Pictured (left to right): Craig Thompson, Secretary, WisDOT, Don Miller, PE, OES Senior Transportation Engineer, Matt Kunstman, OES Transportation General Manager, Benjie Hayek, OES Transportation Construction Engineer and Supervisor, and Paul Hammer, Deputy Secretary, WisDOT.

Oneida Engineering Solutions (OES) was awarded the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Secretary’s Golden Shovel Award at the March 4 luncheon during the 2022 Annual Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Workshop & Networking Summit, held at the Ingleside Hotel, Pewaukee, WI. WisDOT Secretary Craig Thompson presented OES with the award.

WisDOT is committed to equity and the promotion of DBE participation and utilization in contracts. The Annual DBE Workshop and Networking Summit is geared toward firms looking to engage, better understand, identify barriers, and gain resources to successfully contract with the state.

The purpose of the Golden Shovel awards is to recognize DBE firms and industry leaders for their outstanding contract and project performance during the year, as well as program participation, and to highlight individuals, organizations, and groups instrumental to the success and progress of the DBE program.

“Benjie and I thoroughly appreciate the opportunity WisDOT awards us to help the WisDOT DBE Office with their programs,” said Don Miller, PE, OES Senior Transportation Engineer. “We do this by sharing our knowledge and expertise to help DBE’s in the State of Wisconsin develop their businesses to improve their skills, capacity, competitiveness, and profitability.”

Award nomination criteria includes:

  • DBE-certified firm, consultant/contractor, whose quality of work is demonstrably superior;
  • Contractor or consultant firm who support the ideals, efforts, and goals of the DBE Program via support, involvement, engagement, or advocacy; the support must be beyond meeting participation;
  • Contractor or consultant firm whose workforce demonstrates diversity in its staff and or workforce that exceeds the diversity of the community, state including TrANS program participation, or utilization;
  • Prime contractor or consultant who subcontracts to DBE firms absent DBE goals and/or provides supportive services to help remove barriers to participation such as mentoring and technical assistance;
  • Progressing DBE firms – DBE-certified firms who have worked on WisDOT contracts for less than two years who demonstrate the positive image and values of the DBE program as characterized by WisDOT staff, primes, or formal stakeholder organizations; and
  • Individuals, organizations, groups, and agencies who have demonstrated notable support of the WisDOT DBE Program principles.