Tell us about yourself and your role at Revamp.

Hi, my name is Andrés Acevedo-Cross. I'm the Executive Vice President of Design Services here at Revamp. I have been with the company for almost eight years. I'm a civil engineer by training, and I'm deeply committed to making an impact on climate change. I'm a parent of two. I'm a spouse. I'm queer, and I'm transgender.

What inspired you to join Revamp in its early days, and what motivated you to help shape the company's culture as it grew?

I joined Revamp when we were still really small. I was the sixth employee. I was, of course, attracted to the idea of working on utility-scale projects, putting more renewables on the grid. But I was also really interested in being part of building a culture and a company from the ground up. From the beginning, we've been very intentional about having a culture that focuses on inclusion so that anyone who works here can be themselves and bring their full self to work every day.

Can you share a moment at Revamp when you felt especially seen or valued as a member of the LGBTQ+ community?

This is an interesting question because I honestly can't quite pinpoint it to one specific moment. The reality is that we have a really strong team here at Revamp and a really strong company culture. My colleagues are phenomenal at finding creative solutions for our clients and our projects and collaborating as a team. I feel embraced by my professional community as a team member, as an individual, and as a contributor to what we're trying to build.

What does Pride Month mean to you personally, and how do you see it reflected or evolving within the workplace?

Pride month, for me, is complicated. The reality is that it comes from protest for wanting to be included in everyday society, to not be discriminated against. There's a long history there of why pride has come to be. In terms of Pride Month, what it can signify now, especially in a professional context, is a month about building community and visibility. Making sure that we're building community not just in our personal lives and our neighborhoods, within the context of the school that our kids go to, but also within our professional lives and the companies that we work for.

If you could tell your younger professional self one thing about navigating the workplace as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, what would it be?

Words of advice to my younger self...the reality of the context when I graduated from engineering school, and I was trying to find my way as a professional engineer, but also as a member of the LGBTQ community, is that it felt like those two things were diametrically opposed. I didn't know how to find my path as both an engineer and a queer and transgender person and have those two things coexist.

So, I would tell myself now to have hope. To trust your colleagues, to build community, and to do what you love, most importantly. Find your passion, do it well, and then find the workplaces that support you and being your best self.