GEOINT 2025 | McCarthy Building Companies - Josh Gaghen

Josh Gaghen from McCarthy Building Companies discusses his background and role in leading the construction of the new NGA headquarters in St. Louis. He introduces McCarthy as a nationwide, oldest privately held construction company specializing in complex, technical projects. Gaghen shares the challenges encountered building the high-security NGA facility, particularly navigating the design phase and team collaboration amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. He highlights leadership principles and processes that helped the team overcome these obstacles and keep the project moving. The conversation also covers the significant economic impact of the NGA project on the St. Louis region's growing geospatial ecosystem. Gaghen shares lessons learned, emphasizing the importance of collaboration, technology investment, and addressing the critical need for skilled workforce development in constructing modern facilities.

Highlights

• Josh Gaghen, VP at McCarthy, discusses leading the construction of the new NGA headquarters in St. Louis.

• McCarthy is the oldest privately held construction company in the U.S., headquartered in St. Louis.

• Building the NGA headquarters faced challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic impacting design and collaboration.

• Leadership principles like strong relationships and virtual workspaces helped overcome challenges.

• The NGA project is seen as a major driver for making St. Louis a geospatial hub.

• Lessons learned include the importance of collaboration, technology, and workforce development.

• Training skilled trade craft workers for complex, technological facilities is crucial.

• McCarthy focuses on complex projects and collaborative delivery methods.