As a young man, John Derucki started working in his father-in- law’s engineering firm and discovered his future career path. His positive experience at the engineering firm reassured him the College of Technology at Purdue University was the best place for him. It wasn’t until he met Dr. Dorsey Moss that he knew building construction management would be his program of choice within the College of Technology.
"Dr. Moss took the time out of his very busy schedule to explain the program to me,” says John. “Dr. Moss was one of the brightest and most open minded individuals that I have ever met.”After graduation, John joined Pepper Construction as a senior production manager. In addition, he held positions at Turner Construction Company and F.A. Wilhelm Construction Company before joining Winter Construction. As vice president of operations at Winter, John oversees the commercial business unit operations for retail, hospitality, and healthcare construction. His responsibilities include the time completion, customer satisfaction, quality, safety, and fiscal return for each project within his group.
John’s future aspirations include becoming president of an organization and then pursuing a teaching position within his field of expertise. Through teaching, he plans to give back to the industry he loves and hopes he can make a difference in the life of a young person similar to what Dr. Moss did for him.
This was originally written for the Distinguished Technology Alumni Awards in 2005.