Eliah Marcus

Job Title: Project Manager – Special Projects Division

Company: Westphal & Co.

Location: Milwaukee

Age: 27

Years on the Job: 7

Interests: Spending time with friends and family, watching sports, coaching pole vault, golfing, going to concerts, and having fun in Milwaukee

Eliah Marcus always enjoyed working with his hands, building things, and taking things apart to see how they worked before putting them back together. He also liked tech ed classes and other hands-on courses that introduced him to electrical concepts.

“Electrical work stood out to me in those classes because it was challenging and not always easy for me to understand right away, which made me want to learn more,” said Marcus, who was born and raised in Wisconsin.

After attending college, he began working in hardscape and outdoor lighting, which confirmed his love for hands-on work. He then applied for the IBEW Local 494 apprenticeship and was accepted about a year later. The five-year program blended classroom instruction with on-the-job training.

“Seeing those concepts applied in the field helped me understand why the Code matters, how work gets installed, and how decisions are made on actual jobs,” he said. “That has been helpful in project management because I can look at drawings, scopes, estimates, and field issues with a better understanding of what the work actually takes.”

As a project manager in the Special Projects Division at Westphal & Co., he started out in the field installing work and learning the trade. Today, he is involved in many phases of the projects, which gives him the opportunity to keep learning about the office side of the business. He said he enjoys both the people and the culture at Westphal.

“Moving from the field into a project management role has brought new things to learn,” he said. “Luckily, I am surrounded by people I can trust and learn from.”

Currently, he helps manage smaller projects from start to finish and is helping grow the Special Projects work in the Milwaukee area through estimating, customer relationships, and field support. Over time, he’d like to continue taking on more responsibilities by managing larger projects, helping to grow a department, mentoring younger people, or moving into a leadership role.

He said he is honored to be selected for the EC&M 30 Under 30.

“It motivates me to keep learning, improving, and making the most of the opportunities I have been given,” he said.

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