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July 2015
Manager, Capital Projects Metra
— by Julie Sneider, senior associate editor
Lexie Walker is a product of employers who believe in "growing your own."
After completing a degree in civil engineering at Marquette University in Milwaukee in 2008, Walker went home to Chicago to join Metra, which recruited her through the railroad’s college graduate program that aims to bring in talent, and train and promote them through the ranks.
Her first task as a project engineer/manager was to get to know the commuter railroad's rolling stock by working with field personnel. That experience helped prepare Walker for her next assignment: In 2009, she was assigned to a team charged with developing from scratch an in-house rehabilitation program for Metra coach cars and locomotives. She procured materials and helped write the program's work scope and technical aspects. By 2010, she was promoted to project engineer on a major, six-year $115 million plan to renovate 176 cab and trailer cars. At the time, it was the most ambitious rail-car renovation undertaken at Metra, says Metra Chief Executive Officer Don Orseno, who nominated Walker for the Rising Stars award.
Walker performed with the program so well that she has been promoted twice since then: in March 2013 to project manager of car rehab projects, and in December 2013, to manager of capital projects. Today, she oversees all in-house rehab programs. She works with staff to plan the railroad’s long-term needs for purchasing and rehabilitating rolling stock.
"We are one of few agencies in the rail industry that actually does its own overhauls in-house with our own people," Walker says.
The rehab initiative has evolved into a "multistation manufacturing-assembly" model in which workers strip the vehicles at one shop-floor station, then workers at the next station install new equipment and features. Workers are assigned tasks and the work is tracked through a timekeeping system to ensure there are no cost overruns.
Walker’s role in rebuilding Metra vehicles is a good match to her longtime interest in math, science and understanding “how things work and how to fix things.”
Going forward, she will play a critical role as the commuter railroad seeks to replace 30 percent and renovate 60 percent of its coaches and replace or renovate all of its locomotives, says Orseno.
"In a short time, she has demonstrated a willingness to be a team player and a group leader and has gained the respect of her co-workers and managers," Orseno wrote in Walker's Rising Stars nomination. "Her contributions to the agency outpace her years of service."
Walker's philosophy on leadership is simple: Treat people with respect.
"When you give everyone respect and consideration, it creates a happy, inviting work environment that allows people to break down their barriers and let their ideas flourish," she says.
Rising Stars 2015 Award Winners:
Francois Belanger, CN
Todd Blaylock, HNTB Corp.
Jonathan Chastek, Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway Co.
Oliver Dolder, Railtech Welding & Equipment
John Riley Edwards, RailTEC, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Stefan Loeb, Watco Cos. LLC
Jessica Moore, Union Pacific Railroad
Amanda Nightingale, King County Metro Transit
Celia Ann Pfleckl, Amtrak
Charles Rennick, Providence & Worcester Railroad Co.
Kaleigh Reyes, GE Transportation
Rebecca Reyes-Alicea, Federal Railroad Administration
Bruno Riendeau, VIA Rail Canada Inc.
Curtis Shogren, CSX Transportation
Alanna Strohecker, AECOM
Keith Tarkalson, Stacy & Witbeck
Brett Urquhart, Rocla Concrete Tie Inc.
Tara Vesey, Dakota Gasification Co.
Lexie Walker, Metra
Adam Weiskittel, BNSF Railway Co.
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