FHWA Works: Employee Spotlight - Neil Gaffney

Full Name: Neil Gaffney
Title: Public Affairs Specialist
Division/Department: Office of Public Affairs
Location: Washington, DC

1. What is your typical workday like?
   I handle media inquiries on specific issues, such as bicyclist-pedestrian issues; innovations that can save lives, time, or money when it comes to project delivery; safety concerns; work zones and guidelines outlined in the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) that ensure drivers and other travelers have simple signs that are easy to identify and comprehend and other visual aids that make for safer journeys. I also write blogs and press releases, and accompany the FHWA Administrator and DOT Officials in order to provide public affairs support when there are groundbreakings and ribbon-cuttings for projects in 16 states that I’m responsible for.

2. What has been your biggest accomplishment over the last year?
   Working with FHWA staff at Headquarters and in its New York Division office to bring the NY State Department of Transportation into compliance with the MUTCD.

3. Prior to working at FHWA, what was the most unusual or interesting job you've ever had?
   I worked as Director of Communications for the Electronic Industries Alliance, an organization representing high-tech trade associations who were facing political pressure in response to the offshore outsourcing of high-tech jobs. It was a politically sensitive issue, but one we were able to effectively communicate on, in part by engaging with the media in order to emphasize the need to foster and encourage innovation in the high-tech sector here in the United States.

4. What are your hobbies in your spare time?
   I’m a huge fan of all Philadelphia sports teams (someday the Eagles are going to win a Super Bowl. You heard it here first.). I also am a dog lover and owner of a four-year-old beagle/foxhound mix named Betsy (as in, Heavens to…), who gets into all sorts of shenanigans when she does not get enough attention (hence her nickname: The Little Monster).

5. What is one of the biggest lessons you have learned in your career to get you where you are today?
   What one can do well, a group of individuals working together as a team can do even better. I’ve had the pleasure of working with amazingly talented, selfless professionals prior to coming to FHWA and during my tenure here.

6. Complete this sentence: "People would be surprised if they knew..."
   that I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico.