Rising Stars 2023: Sabri Cakdi

Sabri Cakdi, 37
Senior director of product development
Holland LP

Nominator’s quote: “In Sabri’s role as the director of product development for Holland’s rail measurement systems and services division, he has led Holland in developing new solutions for railroads to more safely and efficiently inspect their tracks. … He also has been a key player in our locomotive unattended geometry measurement system. … With his experience working with customers and Holland’s track measurement technology, Sabri has written multiple white papers for the rail industry, discussing essential safety issues tied to track measurement readings and data.” — Russell Gehl, Holland LP

Education: Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering; master’s degree in industrial and systems engineering; pursued Ph.D. studies in mechanical engineering

Job responsibilities: Track inspection technology products and the engineering team.

Career path: I have aspired to be an innovation and technology leader since my college years. I spent the first five to six years of my career with technical tasks, mainly Federal Railroad Administration and Association of American Railroads research projects. Then, I made a transition to leadership roles, starting with project management. Over time, management responsibilities grew to include multiple projects, products and engineering teams.

How did you get into the rail industry? Thanks to RB Wiley of TTCI (now MxV Rail). He has been an inspiration to many engineers. It all started with a summer internship working on exciting projects such as trackside detection systems, vehicle track interaction modeling and positive train control 15 years ago. I was planning to work in the defense industry, but after my internship, I loved railroads.

What is the best career advice you’ve received so far? If there is a problem, there is an opportunity.

What advice would you give to a new railroader? Expect train and equipment movement on any track, in any direction and at any time. Safety first! There is a delicate balance and impressive ingenuity, technology and dedication to keep the trains moving. No matter how many degrees you have, there is a lot to learn from a good old railroader.

What was your first job? Tutoring math and physics at college, if working at my grandmother’s farm does not count.

Share a fun fact about yourself I grew up in a poor neighborhood of Istanbul and never had a computer or access to the internet until I started college. However, Encyclopedia Brittanica and Meydan Larousse were my Google, and I read most of it, if not all, by the time I was in high school.

If you could have dinner with anyone alive in the world, who would it be and why? Yuval Noah Harari. He is my favorite intellectual alive, and I would love to listen to how he writes amazing books and articulates himself flawlessly.

Who has had the biggest influence on your career and why? My family. I always get full support, and that gives me confidence and courage.

Describe a major obstacle in your career and how you surmounted it. English is my second language, and I had many challenges presenting myself or articulating my ideas when I came to the United States. I worked as an adjunct professor teaching engineering courses after work hours for a few years. My primary goal was to improve my communication, presentation and public speaking skills. It helped me greatly.