• News

Interview with Donald E. Stone, Jr., CEO

Founded in 1956 by Sidney O. Dewberry, Fairfax County-headquartered Dewberry, a family-owned architectural, engineering, and construction firm, has deep roots in Northern Virginia. Dewberry’s impact can be seen throughout Fairfax County and the region, not only in terms of its infrastructure projects, but also as an employer providing career opportunities for the region’s talent pipeline, both at the university and K-12 level. Dewberry is very active volunteering within the community here and across the nation. From its Fairfax headquarters, Dewberry oversees its operations at 63 locations with 2,500+ professionals nationwide.

“Sid Dewberry has been iconic in the engineering community,” said Dewberry CEO Donald E. Stone, Jr. “The business is 100 percent family-owned, which is very unusual for an engineering and architectural firm of our size. When Sid Dewberry started the firm in 1956, his wife Reva was the bookkeeper. The first office was located in Arlington, but they moved to Fairfax County in 1965.”

In 2012, Barry K. Dewberry, the eldest of Sid’s children, was elected executive chairman of the board of directors. Sid Dewberry continued on the board as founder and chairman emeritus until his passing in 2022. Other family members, Thomas L. Dewberry and Karen S. Grand Pré sit on the board, and Michael Dewberry II, PE, was named an independent director earlier this year.

Dewberry CEO Don Stone joined the company in 2008 as COO before being promoted to CEO in 2010. With more than 40 years in the industry, Stone has spearheaded Dewberry’s strategic plan and through collaborative leadership achieved significant growth and expansion. Stone graduated from The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina, with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. He is a registered professional engineer in multiple states. He currently sits on Dewberry’s board of directors.

A nationwide firm of planning, design, and construction professionals, Dewberry works on a wide range of projects, including government facilities, highways, rail, and water systems. The company works in three main areas: the federal market, which is about 25 percent of its business; the commercial market, which is also about 25 percent; and the state and local market, which is about 50 percent.

Dewberry has designed, engineered, and constructed many infrastructure projects in Northern Virginia. For example, Dewberry served as lead engineer for the Route 7 Corridor Improvements in Fairfax County, completed in April 2024.

“We take pride in what we design and build in our communities,” said Stone. “It’s really gratifying to see people taking their kids and grandkids through completed projects and describing how we contributed. We know we help shape a community’s potential by creating facilities and infrastructure that allow communities to thrive. It’s part of our DNA.”

Fairfax HQ location ideal for talent acquisition

Dewberry’s Fairfax location has been ideal because of the availability of technical talent in the region, Stone said, noting that the company recruits heavily from Virginia Tech and George Mason University.

Encouraging future STEM careers for young women

Dewberry is involved with the Fairfax County Public Schools, promoting STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) coursework.

“We are very engaged with Fairfax County Public Schools, because middle school is when girls often move away from STEM courses,” Stone explained. “So, if you are trying to hire more women into positions within our industry, you really need to promote engineering and mathematics among girls as early as sixth grade. We are engaged with Luther Jackson Middle School, just across the street from our headquarters, by sponsoring and volunteering for its after-school STEM programs.”

Community engagement participation encouraged

Dewberry applauds and encourages employee participation in community engagement, focusing on roles as environmental stewards, STEM activists, and civic champions. Employees are credited with more than 8,600 hours of volunteering across the nation in 2023.

“Barry Dewberry, our executive chairman, believes in investing time and support to the communities we serve beyond the projects we deliver,” Stone said. “Many of our staff hold positions on community boards and spend hours volunteering.”

For example, Dewberry’s geospatial and technology services team in Fairfax recently assembled “summer survival” kits for Recovery Program Solutions of Virginia, a non-profit organization that serves and supports adults with homelessness, mental health, and substance abuse issues across Northern Virginia. Kits included sunscreen, toothbrushes and toothpaste, hand sanitizer, deodorant, tissues, water bottles, snacks, and more.

In 2023, according to Dewberry’s Corporate Social Responsibility Report, other Fairfax team projects included hosting food donation drives, donating hundreds of toys for Toys for Tots, and sponsoring Run the Greenway’s third annual 5K/10K race, a fundraiser for multiple NOVA charities.

“Our largest client base is state and local. So, it is very important to be engaged in the community to understand what’s important to residents, wherever we have locations,” Stone said.

Job opportunities abound

Career opportunities are available at Dewberry’s headquarters in Fairfax and in the surrounding area. Click here to see open positions.

“We have 600 employees at the Dewberry campus in Fairfax, including all of our major disciplines and corporate staff,” Stone said. “Across the country, we hire about 500 people a year and bring on board about 260 interns and entry-level employees who work in engineering, including mechanical, electrical, civil, structural, environmental, as well as architectural and interior design.”

Dewberry actively recruits veterans and maintains a veterans employers resource group. “We have onsite programs that bring personnel over on a part-time basis before they leave their service. We find that all of the branches provide great access to talent,” Stone said.

“We do not hire and fire for projects. We hire for careers, focusing on employee success; and we take that very seriously,” Stone said.

He said Dewberry attributes its success to three important principles:

“One, our clients. Fairfax County is a great client. We work with their civil group, their architectural practice, and a lot of different elements within Fairfax County. Two, staying in step with where the market is and investing in our professionals so they can support our clients effectively. And three, without a doubt, it is the fiscal discipline within our firm. I think holding true to our fiscal responsibility has really served us well.”

Find out more at Dewberry.com.