President and CEO at ICMT
Army NCO shapes a new generation of construction leaders.
by Warren Duffie

Imagine you were creating a college or university dedicated to serving the construction industry. Who would you hire to lead your institution?

Someone who has spent years in the field and is a master at motivating workers? Maybe a veteran executive who knows how to run a profitable company? Or would you do something truly daring and innovative and hire someone without much construction experience, but with stellar organizational and leadership skills?

This is exactly what the Institute of Construction Management & Technology (ICMT) did when it appointed Steve Cooper as its president and CEO. Although Cooper admits changing a light bulb is the extent of his handyman skills, he’s a man who knows how to get things done. While he was in the Army, he was responsible for launching the Army’s first police academy, whose model was adopted by the entire Department of Defense and California’s first military police school.

“Sometimes it’s good to bring in someone from a different industry,” said Cooper. “Someone who has no bias can identify new areas of opportunity and growth. I was hired because I have a reputation for producing results and exceeding expectations.”

On the Job
Cooper, 36, oversees ICMT’s daily operations. He develops long-term strategy and implements the vision of his board of directors. He begins each morning at 9 a.m. with a quick “huddle” with his vice president and various directors and each person provides a one-minute synopsis of his or her responsibilities for that day.

“I hate being bogged down in meetings,” Cooper said. “I got the idea for the huddles from a book called Death by Meeting by Patrick Lencioni. Eliminating drawn-out meetings, everyone is more productive and goes away with a greater sense of teamwork.”

Cooper’s mornings are spent dealing with accreditation issues while his afternoons involve building relationships with community leaders to promote the institute throughout the Phoenix area. He goes home around 7 p.m., but sometimes finds himself working until midnight.

“It’s a lot of work, but this is the kind of job I’ve always wanted,” said Cooper, who has been a civilian and military instructor for 10 years. “The military taught me the importance of dedication to duty and placing the needs of others before myself – qualities that greatly help me now.”

Focused on the Future
Based in Phoenix, the Institute of Construction Management & Technology is an online university offering bachelor’s and master’s degrees in fields supporting the building and construction industries.

Started two years ago, ICMT has 15 teachers and 25 students. This might sound small, but Cooper’s hiring ushers in a new era for the institute. It’s just been licensed this year and can now launch advertising and marketing campaigns.

“A lot of my job deals with reaching out to the community, establishing the institute’s identity, and creating marketing plans,” Cooper says. “Yes, we are small, but our focus is on individualized attention and quality education rather than huge enrollment numbers.”

In Uniform
When Cooper joined the Army in 1989, the Redondo Beach, Calif., native was seeking guidance and a challenge. A high school dropout, he was hanging out with the wrong crowd. At first, he visited the Air Force recruiter, however, that recruiter began calling Cooper five times a day, pestering him. So he decided to go into the Army instead.

After basic training and infantry school at Fort Benning, Ga. Cooper served at Fort Ord, Calif. and Fort Bliss, Texas. In 1990 he was reclassified as a military policeman. He left active-duty service in 1993.

“I had spent a lot of time in the field,” Cooper says. “I was thinking the world was passing me by while I was out there. The next day, I enrolled in college and got out a year later to be a full-time student, though I stayed in the Reserves.”

After earning a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice in 1996, Cooper pursed a master’s degree at Florida State University – which he completed in 1998. In 1999, he began teaching at California’s Chapman University, and helped launch their online program.

The Transition
After Sept. 11, 2001, Cooper was recalled to active duty. Since he was a college professor, the Army tasked him and four others with creating that branch’s first police academy within 90 days. The initiative was accomplished ahead of schedule, and his academy trained 210 military police within the first six months. Cooper spent the next five years opening California’s first military police school and serving as an instructor at Fort Dix, N.J.

After returning to Reserve status this year, Cooper was approached about the job with ICMT.

“The board of directors was looking for a president and CEO and had heard of me from Chapman University,” Cooper says. “I had always wanted to be a university president, so I took the job.

“One thing I’m exciting about is our special scholarship rates for veterans,” he continues. “Veterans pay only $200 per undergraduate credit while disabled veterans pay $100 per undergraduate credit. There is a strong thirst for military leadership in the civilian world, and we want to help veterans succeed.”

Cooper’s Advice
Don’t sell yourself short. “If you’ve been a leader in the military, don’t apply for an entry-level civilian job. Your experience is worth so much more and corporate recruiters know this.”

Read Take Command by Kelly Perdew (winner of “The Apprentice, Season 2”). “The book has 10 leadership principles that will translate into civilian success.”