Profile: Dr. Mike O'Connor (Sci'68)
Mike O'Connor, professional engineer, mentor and friend
Mike O'Connor B.Sc. '68, Ph.D. '76 and Honorary D.Sc. '92 has been described as a practitioner "who has not only achieved excellence himself at the highest level of his profession but has also, at every stage, continued to support education through awards, summer jobs, and lectures to Applied Science students on the value of common sense and creativity in engineering endeavours."1
As one of the first graduates in engineering geology and geophysics at Queen's, Dr. O'Connor attributes much of his later accomplishments to his years spent at Queen's.
"Queen's applied science education provided me the opportunity to learn to think for myself, and have confidence in my own solutions. That confidence to tackle the most complex of problems remains the most significant aspect of my education, even today."
His memories of Queen's span his career from his first day here when he met his late wife, to conceiving an alternative to the Queen's Journal and publishing the first edition of Golden Words, and lecturing in 2002 to the first year engineers on what they can expect in "The First 100 Days" at Queen's.
"But one of the most memorable," he says, "is getting a big hug from a first year engineering student who told me with tears in her eyes that she was ready to give up and go home until she heard my lecture." Now she's in her final year.
Since 1979, Dr. O'Connor has been founder and President of O'Connor Associates Environmental Inc., a consulting engineering firm that offers geotechnical and environmental consulting services across Canada and around the world.
In 1998 Dr. O'Connor and his wife Mary (Arts '68) took a business sabbatical and returned to Queen's for a one-year pilot program as the first Mentors in Residence on the Engineering Floor. The success of this program has led to Queen's mentors in health science, philosophy and the humanities. A similar program is now being considered at the University of Waterloo.
Upon graduation in 1968, Dr. O'Connor began his career as a geophysicist in the petroleum industry in Calgary. Following his Ph.D. program in Civil Engineering, he joined R.M. Hardy in Calgary as a geotechnical consultant, continuing his research into the creep behaviour of frozen soils as it related to the design of the Canadian Arctic Gas Pipeline.
In 1976 he joined EBA Engineering Consultants as the project manager for the first major integrated geological, geophysical, geotechnical and biological investigation of the shallow seabed in the southern Beaufort Sea.
In 1979 he started his own firm with fellow Queen's man John Agar, (B.Sc. '73). Together they continued to map the occurrence of marine permafrost and seabed hazards in the Beaufort Sea, but also specialized in geotechnical failure investigations like the catastrophic collapse of the Bearspaw Pretreatment Facility, one of the early documented natural occurrences of collapsing soils in Western Canada. With a background in geology, geophysics, and geotechnical engineering, Dr. O'Connor was well situated to tackle the first major geo-environmental problems in Canada. Pioneering new investigation and remedial techniques, his firm quickly became a leader in addressing subsurface contamination issues at petroleum and chemical facilities throughout North America.
In addition to technical papers on geology, geophysics, geotechnical and environmental engineering, Dr. O'Connor's published writings cover such diverse topics as personal and professional success in today's business climate; the cost of being green; and the use and abuse of environmental engineers by lawyers.
Although his degrees are in engineering, he has always considered himself a philosopher at heart. "The secret to success," he believes, "is having a personal mission statement that can act as a compass to guide you through confusing times. My personal mission was simple:
- Have fun
- Do good work
- Earn a living
Never, ever change the order."
"Since we may only go around once in this life," Dr. O'Connor explains, "it's important to concentrate our efforts on doing things that ultimately bring us happiness. Since we're trained to be professionals, we must approach our work using our best efforts. If we're having fun, it's likely that we will be able to do good work, and if we're doing good work, we're probably going to be having lots of fun. Lastly," he adds, "everyone has responsibilities in this world and we each need to make ourselves as self-sufficient as possible. We don't need to drive a fancy car, but we do need to put food on the table and send our kids to school. Earning a living helps fulfill some of our responsibilities to ourselves, our families and our society. If you address these goals in the proper order you're surely destined to be successful as an engineer."
Dr. O'Connor's honours and awards include: Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering, 2005; Fellow of the Engineering Institute of Canada, 2001; Queen's University Johnson Award Recipient, 2003 (presented by the Calgary Branch of the Alumni Society for outstanding contributions to the university and the community).
Dr. O'Connor is a keen horseman who has competed in the rodeo event known as Team Cattle Penning at the Calgary Stampede and both the National and World Championships. He was Canadian National AQHA Team Penning Champion in 1991, 1992, 1993.
He has Professional Engineer and/or Professional Geoscientist designations in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Yukon Territories and the Northwest Territories.
His professional memberships include: Association of Groundwater Scientists and Engineers (NWWA), Canadian Geotechnical Society, Canadian Society for Engineering Management; Engineering Institute of Canada; American Society for Testing and Materials (1980-2000); Environmental Assessment Association; ISSMFE Committee TC5 on Environmental Control (1992-1994); Engineering Advisory Committee (1988-1990) University of Saskatchewan (Regina); Engineering Advisory Council (1994-1996); Queen's University; Engineering Advisory Council (2000-2002) University of Calgary (Civil); Geological Survey of Canada/Alberta Geological Survey Policy and Program Committee (1994-1996); Geological Survey of Canada Advisory Council (2001-2004).
