Work that Menial Job before the Prestigious One
As an Engineering Manager several years ago, our team needed a sharp, newly minted mechanical engineer. As such, I went to Texas A&M to interview five potential engineering candidates. Candidates…
Hi, I’m Travis Ziebro.
I write about being a better engineer and leader. I’m a mechanical engineer and an MBA who eventually cofounded a software consultancy in 2016 to help companies use software better. We started this site in 2019 with the goal of making it the definitive resource for engineers and technical personnel who build, integrate, and ship equipment.
I’ve hired dozens of engineers and technical leaders. I’ve negotiated multi-million dollar change orders, my own salary increases, and had many failures which I’m not shy about sharing. Today my primary career passion is driving cloud adoption and improving company operations through awesome software.
Every month I send out “Better Engineer”, Punchlist Zero’s monthly newsletter which gives you specific career insight you won’t find anywhere else. Sign up to receive the newsletter.
Reach out to me on LinkedIn to talk about what you are working on and how I can help you achieve those goals. I’d love to hear from you.
Travis ZiebroBe More Than a Political Echo
I voted yesterday. It felt more weighty than normal. In 2000 my roommate and I laughed amongst refreshing yahoo.com as Florida flipped back and forth. Today, laughing is replaced with…
102 Ways to Be a Better Engineer
Newly minted engineers and engineering students usually have the same one or two questions for me: “How do I get an internship?” and “What modeling program should I learn?” In…
Pros and Cons of Engineering Outsourcing
At some point, the building of equipment, plant, or process requires engineering outsourcing to move forward. This may be due to increased workload, lack of in house talent, or strategically…
Own Your ERP, Let It Not Own You
The Era of an ERP yelling loudly to own your business is over and here’s what we can look forward to now. It was the dumbest sign to ever grace…
Book Review: Personality isn’t Permanent by Ben Hardy
I was trailing 5-2 in the three-set match after dropping the first. It hardly seemed possible. As an incoming senior and reigning MVP I was getting beat by Steven, the…
Modeling the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States
Professionally, much of what I do is comb through a bunch of data and sort the wheat from the chaff. From there, my company builds software, models, and processes that…
What 18 Years as a DJ Taught me About Leadership
Too often, people compartmentalize the business and personal worlds and believe what is learned in one sphere cannot be applied to another. Yet, of all of the different ways to…
What I Wish I Knew at 22
The kid in that picture was ferocious, principled, and clueless. He rarely took advice and insisted on forging his own way. But here is what I would tell him if he just paused and listened for a minute.
This is the Best Minor to Supplement Your Engineering Degree
A student recently emailed me this question and my gut reaction was “Do what brings YOU value.” Too often, students focus on what they learned for years: make your application/resume…