For Devereaux “Dev” Johnson, a career has always been about one thing: helping people. Whether serving his country, protecting his community, or now working to ensure fairness and safety in the construction industry, Dev has consistently sought roles where he can make a meaningful difference.
His path to the Indiana, Illinois, Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting (III FFC) began with service. After graduating high school, he joined the United States Marine Corps, serving as an infantry Marine from 2010 to 2014. At the time, he wanted to make the biggest positive impact he could on the world. He has a deep sense of pride in his service and deployment in Afghanistan, but the experience also shifted his perspective on how he wanted to help people.
After leaving the Marines, Dev spent about a year working various jobs before joining the Sheridan Police Department in Wyoming in 2015. He had not originally planned on a career in law enforcement, but the role quickly proved to be the right fit. Helping people had always been important to him and policing allowed him to serve his community directly.
Over the next decade, Dev built a successful career in law enforcement. In 2018, he moved to the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office and eventually rose to the role of Undersheriff. Dev began to think more about balancing his commitment to public service and his career with time and safety after becoming a father. The years in his law enforcement career that followed the births of his two children were filled with many experiences, both positive and tragic. Each experience made Dev reflect on the risks of the job and ultimately led him to consider a different career path.
Around that same time, Dev and his wife, Cassidy, decided to move to Illinois with their two children to be closer to his wife’s family. His father-in-law introduced him to the work of III FFC and its mission to promote responsible contracting while protecting workers, taxpayers, and reputable contractors.
Dev now serves as a Construction Analyst for III FFC, covering Lake and McHenry counties. His work focuses on monitoring public construction work to ensure projects are awarded to responsible contractors and that workers are treated fairly. A typical workday for him includes reviewing upcoming bid openings, attending key bid meetings, visiting construction sites, and tracking contractors with histories of safety or wage violations.
Dev’s background in the Marine Corps and law enforcement prepared him well for his role at III FFC. He is particularly good at communication and navigating difficult conversations with public officials and industry partners. One of the most rewarding parts of his job is presenting research and data to public bodies and seeing them reconsider working with unsafe or nonresponsible contractors. When officials choose responsible contractors after learning the facts, Dev knows his work is helping protect both workers and communities.
While the position came with a steep learning curve— especially since he did not grow up around unions or the construction industry—he has embraced the opportunity to learn about the construction industry and how responsible contracting benefits everyone involved.
Outside of work, Dev enjoys spending time outdoors with his family. Whether traveling in their camper, taking road trips, or fishing together, he values the time he can now spend with the people who matter most.
For Dev, the mission remains the same as it was when he first chose a life of service: finding ways to help others and make a positive impact.
