Versatile Tri-Tec Employee Earns Recognition
There are plenty of examples of employees who have made drastic career changes to join one of the Compass Precision operating companies over the years. But Josh McQueen may be the most unique example.
After working for more than a decade in the restaurant industry, including five years as a head chef at three different restaurants, Josh needed a change. His neighbor, former Tri-Tec Industries office manager Jennifer Langford, presented Josh a chance for change.
“My wife and I bought a house, and my neighbor, Jennifer, was working in the Tri-Tec office at the time,” Josh said. “We chatted a lot.
“So, she told me, ‘There’s an opportunity here.’”
In April, Josh will commemorate his four-year anniversary at Tri-Tec. But before that celebration, Compass has named Josh its Employee of the Month for March 2025.
”I think we owe Jennifer a world of thanks,” exclaimed Gary Holcomb, Compass CEO. “Not sure we regularly recruit from the restaurant industry. But with Josh, we sure got a winner.”
Over four years, Josh, like many of the employees at the operating company, has offered Tri-Tec a versatile set of skills. He began his tenure in the shipping and receiving department. After two years, he moved primarily into a role running the lathes and mills on the shop floor.
But over the last several months, Tri-Tec has needed more assistance in its shipping and receiving department because of the record business the company has produced. Josh has filled the gap, working again in shipping and receiving but also running machines when needed.
Josh explained he thoroughly enjoys working in both departments, contributing at Tri-Tec in any way he can.
“I like the variety. You learn a lot more like that,” Josh said. “I’m sort of a sponge. I like to learn everything.
“I like learning new things. The people here are great. Rick, Dennis, everybody is super helpful. They are awesome.”
Josh’s restaurant career survived the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. But when he returned to the kitchen during the industry’s reopening, the restaurants were so short staffed that Josh said he felt overworked.
He began looking for new opportunities in other industries when the chance at Tri-Tec came.
“It started to get rough there at the end. I was kind of looking around to see what else was out there,” said Josh. “When Jennifer introduced me to the opportunity at Tri-Tec, I wanted to try it out.”
The Compass operating company is all the better for having hired Josh, who is the eighth recipient of the Compass Employee of the Month honor at Tri-Tec. The most recent previous winner of the award at Tri-Tec was Julio Cachay in April 2024.
Josh is also the 60th Employee of the Month overall at Compass since the inception of the honor in March 2020.
Originally from Concord, NC., Josh described himself as self taught. His ability to learn quickly has led to his success in multiple areas of the Tri-Tec machine shop.
Josh and his wife, Ashley, live in Mount Pleasant, NC, which is about 45 minutes from Charlotte. The couple have a son, Jaxon, who will turn 3 years old in 2025. They also recently adopted a Golden Retriever named Houston.
In his free time, Josh still has a passion for cooking. He enjoys smoking a lot of different kinds of meats and barbecue. Josh also enjoys camping and playing with his son.