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S2 Ep 2 | The Human Equation: Leadership Lessons from Engineering with DeWayne Fliss
https://youtu.be/H9EaCf6VsgI
How systems thinking and engineering logic shaped DeWayne Fliss’s leadership philosophy—and the lessons that inspired the next step toward TRAITS.
Leadership Lessons from Engineering: The Human Equation
In Season 2, Episode 2 of The TRAITS Podcast, host Mark Frentz continues the conversation with DeWayne Fliss, founder of Concord Consulting, to explore how an engineer’s approach to solving complex systems evolved into a framework for leading people. This chapter of DeWayne’s journey reveals how leadership lessons from engineering became the building blocks of the TRAITS philosophy.
After years in civil engineering and construction, DeWayne began noticing something his training hadn’t prepared him for: the human side of performance. Projects failed not because of design flaws or budget miscalculations—but because of breakdowns in communication, motivation, and trust. The variables weren’t structural; they were behavioural.
In this episode, DeWayne explains how engineering principles—precision, systems thinking, and process discipline—provided unexpected insight into leadership. He discovered that, just like structures, teams require alignment and balance. A small misalignment at the top—a poorly defined role, a personality clash, or a lack of feedback—could create exponential stress further down the organization.
Together, Mark and DeWayne unpack the lessons that reshaped how he viewed leadership and culture:
✅ How the logic of engineering exposed the emotional realities of leadership.
✅ Why human systems fail when leaders underestimate behavioural alignment.
✅ The importance of measuring both technical competence and natural tendencies.
✅ How feedback and accountability create structural integrity in teams.
DeWayne also shares stories from his time in construction management—moments where deadlines, pressure, and people clashed—and how those experiences revealed a pattern: leaders who understood human behaviour didn’t just complete projects; they built teams that thrived long after. By the end of the episode, listeners will see how leadership lessons from engineering set the stage for the development of TRAITS. It’s a story about bridging two worlds—the precision of data and the unpredictability of people—and finding the common thread that connects both: human design.
Show Notes:
00:00 – Introduction: Building on the foundations of Episode 1
03:10 – Engineering precision and the human variable
08:40 – The first leadership lessons from managing people, not projects
15:20 – When structure meets emotion: understanding human systems
23:30 – How alignment and clarity prevent performance collapse
31:45 – The importance of accountability and honest feedback
39:10 – The link between systems design and organizational success
46:00 – How these lessons laid the groundwork for TRAITS
Connect with TRAITS:
🔗 Connect with us on LinkedIn
📸 Follow us on Instagram
📰 Read our BLOG
📩 Sign up to our Newsletter
View all episodes
By TRAITShttps://youtu.be/H9EaCf6VsgI
How systems thinking and engineering logic shaped DeWayne Fliss’s leadership philosophy—and the lessons that inspired the next step toward TRAITS.
Leadership Lessons from Engineering: The Human Equation
In Season 2, Episode 2 of The TRAITS Podcast, host Mark Frentz continues the conversation with DeWayne Fliss, founder of Concord Consulting, to explore how an engineer’s approach to solving complex systems evolved into a framework for leading people. This chapter of DeWayne’s journey reveals how leadership lessons from engineering became the building blocks of the TRAITS philosophy.
After years in civil engineering and construction, DeWayne began noticing something his training hadn’t prepared him for: the human side of performance. Projects failed not because of design flaws or budget miscalculations—but because of breakdowns in communication, motivation, and trust. The variables weren’t structural; they were behavioural.
In this episode, DeWayne explains how engineering principles—precision, systems thinking, and process discipline—provided unexpected insight into leadership. He discovered that, just like structures, teams require alignment and balance. A small misalignment at the top—a poorly defined role, a personality clash, or a lack of feedback—could create exponential stress further down the organization.
Together, Mark and DeWayne unpack the lessons that reshaped how he viewed leadership and culture:
✅ How the logic of engineering exposed the emotional realities of leadership.
✅ Why human systems fail when leaders underestimate behavioural alignment.
✅ The importance of measuring both technical competence and natural tendencies.
✅ How feedback and accountability create structural integrity in teams.
DeWayne also shares stories from his time in construction management—moments where deadlines, pressure, and people clashed—and how those experiences revealed a pattern: leaders who understood human behaviour didn’t just complete projects; they built teams that thrived long after. By the end of the episode, listeners will see how leadership lessons from engineering set the stage for the development of TRAITS. It’s a story about bridging two worlds—the precision of data and the unpredictability of people—and finding the common thread that connects both: human design.
Show Notes:
00:00 – Introduction: Building on the foundations of Episode 1
03:10 – Engineering precision and the human variable
08:40 – The first leadership lessons from managing people, not projects
15:20 – When structure meets emotion: understanding human systems
23:30 – How alignment and clarity prevent performance collapse
31:45 – The importance of accountability and honest feedback
39:10 – The link between systems design and organizational success
46:00 – How these lessons laid the groundwork for TRAITS
Connect with TRAITS:
🔗 Connect with us on LinkedIn
📸 Follow us on Instagram
📰 Read our BLOG
📩 Sign up to our Newsletter