KU Engineering’s Tiberti Lecture returns this fall with a focus on managing difficult conversations

LAWRENCE — Aaron Mann, senior principal and chief legal officer at Terracon, will deliver the J.A. Tiberti Family Lecture at the University of Kansas School of Engineering.

Mann will deliver the lecture at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 15 in the Beren Auditorium. His lecture is titled “Hard Conversations: An Ethics Case Study in the Destructive Power of Conflict Avoidance and the Redemptive Power of Honesty.”

“Engineers, doctors and lawyers all have rules of responsibility; we are all faced with hazards that can make bad choices appear more attractive,” Mann said. “Unless we identify those hazards and talk about them, rules alone will never be enough. I’m grateful for the opportunity to share a story that illustrates some of these hazards.”

Mann has been practicing law for 25 years with a focus on resolving business disputes. He regularly manages outside counsel acting on behalf of the company and works internally to troubleshoot project issues and avoid disputes before they escalate. He also oversees Terracon’s ethics program. Prior to joining Terracon, Mann was a partner at Husch Blackwell, an AmLaw 100 law firm, where his practice focused on commercial and cross-border litigation.

“This year’s J.A. Tiberti Family Lecture will bring together students, faculty and staff around a topic related to ethics in engineering and how important it is to deal with problems that arise in the course of business head-on,” said Caroline Bennett, faculty member and chair of the KU Department of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering. “We don’t often think about conflict avoidance as an ethical issue, and I am excited for the fresh perspective that this lecture will provide.”

The J.A. Tiberti Family Lecture began in 2011 through the Department of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering with a gift to KU Endowment from the family of Jelindo Angelo Tiberti, who founded J.A. Tiberti Construction Co. in Las Vegas in 1950. Under his leadership, the firm became a major player in construction projects throughout Las Vegas and southern Nevada.