Halff Associates Announces Hiring of Russell Zapalac as Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer

RICHARDSON, Texas — Halff Associates, Inc. (Halff), one of the nation’s leading engineering/architecture firms, is pleased to announce the hiring of Mr. Russell Zapalac, PE, the former chief planning and project officer for Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). He will be joining Halff as executive vice president and chief strategy officer in May 2016.

Mr. Zapalac will focus on development and implementation of growth initiatives for Halff. “We are excited to have Russell coming on board!  He has great depth and experience in management and strategic planning, and his leadership skills complement those of our strong leaders at Halff.  As our company continues to move forward, Russell’s expertise in leading and developing large organizations will play a vital role for us in both the public and private sectors,” said President Patrick Kunz.

Throughout his 30+ year career, Mr. Zapalac has served in both the public and private sectors as an owner, contractor, and consultant and has worked on large transportation, public works, and land development projects. As one of the top six executives at TxDOT, he was involved in the implementation of TxDOT’s vision and goals for the 11,800 person department with annual budget in excess of $11 billion. He led TxDOT’s $29 billion alternate delivery and public-private partnership program and is known nationally for his work with public-private partnership projects.

He also served as senior vice president and director of transportation for a major consulting firm, where he managed a 17-state central region and led 500 professionals in his division. As part of the firm’s senior leadership, he focused on strategic planning, market development, and project delivery, which supported the firm’s goal of doubling revenues within seven years.

“I am very excited to be joining Halff.  The company and I share the same values regarding people, integrity, teamwork, quality of work, and client satisfaction.  I am looking forward to working with Halff’s leadership to help grow the firm and continue their philosophy of providing outstanding service.”

Mr. Zapalac received his bachelor of science in civil engineering from The University of Texas at Austin. He is on the Board of Directors for the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, serves on the Transportation Transformation Group’s Executive Committee, and is the American Road and Transportation Builders Association’s 2014 Public Sector Entrepreneur of the Year.

About Halff

Halff is an award-winning, employee-owned, diverse and multidiscipline professional engineering and architecture firm. For more than 70 years, Halff has provided innovative solutions for clients throughout the United States. Halff is committed to the purpose of improving lives and communities by turning ideas into reality by continuously investing in its employees and fostering a culture of collaboration.

Halff has 28 offices in Arkansas, Florida, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Texas. The firm is ranked No. 97 by Engineering News-Record. Halff is the No. 10 Top Workplace nationally in 2022 as ranked by Energage for businesses with 1,000 to 2,499 employees.

For more information about Halff, visit halff.com.