Cindy Menches

IMPACT Director of Professional Development & Training

As the Director of Professional Development & Training for IMPACT, Dr. Cindy Menches is responsible for the design, development, delivery, and administration of education and training initiatives to support the business success of union iron worker contractors and the Iron Workers International Union. Her major areas of responsibility include developing innovative professional development education and training programs, establishing interactive e-learning environments, creating curriculum that aids members in growing and improving their businesses, facilitating the startup of new contractors, providing education that enables ironworkers to advance their career, and measuring progress towards achievement of organizational goals. Dr. Menches manages a training program that consists of nearly 40 unique courses. Among the most successful courses, the Construction Contracting Business Fundamentals Academy: Establish Your Business program was developed and is facilitated by Dr. Menches and is offered four times each year. The academy is a 5-day intensive program designed for current and future ironworking contractors who want to develop or improve their fundamental business skills. Furthermore, through IMPACT’s Ironworker Contractor University (ICU), Dr. Menches offers over 40 courses every year on topics that include business administration, project management, field supervision, leadership, communication, Lean construction, and technology, which consists of new and existing instructor-led in-person and online courses, self-paced interactive e-learning, and webcasts. The success of union ironworkers and contractors is vital to the growth of the construction industry. Consequently, IMPACT and the Ironworkers International Union are committed to helping prospective, new, and established contractors and field personnel strengthen their knowledge and skills, ensuring that iron workers continue to be gainfully employed, to grow, and to thrive.

Prior to joining IMPACT, Dr. Menches was an assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin and the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, where she conducted research on the improvisational decision-making processes of construction field supervisors. Dr. Menches previously worked as a construction project manager in Chicago and Madison, and she is a former Air Force civil engineering officer. Her tenure in the Air Force spanned nine years, during which she held positions as a construction project planner, environmental engineering program manager, and Deputy Chief of Engineering.

Dr. Menches holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering-Building Science from the University of Southern California, a Master of Science degree in Architectural Engineering from The Pennsylvania State University, and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Wisconsin.

Dr. Menches grew up in Phoenix, Arizona and has traveled to all 50 states and Washington, DC. She has also traveled to most of the Canadian provinces and several other countries. Dr. Menches is an avid health, fitness, and nutrition enthusiast and a self-declared biohacker. She enjoys walking, jogging, bicycling, and qigong. As an avid life-long learner, Dr. Menches is learning to speak Mandarin Chinese and is a voracious reader, completing at least one book each month.