Please join us in congratulating Mr. Danny Ward on his promotion to the role of Project Management Branch Chief!
Danny’s career with the Corps began after working with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation for a year, and after graduating with a Master of Science degree from Arkansas State University.
And while his career with the Corps began more than 20 years ago, Danny’s interest in the field is something that’s been present for as long as he can remember.
“I have been fascinated with all things water my entire life,” he said. “I naturally gravitated to pursuing an education and a career that would bring me close to water.”
It was during Danny’s time in college that he was first introduced to the Army Corps of Engineers and its mission.
“I was very familiar with Corps activities while in undergraduate and graduate school,” Danny said. “My wife’s college roommate’s father also worked for the district, as well as some of my father-in-law’s friends. They all urged me to apply for a job when one opened.”
Danny officially began his career with the Corps in 2000 as a biologist. He said it was during that time that he quickly realized how much Corps projects benefit the region, saying, “…whether it was building a harbor, providing flood control, or restoring the environment. I loved the daily challenges that came with delivering our projects. Thus, it was somewhat easy to transition from the environmental branch to a project manager.”
He was promoted to the role of project manager in the district’s Project Management Branch in 2008.
As a project manager, Danny was assigned to projects involving the West Tennessee Tributaries, St. Johns Bayou and New Madrid Floodway, Cypress Creek, and Memphis Metro. And if that wasn’t impressive enough, Danny also served as the district’s Outreach Coordinator while managing all of these projects.
Danny said he learned a lot about how to work on a team during his time as a project manager, both internally with other district employees, and externally with Corps partners and stakeholders.
“In 2015, I transitioned into the role of the district’s Executive Assistant and Congressional Liaison,” he said. “This brought working with teams and problem solving to an entirely new level. We have often heard the phrase: “That will take an act of Congress”. Well, that is true for everything the Corps touches, and I am thrilled to be a part of it.”
As Executive Assistant and Congressional Liaison, Danny was responsible for scheduling the district’s executive office’s day-to-day operations, including project site visits, employee engagements and ceremonies, Mississippi River Commission hearings, and other necessary engagements to ensure successful project delivery.
Additionally, he managed district relationships with external partners, coordinated all aspects of the district in managing Congressional relationships (12 Senators and 10 House Seats), and served as the strategic planner for regional meetings or executive governance meetings.
Finally, Danny played a critical role in the formulation and development of the Memphis District’s 2028 Plan, the district’s operating concept, Diversity Equality and Inclusion Initiatives, and supervised the Public Affairs Office by ensuring communication plans remained synchronized with command intent.
Even with all the accomplishments and undoubtedly rewarding time spent in this role, Danny is “extremely excited” to return to project management, especially during this time in the district’s history. And his excitement makes a lot of sense, seeing as how his favorite memories and projects come from his time in project management.
“One of the first projects I worked in was the planning for Northwest Tennessee Harbor,” he recounted. “It seemed every other day someone was telling us that it could not be done -- whether it was policy concerns, environmental concerns, etc. We worked the issues, one at a time, and it was great seeing what I planned get built and come to fruition. I just learned that they are expecting their first harbor tenant within the next few months.”
Danny is also very proud of the work he did on the Cypress Creek feasibility study.
“We completed the feasibility study with less than $500 thousand and in record time,” he said. “Although the project may not be that significant, I am proud to have worked with a team that tackled the issues, one after the other, eventually getting to a ‘Yes’. Great work from an extremely dedicated team.”
Finally, he said the best team he’s ever worked with was for the St. Johns Bayou and New Madrid Floodway.
“Although I’m pretty sure this project resulted in me losing a lot of my hair, it was incredible to see the dedication of my fellow team members,” he said. “We faced almost impossible challenges, and we worked the issues.”
To say he’s looking forward to his new role would probably be the greatest understatement of the year, because he’s excited about pretty much everything having to do with it.
“I am looking forward to turning the pumps on at Grand Prairie, delivering water to Bayou Meto, and completing the Mississippi River Levee project and St. Francis Basin project within the Memphis District’s boundaries,” he started. “We have heard from numerous leaders that it is a great time to be working for the Corps, but I’m not sure how many have actually given that statement much thought, and what this actually means to the current generation of Memphis District employees.”
Danny goes on to give examples of why it’s such an exciting time to work for the Corps, one being the fact that Congress provided funds to complete the St. Francis Basin.
“What a gift,” he said. “To finish what was started over 75 years ago.”
Additionally, he said, “We can see the finish line in delivering water in both the Bayou Meto and Grand Prairie areas. Think about how noble of a profession we are part of -- in finding solutions to our groundwater challenges and how we are going to be the ones that preserve the aquifer for future generations.”
Many of our Mississippi River Levee projects started close to 100 years ago as well, and the Memphis District is now rebuilding the Caruthersville Floodwall and will soon be starting on the Helena Floodwall rebuild as well.
“Both structures are going to be around well after we are gone and likely our children,” Danny said. “We are almost complete with constructing the levee system to design grade. Think about how many district employees have worked their entire careers on moving the ball down the field and we got the call to punch it in for the win. Hundreds of past employees dedicated their careers to this project, and we are honored to complete it.”
Not only is he a hard worker, but Danny is passionate, and he can find humor in just about anything.
“My first boss at the Corps gave me a soapbox to stand on because he said that I can be somewhat passionate at times,” he added.
While there’s much that makes Danny an exceptional employee, it’s his obvious love for and dedication to the Corps and the USACE mission that makes him one of the best, both in the realms of leadership and teamwork.
“My favorite thing about working with the Corps is sitting back and watching our partners and the crowd at our ribbon cutting ceremonies or groundbreaking ceremonies,” he said. “Seeing firsthand how our projects impact people’s lives is truly inspiring. It takes an enormous amount of work to successfully deliver a project, and I think that it’s easy to lose sight of what our work means to the region. I strongly encourage everyone to get out and see one of these ceremonies – to sit back and just look at people’s faces.”
Now, as the district's Project Management Chief, Mr. Ward will have a direct and major impact on such ribbon cutting and groundbreaking ceremonies, as he will lead the Memphis District’s Project Managers in, “… delivering EXCEPTIONAL results through his extensive knowledge, experience, and leadership in project management and understanding of the USACE and Memphis District visions.”
Congratulations, Danny!! We are so excited for you to serve in this well-deserved position, and the district looks forward to the many years ahead you will surely serve in this vital role!