Ali Khataw, CEO of Incoteq Engineering and a Round Rock Chamber board member, joined the Rock Solid: Round Rock Business Leaders Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation that underscores the value of immigrant entrepreneurship and community stewardship in Central Texas. In the episode, titled "Ali Khataw | From Immigrant Entrepreneur to Community Leader," hosted by Bryan Eisenberg, Khataw traces his path from arriving alone in the United States to leading a 45-person engineering firm that has operated for 35 years.
Khataw's story matters because it illustrates how perseverance and strategic pivots can transform a solo practice into a firm behind major projects such as the Austin Central Library, the Butterfly Bridge, and Zachary Scott Theater. He 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 shift unlocked Incoteq's growth, offering a tangible lesson for founders reluctant to step away from technical work.
The episode also highlights how community involvement fuels business success. Khataw describes lessons from Leadership Austin's 2009 class on collaborative thinking and community trusteeship, and his experience chairing the Austin Chamber of Commerce. Under his leadership, Incoteq implemented a firm-wide points competition proposed by principal Patrick Morrissey that rewarded volunteer hours rather than board seats or donations, earning the company a small business win from Austin Gives. This approach demonstrates that civic engagement can be structured to include all employees, not just executives.
Beyond business, Khataw's photojournalism in Oaxaca, Mexico, Pakistan, Cuba, Tanzania, and Kenya adds a humanitarian dimension. He speaks candidly about visibility, failure, and the entrepreneur's need to put ideas into the world. Reflecting on his father's core value, he tells Eisenberg: "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." He also 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, moments that reflect the human connection threading through his career.
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, released October 20, 2026, is available wherever podcasts are heard, and it offers listeners a blend of business strategy and humanitarian storytelling that reinforces why immigrant grit and integrity remain foundational to lasting success.
