Bonnie Nelson Mentor
- English
How I can help
My professional background
This year I will retire from Nelson\Nygaard, the Transportation Engineering and Planning firm I founded in 1987. In almost 30 years, we have grown from a partnership of two colleagues working out of a basement apartment, to a national firm with an international reputation, and over 120 employees in 8 offices. I started the firm with one other woman as a woman owned small business, marketing our services to both public and private sectors. Over the years, we incorporated, added shareholders and very consciously remained independent in an environment where the big firms are always on the hunt for acquisitions. It's been an amazing career, culminating in the receipt of an industry Lifetime Achievement Award this year.
While I never thought of myself as "Leaning Forward", I managed to have an amazing career while also having a great life outside of work. I have been mentoring young women in other venues and would like to bring this experience to MicroMentor
How to work with me
What I can offer
I have been doing some mentoring on my own, and I love working with entrepreneurs in fields that are not necessarily directly related my background. I find that the experience I have learned in leadership, managing people, achieving work life balance, and strategic planning (and others) are entirely translatable across industries. I think I am at my best working with small firms interested in sustainable growth.