Leadership and History

History

Privately owned and headquartered in Woodstock, Georgia, a northwestern suburb of Atlanta, Sierra Piedmont is a national leader in environmental consulting, site assessments, compliance and remediation.  Since 1996, our commitment to clients, client relationships, the markets we serve and proven solutions to environmental problems has been our focus.  Businesses from Fortune 100 companies to regional firms in all 50 states rely on our advice, guidance and support to solve their environmental problems and limit liability.

 

Leadership

C. Scott Pate, P.G.
President/CEO

For 28 years, Scott Pate has devoted himself to professional consulting. In 1981 while still in graduate school he operated as a consultant to companies performing oil exploration in East Texas. Subsequently, work expanded to include natural gas and oil exploration in most of the oil producing states and Gulf of Mexico and in 1991 he made the transition to the environmental industry.

Since founding Sierra Piedmont in 1996 Scott has performed every position within the company. As growth occurred he's been fortunate to recruit and retain leaders having a similar deep commitment to offering the highest quality environmental consulting services coupled with an extraordinary focus on the client's best interest and responsiveness.
 

Scott's passion is client and personnel development. Through implementation of this passion, Sierra has been able to build corporate consulting relationships that span over 15 years and include projects coast to coast. Scott believes his primary role to be client champion, to set the long-term growth strategy of Sierra Piedmont and development of its leaders.

 

Debbie Strawhand, P.G.
Client Program Manager/Vice President of Operations

For the past nine years Debbie has managed an array of environmental projects within the automotive services, gasoline retail and commercial development sectors. Her goal at Sierra is to build trust and confidence with her clients so they always know they've made the right decision in hiring us. Debbie has operational and project management skills second to none which reflect in her projects always being on time and on budget. Debbie has worked over the past two years in the implementation of internal procedures which are meant to make the clients experience with Sierra as easy and as worry free as possible.  On March 1, 2011 Debbie was promoted to Vice-President of Operations where she has accountability for Finance, Human Resources, Training and Administration.
 

Debbie's academic background includes a Bachelor of Science Degree in Geology from Georgia State University. Debbie currently holds a professional registration in her discipline.

Robert L. Mangum, Jr. P.G.
Senior Geologist/Training Coordinator

Robert is currently in his 21st year of directing and performing the assessment, delineation and remediation of soil and groundwater which has been impacted by petroleum, chlorinated solvents, and inorganic compounds. He has worked on a wide variety of projects ranging from manufacturing site Phase I Assessments to investigations at Superfund sites.

During his career, he also performed oversight of contractors on behalf of state and federal environmental agencies. In addition, Mr. Mangum has presented findings (with US EPA counsel) to potentially responsible parties (PRPs) in support of negotiated administrative orders at Superfund sites.
 

Robert is integral to the recruitment, training, and retention of new environmental professionals. He conducts ongoing training with technical staff at Sierra and is involved with mentoring on all technical aspects of investigation.
 

Mr. Mangum holds active registration as a Professional Geologist in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. In addition, Mr. Mangum is a Registered Site Manager (RSM) with the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) authorized to manage and conduct hazardous waste assessments and cleanups. Mr. Mangum is a 10th generation Mississippian and holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology from Mississippi State University.

Jennifer A. Davis
Business Development Manager
With a decade of experience in marketing and business development for professional services firms, Jennifer Davis understands the key to long-term success is building lasting relationships that are founded on trust and respect.
Prior to joining Sierra Piedmont, Jennifer worked in the architecture, engineering, and construction field, as well as spending several years in the financial industry.  This experience exposed her to a variety of private sector companies and public agencies, teaching her the importance of understanding each client’s unique culture and specific needs.  Appreciating these differences and meeting these needs is a fundamental part of Sierra Piedmont’s corporate values, and Jennifer takes a lead role in sharing those principles with clients.

 

 Jennifer’s responsibilities as Business Development Manager go far beyond sales and marketing. Reporting directly to the firm’s President, Jennifer’s primary focus is to ensure the specific needs of each client are fully met. She also supports clients and other professional contacts by sharing up-to-date information relevant to their particular interests such as journal articles, white papers, or industry newsletters, and communicates regularly through phone calls, e-mail, and face-to-face meetings. Jennifer also has a lead role in preparing correspondence, qualifications packages, and other marketing materials to keep clients informed about Sierra Piedmont and the services the firm offers.

 

 Jennifer describes herself as persistent, organized, and easily approachable.  In keeping with Sierra Piedmont’s “Client Bill of Rights” and the “Sierra 360°” philosophy, she measures success by building genuine connections with others and helping share valuable insights into issues of mutual interest. Like all Sierra Piedmont employees, Jennifer is committed to serving the firm’s customers from initial contact until well after a project is complete, responding promptly to all of their concerns.