Meet ISG Vice President Mike Nelson

Mike believes in always challenging himself and learning from those around him. With his knowledge, Mike and his team of mechanical, plumbing, electrical, technology, and refrigeration professionals remain on the cusp of new technology to design only the most up-to-date solutions for clients. When he isn’t designing electrical systems or volunteering as a community fire fighter, Mike is traveling to listen to live music, cooking, or rooting for a Minnesota sports team.

What is the most rewarding part of your job?

We have so many smart and talented people here at ISG. Having the opportunity to stretch my knowledge base, learn, and strive to make an impact on the community is very rewarding for me. Mentorship and sharing my knowledge with my rockstar staff are incredible. I would have never thought that I would have the opportunity, when I started my career, to be exposed to so many facets of the industry.

I also love the variety working across different business units. I especially enjoy the in food and industrial and sports and recreation business units but for different reasons. The food and industrial is a vast market, and highly technical. It is very challenging, traditionally large in scale, and requires detailed collaboration between other disciplines, vendors, and clients. You need to be nimble yet have the technical expertise to execute.

I enjoy sports and recreation projects because, well, I love sports. Spending numerous summers coaching baseball, I can’t help but evaluate each location, whether it is how to improve the player or fan experience. A well-designed facility makes you want to go back.

What is the best professional advice you have heard?

Listen to those around you and absorb as much as you can. This is one thing that ISG was founded on—always learning and constantly evolving—and we should all emulate that as employee owners. It’s very fortunate and an amazing opportunity to be surrounded by experts all day, every week. You can pick up on so much just by having short conversations.

Why did you choose to work in Electrical Engineering/MEP?

Like most engineers, I enjoyed math and science in school, but I’ve always enjoyed how things worked. If the lawnmower or a remote-controlled toy stopped working, I would take it apart to figure out what was wrong. Most of the time, I didn’t have leftover parts. I chose electrical engineering since my dad had an electronics business. I worked and learned from him in my high school and college years. I wanted to know how those little components on the printed circuit board worked.

What do you see changing or growing in MEP?

Renewable energy and energy conservation is current. Naturally, as an engineer, you want to design an efficient system, but the integration of different systems has created a dynamic environment. For example, HVAC systems and lighting have evolved into systems that should only run when needed, instead of all the time. Technologies have evolved into something more complex and complicated than it once was. So not only are we pushing to design more sustainably, but we strive to be more innovative in our technologies, products, systems, and solutions. All the while, electrical teams are continually working to stay up to date on new products and technology.

What do you like about being an achiever from StrengthsFinder?

I always think things can improve. Whether it’s for ISG, my team, my family, or myself, I constantly want to make things better. Sometimes being an achiever is also my weakness because I’m always pushing for better, but I do think it’s crucial for our firm to constantly better ourselves for our clients and partners. As we evolve as a firm, we aim to provide only the best solutions for clients and the communities that they serve. Knowing that we can make a positive impact encourages me to keep going and challenging my team and myself to continue making our futures better.

What did you want to be growing up?

I’m not exactly sure I remember what I wanted to be growing up—probably a baseball player, artist, or fire fighter. I spent a lot of time outside playing baseball, drawing on rainy days, and liked fire trucks as a kid. Reflecting on my childhood, I guess I’m involved in all those things in some sense today. I’m a volunteer firefighter in my community, get to design sports facilities, and create works of art through our construction documents.

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