Ian McPhillips, PE
Director, Energy
One of Ian McPhillips’ favorite aspects of his work comes through the developmental aspect of his role. He loves to coach and teach, promoting a collaborative atmosphere where members of his team can feel good about approaching one another with a question. For Ian, seeing the team rowing in the same direction towards the same goals is proof that BL’s employee-ownership culture walks the walk, and his goal is to continue to help progress that culture.
A graduate of Binghamton University and SUNY Farmingdale, Ian started his career at National Grid. Growing up rurally in New York State, he didn’t know much about the utility business, but he quickly immersed himself in his work. He strived to get an understanding of what everyone did within the company by contacting other departments and developing relationships with his co-workers that extended beyond the typical 9-5 day, thus garnering a reputation as a hard worker and a team player.
Immersing himself into the LNG (liquefied natural gas) space, Ian spent several years working on multimillion dollar LNG installations, and moved into a management role in LNG and CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) Engineering for National Grid. While digging into the permitting processes for these ventures, Ian was introduced to BL Companies. At the time BL was looking to expand its LNG offerings, and Ian took the opportunity to jump into the consulting side.
At BL Companies, Ian combines his background and his technical expertise as a project engineer and project manager with an eye towards business development and personnel management. He focuses on working with project managers and senior level team members to bring in new contracts and opportunities. He appreciates the flexibility BL Companies has given him, allowing him the ability to make the division his own, which he believes is a good indication of where the company’s leadership team is at – hiring people they trust and allowing them to do what they need to do.
With a suite of in-house capabilities and big resources, coupled with a lack of a true profit center, BL’s ability to seamlessly work across regional offices and through all divisions of the firm creates an environment where the client’s best interest remains top of mind. Ian looks to continue to build on the client-driven focus that drives BL Companies, and seeks to create opportunities for BL’s people – giving employees the chance to work on different projects and expanding the business so new opportunities open for those who have aspirations of being in a leadership level role.
