direct delivery to individual tribal and federal clients. The two practices overlap where a tribe Weigh Anchor directly serves is also executing against the OVC framework Weigh Anchor designed, but the work is structurally separate.
Programming and owner's representation for tribal communities, with documented end-to-end programming for Ketchikan Indian Community spanning four facilities: victims of crime center, justice center, shelter, and tribal court. Programming covered user requirements, space planning, adjacency, tenant improvement specifications, and procurement coordination. Pattern repeated across multiple tribal communities receiving OVC and BJA grant funding.
Direct construction oversight and owner's representation work across multiple Alaska Native communities, including the OVC TVAG portfolio. Working knowledge of Arctic and remote construction conditions: bush plane and barge logistics, weather windows, subsistence schedule coordination, and material staging. Relationships in place with tribal administrators and elders across multiple villages, with the Alaska Native Women's Resource Center (AKNWRC) as an active partner organization, and direct working relationships with NTTAC and DOJ grant program offices.
Federal facility work in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), including direct technical assistance to the CNMI Judiciary.
Owner's representation and construction management across approximately 8 healthcare facilities, primarily delivered through Woods Construction Group partnership.
Designed and programmed physical security systems for 6 federal buildings across the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands: cameras, access control, and door hardening across a $5M program. Scope included specification of security equipment appropriate to courthouse and federal facility use, vendor research for Pacific region service capability (a non-trivial constraint given the remoteness of CNMI), and coordination with the CNMI Judiciary post-typhoon recovery context. Funded through Byrne Discretionary Grant Award #15PBJA-24-GG-00165-BRND with NTTAC technical assistance support.
Built and operated Construction Copilot, an AI assistant for construction management published to the OpenAI GPT Store. Sustained at the top of its category in the GPT Store with 25,000+ users. The standalone software version of Construction Copilot has been discontinued, but the GPT remains active and continues to attract users. Built directly by Joey, drawing on accumulated construction management expertise and Weigh Anchor's project portfolio as training context.
Founded March 2022. Seven core team members, heavily augmented with contractors and subconsultants, particularly for construction and engineering work.
Functional breakdown: Program management and delivery leadership; workflow automation and platform integration; business process engineering, BI, and dashboards; utility operations advisory and construction leadership; project management; finance and CFO; drafting/CAD and Associate PM.
Heavily augmented with contractors and subconsultants, particularly for construction and engineering work. Subconsultant relationships have included structural engineering (Degenkolb and others), seismic restraint product expertise (Saf-T-Proof, QuakeHold), and a network of construction managers and field staff deployed across the 17-state footprint.
Active teaming partnerships rather than prime-sub-only arrangements. Joint pursuit, cross-staffing, and reciprocal subcontracting across multiple practice areas.
Site Works Program Lead
Bothell, WA + Multi-Site
Through Arcadis | Seagen PMO Leadership | 700+ projects delivered | Pfizer acquired Seagen for $43B post-departure
Led the Site Works program at Seagen, the Bothell, Washington-headquartered biotechnology company recognized as the industry leader in antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). At peak Seagen operated approximately 4,000 employees across 11 office locations, with four FDA-approved oncology drugs (Adcetris, Padcev, Tukysa, Tivdak) in commercial use. Pfizer acquired Seagen in December 2023 for $43 billion, six months after Joey's departure.
This role is where Joey found his groove as an operator. Inherited a vendor-dominated facilities program with no standardized infrastructure and rebuilt it from the ground up. Built and ran the operating system, the team, the governance, the financial discipline, and the automation that made the program work at scale, then trained successors and a senior PM into ownership positions so the operating system could continue without Joey holding it together. Engaged through Arcadis as part of the Seagen PMO leadership.
Title: Site Works Program Lead (formerly Site Minor Works; renamed under Joey's tenure as part of the program's repositioning). Engagement through Arcadis as part of the Seagen PMO leadership structure.
The Site Works program (then Site Minor Works) was in a vendor-dominated state with no standardized operating infrastructure when Joey arrived. The hallways of Seagen's main campus buildings were lined with boxes of laboratory instruments that had been delivered but not installed. There was no governance, no KPI framework, no cost discipline beyond invoice tracking, no project intake standard, no automation, and no defined relationship between Site Works and the broader Seagen PMO.
First 60 days: Cleared the hallway backlog. Every instrument either installed in its intended location or moved to managed storage. The visible state of the campus changed in two months.
Building 12 was a Seagen building originally designated as a future headquarters that was never completed and had become an informal junk drawer across the campus, accumulating unused furniture, equipment, supplies, and project leftover material from across departments.
Building 12 went from a campus problem to a campus asset because Joey was willing to do the unsexy work of running it as inventory.
When Joey arrived, the program had 11 direct reports to one manager (Joey). The structure was unmanageable at that scale and individual team members were not getting the attention they needed.
The Senior Project Manager was a Harvard-trained Master of Architecture, exceptional at lab buildout and reconfiguration design. The full lab buildout and reconfiguration practice within Site Works ran through him.
Talent pipeline outcome: Multiple PMs developed within Site Works transitioned into the larger Seagen capital projects program, with Site Works functioning as a development pipeline for the broader PMO. This was a deliberate strategy: train PMs to outgrow the program, push them up into bigger work, replace them with the next layer coming up. The "executive readiness requires being replaceable" principle in practice.
Built on the Seagen tool stack (ServiceNow, Smartsheet, Power BI, Power Automate), the program operated with end-to-end automation that reduced administrative time and let the team focus on the work that created value:
Chibuzor Ejimofor designed and implemented the workflow automation infrastructure. The methodology Joey and Chibuzor built at Seagen continues to underpin the Pfizer BPE practice at Weigh Anchor, with Chibuzor as the workflow automation lead.
Established standards for cross-functional alignment with Seagen's Research, Manufacturing, EHSS, Engineering, Quality, and Finance functions. Each of these stakeholder groups had specific operational requirements (research disruption avoidance, GMP compliance in manufacturing zones, ICRA and safety protocols, engineering design oversight, quality system documentation, capital planning interface). The Site Works program operated at the seams between all of them.
ServiceNow, Smartsheet, Power BI, Power Automate, SharePoint, Microsoft 365 suite. BPE (Business Process Engineering) methodology applied to facilities operations. Lean operations discipline including "draft before implement" as a standing practice -- process designed before execution.
This is the role where Joey's operating philosophy was built, tested, and proven at scale. The pattern from Seagen continues through Weigh Anchor and the Pfizer engagement.
Departed Seagen in June 2023 to focus on Weigh Anchor, the firm Joey founded in March 2023. Pfizer closed its $43 billion acquisition of Seagen in December 2023 (six months post-departure), and subsequently announced the closure of the Everett "Launchpad" manufacturing facility along with related layoffs. The legacy Seagen Bothell campus continues to operate as Pfizer Bothell. Joey continues to engage with the campus through Weigh Anchor's Pfizer EHSS BPE practice, with David Kendig (former Seagen FTE in the same BPE role) and Chibuzor Ejimofor (Site Works automation lead) as part of the current Weigh Anchor team supporting the legacy Seagen organization under Pfizer.
Account Lead / Project Manager
Seattle, WA + California
Two phases | W-2 embedded leadership at VA Puget Sound, then 1099 consulting for VA California federal leasing
End-to-end engagement with Blue Trident's VA Healthcare account across two phases: a full-time embedded leadership phase at VA Puget Sound, then a 1099 consulting phase supporting program buildout in Northern California and San Francisco. Total relationship spanned roughly 3.5 years across two VA Health Care Systems and four station codes (663 / 612 / 662 / and supporting work).
Embedded contractor leadership for the VA Puget Sound Health Care System (Station 663), one of the largest VA healthcare systems in the country. VAPSHCS serves approximately 160,000 enrolled Veterans across a 14-county service area in Western Washington and extends its reach as far south as Mississippi through Centers of Excellence and regional hubs. It operates VA's fourth-largest research and development program, with two main campuses (Seattle, 44 acres on Beacon Hill; American Lake, 378 acres in Lakewood) and a network of Community-Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs).
Joey joined Blue Trident's VA Puget Sound engagement as a Project Manager and grew into the Account Lead role through absorption of work that nobody else was finishing. Functioned as embedded leadership inside the VA facilities organization: the right hand to VA facilities leadership while operating as a contractor, with full delivery responsibility across construction, real estate acquisitions, and facility operations. The role expanded over the tenure as the VA naturally pulled Joey into more scope -- the federal leasing function (which nobody was running), the EHRM rollout coordination, the CBOC programming work, the Space Committee participation. The Account Lead title was the recognition of operating behavior already in place rather than a starting assignment.
The tenure spanned the height of COVID-19 operations, the deployment of EHRM (Electronic Health Record Modernization) infrastructure across both campuses, the launch of VA Ventures (the VA's advanced manufacturing and AI program), and continuous active healthcare operations including behavioral emergencies and an active shooter event during tenure.
Drove the Electronic Health Record Modernization low-voltage and IT infrastructure program across both VA Puget Sound campuses, from kickoff to closeout, during the tenure. The deployment touched every single room across both campuses (Seattle and American Lake), requiring coordination with hundreds of clinical, operational, and support stakeholders.
Stakeholder coordination per room: Sleep study, OR (Operating Rooms), ICRA (Infection Control Risk Assessment) requirements, admin staff, pharmacy, security, and clinical service line owners. The technical work of pulling cable was straightforward; the operational work of doing it inside an active healthcare facility without disrupting care was the actual job.
3D printing lab for COVID-19 response. Designed and stood up a 3D printing lab in approximately 2 months: full room conversion including wall moves, power upgrades, and complete buildout. The lab produced a meaningful portion of the federal supply of nose swabs for COVID-19 testing during the pandemic.
Live cell 3D bioprinting lab. Built out a research lab to support the VA's live tissue 3D printing capability (the "meat printer") -- a bioprinter producing living tissue for VA research applications. This is part of the VA Ventures program (launched June 2020), the VA's advanced manufacturing and digital health initiative.
Vivarium work. Construction work in the Seattle campus vivarium spaces.
Programmed three CBOCs (Community-Based Outpatient Clinics) end-to-end for outpatient care, covering: office spaces, exam rooms, clean rooms, dirty rooms, waiting areas, and circulation, in coordination with IT, security, the regional procurement office (for the federal lease package), VA strategic planning, and outside vendors (cafeteria services and similar). Built the lease packages personally for each CBOC, including programming, space requirements, tenant improvement specs, and procurement documentation suitable for federal real estate acquisition.
Night shifts, swing shifts, and continuous coverage across two campuses were required to deliver against this operating environment.
Transitioned from W-2 Account Lead to a 1099 consulting relationship with Blue Trident, scaling the leasing knowledge built at VA Puget Sound into program buildout support for the VA Northern California Health Care System (VANCHCS, Station 612) and the VA San Francisco Health Care System (SFVAMC, Station 662). Part-time engagement (approximately 5-10 hours per week) running concurrent with primary engagement at Arcadis / Seagen Bothell. This 1099 structure was the precursor entity to Weigh Anchor, which Joey formally founded in March 2023.
As a federal healthcare construction and leasing veteran with deep operational familiarity from the VA Puget Sound CBOC network, Joey held one of the most operationally informed datasets in the VA system on healthcare CBOC programming, leasing, and tenant improvement coordination. Each VA system operates somewhat independently ("if you've been to one VA, you've been to one VA"), so other VA systems lacked direct access to comparable operational knowledge. Joey supported NorCal and San Francisco in building out their leasing programs as a key contractor.
VANCHCS (Station 612) coverage: CBOCs in Auburn, Yuba City, Stockton, Modesto, Sonora, Chico, Redding (replacement and legacy), Mather Admin, Martinez PRRC; parking leases at Martinez, Vitalant, Sacramento County Mather; warehouse leases (McClellan, Sacramento); GSA occupancy agreements at NCO Suite Pleasant Hill and VISN & HBPC Pleasant Hill.
SFVAMC (Station 662) coverage: CBOCs at San Bruno, Clearlake, Ukiah, Santa Rosa, Eureka, San Francisco Downtown (Harrison Street); the Mission Bay Research Lease (a major lease at $2.7M annual rent, 42,000 sqft); Oakland OPC and Behavioral Health/Substance Abuse Clinic; cell tower sharing agreements (Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T, Sprint, City & County San Francisco); 450 Golden Gate Ave operating agreement with GSA.
Per Priority Lease List records (June 2022): RLA (Request for Lease Action) review, FORCE package submission, ASR (Acquisition Strategy Review) development, comp cost analysis, COR (Contracting Officer's Representative) letter coordination, NAQ (Needs Assessment Questionnaire) development, and lease replacement and succession planning. Lease documentation retained.
Joey transitioned from W-2 Account Lead at Blue Trident to a 1099 consulting relationship in August 2021, allowing concurrent engagement with Arcadis at Seagen Bothell while continuing to support VA California program buildout. The 1099 engagement wound down in early 2023 as Joey formally founded Weigh Anchor in March 2023 to build the AI-and-automation construction practice that became his primary platform.
Project Manager
Redmond, WA
Owner's Representative | $5 Billion Campus Modernization | Largest private construction project in Puget Sound
CBRE held one of three Owner's Representative / Project Management contracts on Microsoft's $5 billion Redmond campus modernization, alongside JLL and OAC Services. The program is the largest private construction project in the Puget Sound region: 17 new buildings on 72 acres of Microsoft's 520-acre Redmond campus, organized into five villages (Whatcom, Chelan, Sammamish, Washington), with a 3-million-square-foot underground parking garage across four levels (one of the largest underground parking structures in the world), a thermal energy center supported by geothermal wells, central catering infrastructure, and supporting site work. General contractors on the program include Skanska, Balfour Beatty, GLY Construction, and Sellen Construction. Architects include LMN, NBBJ, WRNS Studio, and ZGF.
Joey served as Project Manager on the CBRE Owner's Rep team during the deconstruction and excavation phase of the project (January 2019 demolition kickoff onward), working on the owner's side after prior experience as federal QA and general contractor.
The project was an early adopter of construction technology at scale. Skycatch drones flew over the site daily, feeding imagery into more than 100 building information models containing nearly 3 million 3D building components. During this tenure, Joey participated in VR-based pre-construction walkthroughs of campus buildings before they were built -- an unusual capability for the AEC industry in 2019 and a foundational data point in Joey's long-term familiarity with immersive design review.
CBRE's role on the program was that of owner's representative: managing the contractor performance, schedule, quality, and cost on behalf of Microsoft, across a multi-GC, multi-architect, multi-village program.
Departed after 12 months to take an Account Lead position at Blue Trident on the VA Healthcare portfolio, returning to federal work with a leadership scope (owning the client relationship, the team, and full delivery across construction, real estate acquisitions, and facility operations) rather than continuing as one of many PMs on a megaproject.
Founder and CEO
Florida-based 501(c)(3)
Florida-incorporated 501(c)(3) | Concurrent with full-time employment at Derian, Inc.
Co-founded and led Alpha CREW, a volunteer-driven disaster relief organization formed in immediate response to Hurricane Maria's Category 5 landfall on Puerto Rico (20 September 2017). Operated as a Florida-incorporated 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The organization had a defined operational lifecycle: 7 weeks of active relief operations, followed by 9 months of formal closeout, compliance, and dissolution work. Concurrent with active full-time employment as Project Engineer at Derian, Inc.
Co-founded with father (Chief Operating Officer) and stepmother (Chief Financial Officer). Held the Chief Executive Officer role across both the operational and wind-down phases. The family-run founding structure was deliberate: rapid decision-making, full trust, and the ability to deploy personal resources without organizational friction.
Military partnerships were activated through Duren family personal relationships with Reserve and Active Duty Airmen, including connection to the 920th Rescue Wing's humanitarian airlift capability via Reserve Citizen Airmen who volunteered escort and logistics support. The operation's first shipment was escorted by Master Sgt. Gerardo Ramos, 720th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron HC-130 flight chief, who served as military escort accompanying Alpha CREW supplies bound for San Juan.
Humane Society, Veterinarians for Puerto Rico, Partners for World Health, Fundacion El Plato Caliente, Alianza de Autismo de Puerto Rico, Climbing Puerto Rico (agricultural recovery), Voces, ABBA Church, Church of Doral, Kinnikinnick, Municipio de San Juan, Weddings in Vieques, and individual community donor families (Rivera, Caraballo, Galindez).
The CEO role was end-to-end organizational leadership across fundraising, strategy, brand, public voice, and operational coordination. Specifically:
Formal organizational wind-down. As a Florida 501(c)(3), Alpha CREW was subject to state-level reporting and regulatory requirements that the founding team executed in real time during operations but later required formal reconciliation. The CFO led the financial closeout and regulatory response work. The organization paid state-level penalties for incomplete reporting during the rapid-mobilization phase, completed all required filings, formally dissolved the entity, and per regulatory direction took down the operational website and Facebook presence.
The closeout work informed a permanent operating principle for every subsequent organization Joey has founded or led: legal counsel and CPA representation are engaged from day one, not added after the fact. This principle is reflected in the structure of Weigh Anchor LLC, which operates with CFO-level financial leadership (Roxana Forghani, CPA, former Deloitte Senior Manager) as a founding ownership position.
The operation reached beyond logistics into individual lives. Volunteers performed welfare checks on named individuals (Ms. Carmen Rivera in St. Just, the elderly woman in Vieques fed leftover rice and a bottle of water she received as a treasure), delivered gluten-free supplies to a specific organization serving autistic children, and made improvised cold-chain decisions to keep vaccines viable in personal refrigerators. The operation closed the way it opened -- without ceremony, with the team moving on to other commitments -- and the alphacrew.org site exists explicitly as a memorial: "This site exists so it isn't forgotten."
Project Engineer
Kirkland, WA / Prudhoe Bay, AK
Regional general contractor | Heavy civil and industrial construction | Pacific Northwest and Alaska
Regional general contractor specializing in heavy civil and industrial construction across the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. Originally founded as MKB Constructors, the firm was renamed Derian after owner Mark Jensen bought out the other founding partners. The company operated with a small permanent headquarters staff (approximately 10 in Kirkland) and a project-based field workforce hired seasonally as projects required. Derian was the firm where Joey transitioned from a federal Quality Assurance seat to true general contractor side construction, owning project risk, estimating, and field execution.
Title: Project Engineer throughout the tenure. Reports to: Mark Jensen, Owner. Notable colleagues: Ray Williams, Superintendent, who anchored the firm's Alaska field operations.
Received a raise during tenure. Received a bonus on completion of bachelor's degree (BA, Project Management, University of Arizona, Magna Cum Laude), earned concurrent with employment at Derian.
The Service Area 10 (SA-10) Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant is the utility plant serving the industrial users of the Prudhoe Bay area, including the hotels accommodating workers, the oil companies, and their supporting service contractors. The plant is owned and operated by the North Slope Borough Department of Public Works, which holds the certificates of public convenience for wastewater and landfill service in the area, and which invested over $90 million across the broader SA-10 utility upgrade program.
The new SA-10 facility replaced the original plant built in the early 1980s and was constructed adjacent to the existing operational plant. Derian (then operating as MKB Constructors) was the general contractor in joint venture for the $70 million project. The new plant is a steel-framed purpose-built structure approximately 245 feet by 245 feet and 30 feet tall, with peripheral raised utilidors and canopies and integrated kiosks. The scope included excavation and contaminated soil management, removal of an existing abandoned underground fuel line, demolition coordinated to avoid impacting the existing plant's continued operations, the structural foundation concrete slab, water supply and wastewater effluent pipelines, a diesel-fired standby generator, and all mechanical, electrical, structural, process, and instrumentation systems.
Project Engineer support across the final phases of project delivery: commissioning, closeout, repairs, and punchlist closeout. Covered submittals, RFIs, drawings and materials coordination, change order documentation, contractor invoice management, and field coordination with Ray Williams's superintendent operations. Worked through final handover of the plant to the North Slope Borough.
Construction in the Prudhoe Bay area operates under extreme constraints: temperature, daylight cycles, supply chain isolation, ice road and barge logistics, and seasonal labor availability. Work demanded planning around mobilization, laydown, parking for crews, sanitation infrastructure (honey buckets), and crew sustenance, all coordinated months ahead under conditions where a missed delivery window could halt construction.
Sole Project Manager assignment. Bid, won, and delivered a $660,000 bridge conversion project for King County: converting an existing trestle railroad bridge into a pedestrian bridge supporting a local trail. Joey personally led the bid, won the award, and managed the project end-to-end. Delivery was supported by Derian's Washington-local crews, with input from Superintendent Ray Williams. The project closed at 20% margin on a first solo PM assignment.
This is where Joey moved from the federal QA seat into true GC-side construction. The skills built during this period are foundational to every subsequent construction and capital programs role.
Departure was a deliberate experiment. Joey left Derian to take an Owner's Representative role at CBRE on the Microsoft campus capital programs, to develop comparative experience across both sides of the construction table -- having operated as federal QA, then as GC, the next step was to operate from the owner's seat at scale.
Engineering Apprentice through Construction Inspector / QA Manager
Osan AB, South Korea & JBLM, WA
5 years, 1 month | Active Duty | Honorable Discharge
Joined the United States Air Force in March 2012. Separated as Senior Airman (E-4) in March 2017 with five years of progressive technical, leadership, and operational experience in Civil Engineering, geospatial systems, and construction management. Promoted Below The Zone (BTZ) to E-4 in 2014. Career spanned a tour in the Republic of Korea and a tour at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
Unit: 51st Civil Engineer Squadron, 51st Mission Support Group, 51st Fighter Wing
Assigned to the Civil Engineering function at Osan AB during a tour focused on airfield development planning, damage assessment, and rapid-response survey work. The 51st Fighter Wing operates one of two main USAF combat airfields on the Korean Peninsula, and Civil Engineering work at Osan supports both ongoing operations and long-horizon capital planning under the airfield's 20-year master development plan.
ArcGIS, AutoCAD (including Civil 3D), GPS survey rovers, optical survey instruments. Heavy use of geospatial data integration: field survey data captured by rover and optical methods, processed and validated, then loaded into ArcGIS and CAD for design, planning, and as-built documentation.
Unit: 627th Civil Engineer Squadron, Directorate of Public Works
Initial assignment at JBLM following PCS from Osan. Continued geospatial and survey work in support of the Department of Public Works mission, operating across both the Air Force (McChord Field) and Army (Fort Lewis) sides of the joint base. Built the technical and operational reputation that led to GeoBase supervisory responsibility the following year.
ArcGIS, AutoCAD 2D and 3D / Civil 3D, GPS rovers, optical survey instruments, early exposure to SQL through GeoBase database work.
This is a dual-role year. Two simultaneous leadership assignments, in different squadrons, in different functional domains: technical leadership of the geospatial function on the Civil Engineering side, and ceremonial leadership in the Honor Guard on the Force Support side.
Scope: Supervisor for the Air Force GeoBase capability supporting all of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, including operations on the Army (Fort Lewis) side under the joint base's combined Department of Public Works structure. Led a team of 5 Airmen responsible for the full geospatial workflow: ArcGIS, surveying (GPS and optical), AutoCAD, and the data systems connecting these.
ArcGIS (primary geospatial platform), AutoCAD 2D and 3D / Civil 3D, GPS rovers, optical total stations, SQL / database management for spatial data. Hybrid workflows where field-captured geolocated data feeds GIS for planning and analysis, and AutoCAD for design and as-built documentation. CAD products also uploaded to GIS for unified spatial reference.
Scope: Lead Trainer and Flight Sergeant for the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Honor Guard, the ceremonial unit responsible for the joint base's military funerals, color guards, parades, and host-base ceremonies. Held both training authority (Lead Trainer) and operational authority (Flight Sergeant) for the unit during this assignment.
Unit: 627th Civil Engineer Squadron, Directorate of Public Works, Construction Inspection Branch
Final military assignment. Quality assurance and construction management oversight of contractor work on federal construction projects across Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Acted as the federal government's representative on contractor performance, schedule, cost, and compliance for an active portfolio of construction and repair work.
OSHA 30-hour standards, contractor management, federal construction contracting, quality assurance inspection protocols, ArcGIS, AutoCAD, GPS / optical survey, cost estimation review, scheduling review, submittal process management.
Five years of integrated practice across surveying (GPS, optical), GIS (ArcGIS), CAD (AutoCAD 2D and Civil 3D), and SQL-based geospatial data management, applied to construction, capital planning, and airfield operations. This integrated stack -- physical infrastructure work informed and managed by geospatial and data systems -- is the foundational discipline that continues through every subsequent role.
1,800 quality control inspections across $7.2M in active construction. OSHA 30-hour certified. ATC-20 certified for post-earthquake structural evaluation.
Concurrent leadership across two squadrons in different functional domains (Civil Engineering technical and Force Support ceremonial) during the 2014-2015 dual-role year. Technical team leadership (GeoBase, 5 Airmen) and ceremonial team leadership (Honor Guard, 30 directly trained, up to 60 in rotation) running in parallel.
Siting and concept design work on $2B in aircraft and facilities under a 20-year master development plan. Quality oversight of $14M airfield lighting, $1.9M Western Air Defense System upgrade, and dozens of additional capital and repair projects.
F-16 crash forensic survey. Airfield damage assessment under operational time pressure. Survey and infrastructure response work supporting active military operations.
Founder & CEO · 2017 - 2018
Florida / Puerto Rico
Full section in timeline above. 100,000+ lbs of disaster relief to Puerto Rico via C-130 military airlift. 20+ partner organizations. Full 501(c)(3) lifecycle from founding through dissolution.
Creator · 2020 - Present
Puerto Rico & Diaspora
Digital directory and marketplace connecting 9 million Puerto Ricans worldwide through community, culture, and commerce. 460+ verified Puerto Rican-owned businesses, 73+ products, free website builder for business owners.
Logistics Chair · 2014 - 2016
Tacoma, WA
Logistics Chair for the 29th and 30th anniversary Relay for Life events in Tacoma -- raising over $2 million and bringing together 5,000+ attendees for the American Cancer Society.
March 2018 - October 2020
Master of Business Administration, Business/Managerial Economics
Master's of Business Administration with a specialization in Business Economics.
August 2023 - September 2023
Certificate, Prompt Engineering for ChatGPT
2015 - 2017
Bachelor's Degree, Project Management
GPA: 3.71
2012 - 2015
Associate's Degree, Construction Technology
Associates of Science in Construction Technology.
Certifications
Tools & Platforms
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