Engineering plans to move FEI forward: Richard Schrader, CFO of engineering giant Parsons Brinckerhoff, takes over as FEI chair with a lot of experience under his belt and a carefully thought-out agenda.

• Author: Marshall, Jeffrey
• Position: Fei chairs

It's very likely that Richard R. Schrader, who became FEI chairman July 1, is the only FEI chair to have graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. But Rich Schrader doesn't exude the hard-edged, command-and-control image people associate with military leaders. He's tall but genial, and his reputation in the organization is that of a modest but highly effective consensus-builder--though he can be a tough taskmaster and negotiator when his corporate hat is on.

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Schrader has held a series of influential positions with FEI, starting with the New York City Chapter, where he was membership chair, a director and later chapter president; as chair of FEI's Ethics & Eligibility Committee in 2001-2, as the scandals at Enron, Worldcom and other companies were breaking; Area Director for the North Atlantic Area; and then rotation into the Office of the Chair, beginning with Vice President at Large in 2004-5 and Vice Chair last year.

"Rich is an outstanding individual and a fine, thoughtful leader," says H. Stephen Grace Jr., FEI chair in 2003-4 and a predecessor as New York City Chapter president. "He has time and again provided valuable insight in his role as a member of the Office of the Chair and of the Board of FEI over the last three years," as well as his prior service in the New York Chapter and as an Area Director.

Schrader, 56, has been commuting to Manhattan for many years from his home in Westfield, N.J., to Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc., one of the world's largest engineering and construction firms. A 23-veteran of the privately held company, he advanced through a series of promotions to CFO and has been on the company board since 1992. Engineering is in his blood; his first duty post-graduation was with the Army Corps of Engineers, from 1972-1980 as a commander and battalion staff officer for engineer construction units in Hawaii and Germany.

But Schrader also has a background, and an interest, in teaching. He spent three years before joining Parsons Brinckerhoff as an instructor and assistant professor in international relations and engineering economics at West Point. He also obtained an MBA from Long Island University during that time, and earlier got a master's degree from the School of Advanced International Studies at The Johns Hopkins University.

As a product of the volunteer leadership track, Schrader says that, if he could accomplish one thing in the next year, it would be to "ensure that the...