Leading with trust: Makarand Nagpure on project management and innovation

With over three decades of experience in industrial and oil and gas design, Makarand Nagpure has built a career defined by technical excellence and collaborative leadership.

From structural engineering to managing complex offshore platforms, his journey has taken him across Oman and India, culminating in his current role as project director in design engineering.

Makarand’s story is one of passion for project management, a commitment to innovation, and the belief that trust and teamwork drive success.

Tell us about your role and where you are based

I am a project director in the design engineering division at Mott MacDonald in India, based in Mumbai. My role involves project management services, ramping up design and project execution of teams to deliver successful industrial projects. I also provide resource management support to the design engineering team in India, including the heads of all the design and project disciplines.

Early last year I transferred from our office in Muscat, Oman, where I was working in a similar role focused on upstream oil and gas (O&G) projects.

Why did you choose you career path? Why Mott MacDonald?

I started my career as a structural engineer for industrial designs more than 30 years ago, later moved into the design of refineries and liquid natural gas projects and finally ended up designing offshore O&G platforms.

From the beginning, I had passion for project management, which I found interesting and challenging. It also offers a clear path for career progression, which brings tangible results and contributes to organisational success.

I was a true admirer of Mott Macdonald long before I joined the company ten years ago. When opportunity came knocking, I eagerly grabbed it.

What does it mean to you to be trusted to do brilliant things at Mott MacDonald?

It’s an honour and it instils in me a sense of respect and integrity. I feel a responsibility and commitment to uphold the trust.

Can you share a project you’ve worked on that you’re particularly proud of and explain why it stands out to you?

When I joined Mott Macdonald, I became framework contract manager and engineering contract manager for Petroleum Development of Oman (PDO), a major project providing supporting infrastructure for South Oman Oil and Gas facilities.

This was a big framework contact and was already four years old. It was facing lots of challenges on technical and commercial fronts. The contract had a unique blend of ‘bidding in cost time’ approach for multiple baskets of projects and a time-based approach to claiming manhours, which added complexity.

We implement lots of project management tools and techniques to ensure that safety, cost, schedule, risk, interface and quality were managed to the plan, and that information was properly captured, monitored and controlled.

That resulted in positive outcomes: effective management of change, resource management with almost zero downtime, effective stakeholder management and consistently achieving all the key performance indicators.

Finally, this 13-year framework contract came to a successful completion, including more than 570 sub-projects, which clocked more than 1.9M design hours with a decent profit. I was glad that I could finish the project successfully and later I transferred back to India.

How do you collaborate with colleagues from different specialisms to achieve common goals?

Collaboration and teamwork are achieved by setting clear objectives or goals, through effective communication, assigning roles and responsibilities, proactive listening, sharing ideas appreciating team efforts and respecting diverse cultures.

Whether it is O&G or any industrial design, my goal is to get successful engineering from multiple specialist design teams, including process, piping, civil and structural, architectural, heating and air conditioning, fire protection, static, rotary, electrical and instrumentation engineering. My role also includes collaboration on procurement, quantity surveying and mechanical, electrical and plumbing services from time to time.

What advice would you give to someone looking to start their career at Mott MacDonald?

Be attentive, consistent and maintain a curious disposition. If possible, try a variety of roles but keep a professional approach. Be honest, genuine and don’t forget to bring your new ideas to the table. Last, but not least, keep an open mind and be respectful. Then you will be trusted to do brilliant things.

How does Mott MacDonald create an environment where you feel empowered and supported?

Mott Macdonald provides an environment with ample opportunities for growth. You can get support from mentors and goals are set in joint discussions with realistic expectations. This allows you to take decisions and have ownership of work as well as constructive feedback exchanged both ways. Employees are given freedom for innovation, support to achieve their best, recognition and rewards.