Chris Flagg, Vice President and Infrastructure & Transportation Group Operations Principal, has been named the recipient of the 2021 winner of the Engdahl Award, given annually to a Haskell team member who has provided leadership and made significant contributions to design excellence.
Since joining Haskell in 2014, Flagg has been transformative with his approach to creativity, collaboration and design excellence. His abilities within the arena of campus master planning, community planning, large-scale mixed-use planning, transit and urban design, have led to multiple awards and elevated his team’s abilities and Haskell’s resources.
In his role as Group Operations Principal, he leads and mentors an interdisciplinary team of architects, engineers and support staff, encouraging team members to grow by taking on more responsibility, learning new skills and mentoring team members. Additionally, the group continues to increase in diversity, with people from different countries and ethnicities furthering diversity of thought.
He is a co-founder of Haskell’s Design Excellence Committee, which holds discussions that generate excitement and a better understanding of design while connecting design resources across the company. The annual Design Showcase has been an outgrowth of the committee, expanding design exploration and excitement to promote a design culture.
As an innovation in design services, Flagg developed an initiative he labeled a conceptual design at risk (CDAR), which leverages Haskell’s design capabilities to inspire potential clients and provide them with a conceptual design package they can use to rally stakeholders.
Flagg is a Louisiana native and Louisiana State University graduate with more than 40 years’ experience working in various markets, including municipal, education, aviation and commercial. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects Council.
A talented watercolorist and urban sketcher, he is a founder of the Jacksonville Urban Sketchers. He enjoys sharing his expertise, organizing and leading fellow Haskell team members on "sketch crawls.” During the COVID-19 lockdown, he authored a series called "Just Face It,” painting a face of a famous person every day, an endeavor that was the topic of a feature article in the Florida Times-Union.
The Engdahl Award recognizes a Haskell employee who has provided leadership and made significant contributions to design excellence. Nominations are judged on design leadership, creativity and innovation, client service, staff development, contributions to quality processes/outcomes, and the furtherance of integration.
Haskell’s Architectural and Engineering (AE) practice comprises 750 team members, including 225 licensed design professionals who hold a total of 1,182 total licenses. It will produce more than $110 million in revenue in 2021.
Previous Engdahl Award Winners
The Engdahl Award is named for Dave Engdahl, Haskell’s former Chief Architect and AE Practice leader. It was established upon his retirement in 2007 to honor his 28 years design leadership. Here is a list of past winners:
- 2008: Peter Skirbst
- 2009: Ted Moore
- 2010: Roland Udenze
- 2011: Jimmy Barber
- 2012: Antonio Valdivia
- 2013: Mike Byron
- 2014: David Schoening
- 2015: Eric Lycke
- 2016: Bela Jacobson
- 2017: Frank Brooks
- 2018: Tom Reel
- 2019: Jeff Pearse
- 2020: Matthew Ford
