The latest episode of the Rock Solid: Round Rock Business Leaders Podcast, hosted by Bryan Eisenberg, features a wide-ranging conversation with Ali Khataw, CEO of Incoteq Engineering and a Round Rock Chamber board member. Released on October 20, 2026, the episode, titled "Ali Khataw | From Immigrant Entrepreneur to Community Leader," traces Khataw’s journey from arriving alone in the United States to leading a 45-person firm that has operated for 35 years. His story matters because it underscores the role of immigrant entrepreneurs in building enduring businesses and strengthening community institutions across Central Texas.
Khataw launched Encotech in 1990 and scaled it from a solo practice into a mechanical, electrical and structural engineering firm involved in prominent projects such as the Austin Central Library, the Butterfly Bridge and Zachary Scott Theater. The firm’s longevity and project portfolio illustrate how sustained focus on business development—rather than solely technical design—can drive growth. Khataw recounts advice from former Goodwill Industries CEO Jerry Davis, who challenged him to take a 10 to 15 percent pay cut, stop designing, and focus on business development. That pivot, Khataw says, unlocked Incoteq’s growth, offering a concrete lesson for other founders about the necessity of strategic delegation.
The episode also explores leadership and community trusteeship. Khataw reflects on lessons from Leadership Austin’s 2009 class on collaborative thinking and his experience chairing the Austin Chamber of Commerce. He describes a firm-wide points competition proposed by principal Patrick Morrissey that rewarded volunteer hours—not board seats or donations—earning Incoteq a small business win from Austin Gives. This approach signals a broader implication: corporate philanthropy can be structured to encourage broad employee participation, not just executive-level giving.
Beyond business, Khataw discusses his photojournalism in Oaxaca, Mexico, Pakistan, Cuba, Tanzania and Kenya, including an LFI magazine feature on transgender communities in Pakistan. He describes photographing a blind Oaxacan sculptor for a Tono magazine piece titled “Hands That See,” and weeping on a street in Oaxaca while documenting Semana Santa. These moments reflect the human connection that threads through his career and highlight how creative pursuits can inform empathetic leadership.
Khataw also speaks candidly about visibility, failure and the entrepreneur’s need to put ideas into the world. He shares a core value from his father: “If money is lost, nothing is lost because you can always make it up. If health is lost, something is lost. But if integrity is lost, everything is lost.” That principle anchors his approach to business and philanthropy, and it resonates as a timely reminder of integrity’s centrality to long-term success.
Looking ahead, Khataw previews an upcoming workshop trip to Tanzania and Kenya with Fair Trade Safaris CEO Saurabh Katipal, where proceeds will support a wildlife conservation group working with elephants, plus education funding for a young woman in Tanzania. The episode thus connects local business leadership to global humanitarian efforts, emphasizing that community commitment can extend beyond Central Texas. For listeners, the conversation offers both practical strategy and a model for integrating service into entrepreneurial life.
