Our People
Meet Cory Hooper
California, U.S.
-
Save to favoritesShare with your friends
-
A California native born in Glendale, California, Jacobs Executive Director of Operations Cory Hooper, has returned to his roots after living in Colorado and Florida.
After graduating from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in civil engineering, Cory spent the first 14 years of his career working on water resource projects in Denver, including the South St. Vrain Creek Restoration. Now back in California, Cory’s passion remains providing innovative solutions to solve communities’ most complex challenges.
For any project, Cory believes stakeholder engagement and collaboration is the key to successful project delivery. He’s also excited about using technology to mitigate natural disasters and the impacts of climate change. While a project team can address any fundamental components of a project, the community will make it last for the future. Cory’s favorite part of his role is providing growth opportunities for his team and mentoring others, and he’s known for always knowing how to create a community wherever he lands.
“Community is at the forefront of any project because it touches so many people and impacts such a big portion of the region that for it to be truly effective as a holistic project, you need it to become embraced by the people that are going to enjoy it for decades to come.”
Cory Hooper
Get to know Cory
What is your favorite part of the communities where you work?
Every community is unique. I enjoy the value that local communities put on the natural systems in California. I find myself caught in a delightful tug-of-war between Northern California’s natural beauty and Southern California’s unparalleled climate. Working with our California teams is inspiring to see the brightest minds in the industry providing solutions on some of California’s largest infrastructure challenges. We’re connecting people through multi-modal expansion projects while protecting and optimizing our water resources across the state. These efforts are securing a sustainable future for our communities for generations to come.
One aspect that’s similar across communities, though, is that they’re pushing to have projects done faster than ever. There’s been a cultural shift toward instant gratification, so we have to develop innovative ways to deliver projects efficiently and effectively.
If you weren’t an engineer, what would you be doing?
Initially, I was thinking of going to work for a church and wanted a meaningful skill to take with me. Every community needs water, so it felt like a natural path. While I ended up choosing a different path, I’m glad it still led me to the water industry.
Can you share one piece of advice for aspiring engineers?
Show up. Relationships are so important when starting your career, and in an increasingly virtual workspace, the more face-to-face interactions you can have, you are better off for them. Go to the office, attend those meetings and build as many relationships as possible.
What do you enjoy the most about working at #OurJacobs?
I would say the people, as well as the culture. The talent level here is so high, and we’re a company that focuses on inclusion and diversity for the right reasons. Through that, we develop the best employees and deliver the best to our clients.