Ian Taube joined Tria Federal as a senior consultant in 2022 and was promoted to managing consultant in 2023. He works remotely from Colorado Springs, Colorado.
What are your favorite parts of working at Tria?
Tria allows me to be innovative and apply my personal values of honor, courage, and commitment – taken from my time in the U.S. Navy – to every part of my work life. I am proud to serve our veterans, and through Tria I can do that daily by supporting our clients in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
I like that Tria encourages us to drive change within the company and for our clients. We hire staff who are brand new to this environment, brand new to VA, brand new to that mission and vision, and I get to pour that mission and vision into them. When you start putting others in the spotlight and see them grow, get promoted and hit their goals, it’s invaluable.
What work accomplishments are you most proud of?
Being able to jump in and provide new solutions for VA is really rewarding. I noticed that change management forms could sit in people’s inboxes for days or weeks waiting for a signature. To solve this problem, I helped develop the PowerApp solution, which automates the change management form, automatically routing it to the necessary people for signatures.
Everything comes down to the relationships we’re building with our customers. They know they can trust us and rely on us. That trust has enabled Tria to jump into a lot of different areas, enabling our team members to innovate, lead projects or actions and receive kudos from the client or Tria colleagues.
How do you create a sense of teamwork with coworkers?
As a Navy veteran teamwork is ingrained in me; it is an integral part of how we accomplish goals for our clients. Teamwork starts with communication. The more we know, the more we can relay. I have a Microsoft Teams page where we communicate daily. If you ask around, I’m known for my dad jokes.
Sometimes I reach out and just ask team members how they’re doing. I want them to feel like they have a boss who is human, not just somebody who cares about the numbers. I lead by example. There is nothing I would have my team do that I am not willing to do myself. I jump in on the smallest of tasks and share wins as well as lessons learned along the way.
What hobbies or interests do you pursue in your free time?
My wife and I are empty nesters now, with one son in the Air Force and two daughters in college, so we are finding a new rhythm this year. We took a vacation to Disneyland. We’re starting a garden. I attend a men’s group at my church. I love running; it’s my thing. Every day I run for 40 minutes or more, depending on how I’m feeling.
I’ve really picked up reading in the last few years. I saw a list of the top 100 books to read in a lifetime – “Dune” was on there. I thought, “I’ll try it,” and I couldn’t put it down. I read it in four days. It’s now my favorite science fiction book.
What is something that people would be surprised to learn about you?
I’m the MacGyver of cooking. I could walk into a kitchen and pull a meal together out of whatever’s there. I learned to cook in the Navy. I was a cook on a small boat, and I was responsible for cooking daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner for my crew of 20. But on duty days I would singlehandedly cook all three meals for 250-plus people. The key to cooking for that many people is lots of prep work.
How do you find purpose in your role?
My purpose is doing my job to the best of my ability because I believe that God wants me in this position. I communicate to my peers and my leadership the best that I possibly can. I strive to grow my employees to hit their goals. If their goal is to be my boss one day, I want to see that happen.
