Herzog is Making Tracks in Railway Responsibility

National transportation contractor is committed to satisfying local government clients through Certified By Taxpayers certification program.

Last year, we launched the Certified By Taxpayer program verifying private contractors who work for the public to ensure the transparent and effective use of limited taxpayer dollars. Herzog, a leading rail and heavy/highway contractor in North America, was first to become certified through the program showcasing their leadership in railway responsibility and client satisfaction. 

We talked with Norman Jester, VP of Business Development, Marketing and Political Affairs at Herzog to get his take on the certification. 

Why did Herzog want to become Certified By Taxpayers?

"We had good reason to believe we did a good job, but we didn’t know for sure. We needed an independent set of eyes to rate our performance,” said Jester. 

With over 50 years of experience, Herzog believed they were doing a good job satisfying government contracts and using taxpayer dollars effectively. However, since Herzog’s values include safety, quality, integrity, and innovation, they wanted to ensure they were staying true to their values. 

How was the certification process?

“The Taxpayer team is a bright group. They were able to easily grasp the rail industry jargon and worked with us to really understand our metrics, business, and industry. They came to really understand our business and industry at a deep level,” said Jester.

SDCTA gathered data from all the places where Herzog performed work for taxpayers, and analyzed Herzog’s past project performance against taxpayer-established industry standards. After SDCTA’s research, Herzog was given an overall rating of “Good,” (on a scale of Good to Outstanding) based on their pre-established standards of performance in commuter rail.

Are you happy with the outcome?

“Being Certified By Taxpayers is a golden stamp of approval. Now we know for certain that Herzog is satisfying our clients’ needs and using taxpayer dollars in an efficient and effective manner, ” said Jester. “The certification is a good marketing tool for us. We insert the certificate and verification letter into our proposals, which gives us an edge over other companies.”

Would you recommend the program?

“I would strongly recommend the certification. One piece of advice is that contractors must be willing to put in the effort to work with the Association. The outcome is well worth the time, effort and money.”

Read the Full Herzog Case Study here.

Learn more about Certified By Taxpayers.