Episode 10
Invite Yourself to the Table: Takeaways from AAMC 2026
Guests: Sunny Watson, Teresa Prohaska, Karina Dixon, Craig Crick | Runtime: 32 mins | Category: Knowledge Management & Professional Development
Episode Overview
Live from Boston! The 2026 AASHTO Agency Administration Management Committee conference had just wrapped when Trish and Mandy pulled four attendees from three state DOTs into an after-action review. Sunny Watson (Michigan DOT), Teresa Prohaska and Karina Dixon (Kansas DOT), and Craig Crick (Nevada DOT) talk about why DOTs treat each other as collaborators instead of competitors. They also cover how a session outside your lane can change your career, what first-timers should know before they arrive, and why Knowledge Management Taboo stole the show.
Key Takeaways
- Not Your Competition: Private industry guards its playbook, but DOTs share theirs. When states trade what’s working and what isn’t, the whole industry moves forward.
- Steal Relentlessly: Start where you are, use what you have, and borrow good ideas freely. Someone else may already have the training or dashboard that’s been sitting on your wish list.
- Invite Yourself to the Table: Skip the back row and sit with strangers at breakfast. Your experience adds value, so don’t wait to be asked.
- Thrift Store Gold: Go in with goals, but stay open to the takeaways you didn’t know you needed. One session outside your specialty might spark a new idea, or even a new career.
- Act Before It Fades: Follow up with new contacts, review the session slides while they’re still posted, and bring ideas to leadership within a week or two.