Looking back on his career path, Juan Alfonso believes that every experience made him into the leader he is today—and he wouldn’t change a thing

Juan Alfonso, President, CES Consultants; Photo by Jean Claude Bien-Aimee

BY CLAIRE REDDEN, HISPANIC EXECUTIVE

When asked if, looking back on his career, Juan Alfonso might’ve done anything differently, he took a moment to pause. After some contemplation, he had his answer: “That’s always a tough question, but I’m going to say no,” Alfonso says. “Were there challenging days? There’s no question about it. But I felt that every step and every phase in my career allowed me to better understand myself, and more importantly, better define what I wanted to do and where I wanted to be.”

After attending the University of Miami, where he received his bachelor’s degree in architecture, Alfonso decided to attend graduate school at Florida International University (FIU) to study construction management. “With my bachelor’s degree, I could get licensed, and I could practice architecture, but I also wanted to learn more about project and construction management, thus the reason for my graduate degree in construction management,” Alfonso says.

Following his time at FIU, Alfonso spent some time working for an architect in Miami before heading to an engineering firm called Post, Buckley, Schuh and Jernigan (now Atkins Realis) where he’d work for eighteen years.

“I started right out of school and as I grew, I earned more responsibilities,” Alfonso says. “I was able to pick up that passion for program/project management—I went on that path, and I felt that my career was being shaped nicely, but something was missing.”

Alfonso goes on to explain how he felt when he’d sit in on meetings with clients, overhearing conversations around strategy and business development.

“Before you become a leader, success is about growing yourself. ... When you become a leader, on the other hand, success is about growing others.”

Juan Alfonso

“I felt like I could do that—I could really, really do that, and do it very well,” he says. “There’s a fine line between strategy development and the technical side where you’re just simply executing, and up to that point in my career, I was on the execution side.”

Eventually, it became clear to him that the path he wanted to take was over that line, and he was able to do it.

Not long after a leadership meeting—one where he specifically remembers having that very feeling—Alfonso got a call from a former colleague asking him if he’d be interested in leading the strategy and business development efforts in South Florida for another consulting giant, AECOM. He jumped at the opportunity. All Alfonso could say was that it was good timing.

“Sometimes timing in life is everything, but what became inherently apparent to me is that timing, coupled with self-awareness and strength recognition, is key,” Alfonso says. “I can’t explain it, it just happened. I married the two, and then the rest was history.”

Within a year into his new role, Alfonso was asked to step up and lead the entire state of Florida. Unbeknownst to him, the opportunity allowed Alfonso to establish a presence beyond the comforts of the Miami metropolitan area where he’s from. Little by little, that presence expanded from central Florida to Georgia, and other parts of the mid-Southeast. His success garnered him a reputation as a positive, energetic leader who not only loved his work but was good at it too.

Juan Alfonso. CES Consultants; Photo by Jean Claude Bien-Aime

The CEO of CES Consultants took notice. In 2022, he called Alfonso to ask him to lead the company as their president. “I was really happy at AECOM, I had no reason to leave, worked alongside great colleagues and made long lasting relationships at AECOM,” Alfonso says. But, the conversation continued, and he realized this was a chance to take a company under his wings and to put the things that he’s passionate about to work. “I said, ‘you know what, I’m going to take on the challenge. I’ll become president of CES Consultants.’ And in February 2023, I took over,” he says.

“If something would’ve been different along my career path, then maybe I wouldn’t be where I am today,” he continues. “Because I wouldn’t have seen the things that I saw, I wouldn’t have felt the things that I felt, and I think that leads itself those experiences galvanized my path and built to my demeanor and positive outlook.”

As the president of CES, Alfonso says that his priorities are different than they were when he was coming up in his career—even his measurement of success has changed.

“Before you become a leader, success is about growing yourself,” he says. “You must grow on your own and develop the habits that are necessary in order for you to become an effective leader. When you become a leader, on the other hand, success is about growing others.

“You have all the accolades—you become a CEO, or you become a president, whatever it is that you become—but you never stop growing, because you’re put in leadership positions to allow for growth, not just for you but for others as well,” he adds.

“But I felt that every step and every phase in my career allowed me to better understand myself, and more importantly, better define what I wanted to do and where I wanted to be.”

Juan Alfonso

“If you don’t spend time making sure others are growing, then your business won’t grow,” Alfonso says. “That’s my drive right now, recognizing strengths while allowing others to grow.”

Hispanicexecutive.com