President and co-founder of Peralte-Clark, LLC, a firm that specializes in managing, planning, designing, and implementing public and private infrastructure projects.
By Liisa Andreassen
Correspondent
In 2017, Jean-Alix Peralte’s more than 30-year career culminated in the co-founding of Peralte-Clark, LLC (Arlington Heights, IL). At the start, he and his co-founding partner, John Clark, leveraged their expertise in a variety of disciplines in transportation engineering.
At keys points in Peralte’s career, he was offered opportunities for advancement that he could not refuse – one of which led him to meeting Clark at an international corporation. While there, the two forged their partnership, often discussing their shared dream of starting their own firm. They wanted to create a workplace where people genuinely wanted to work – an environment centered on collaboration, growth, and personal fulfillment.
Now, with a combined experience of more than 50 years with large consulting firms, primarily working directly for public agencies, and partnering with smaller firms, today, their company has a design capacity of almost $5 million, and IDOT prequalification in 12 categories.
Let them eat PIE.
Peralte-Clark has worked to redefine civil engineering into three key areas: people, integrity and engagement (PIE). Most recently, the company received the number one slot for Zweig Group’s Best Firms To Work For award in the civil engineering category and Peralte says that’s largely due to the way they treat their people.
“While this includes our competitive and flexible benefits, our transparent principle-based culture, and our interesting and rewarding projects, what truly makes the company shine is our inclusive approach to management,” he says. “From the top down, each individual is not only aware of the context of decision making, but they also have direct input. That fosters a feeling of ownership in the company.”
One of the ways that this approach is manifested is in the formation of a Business Strategy Committee where all levels of the organization are represented.
At Peralte-Clark, leaders are picked because they model and show an unwavering commitment to the company’s core values. The evaluation process includes thorough training and mentoring and their management and leadership skills are further sharpened by Peralte himself through a mentoring program.
Managers are mentored to uphold the company’s three cultural pillars – people, integrity and engagement (PIE). When employees join based on shared principles and see those commitments practiced, turnover remains low.
In fact, fostering a great work environment is what has the co-founders most excited. Both leaders revel in the enjoyment that their colleagues get from their work.
“The company started with the goal of creating a great work environment, and while there’s room to improve, we’ve made strong progress, including earning our Zweig Group Best Firm To Work For recognition," Peralte says. “Now, our challenge is to maintain this success.”
Peralte admits that making new hires has been challenging.
“With a limited pool of mid- to senior engineers in the industry, we face the universal challenge of delivering quality products in the most efficient way. This shortage also increases pressure on senior managers to oversee reviews and quality control while still fulfilling their leadership and management duties,” he shares.
Over the years, Peralte says he has learned how to assess staff based on their individual goals and pace as opposed to comparing them to his own career expectations. As a company owner, he says he once assumed that everyone aimed to move upward or toward an ownership position, but that’s not always the case.
“I now know it’s important to align roles with each person’s aspirations,” he says.
And, of course, while everyone is enthusiastic about their work, staff also actively participate in mentoring, training, and volunteer involvement. Leadership empowers their staff to support causes near and dear to their hearts and to become engaged in the communities where they work, live and play. From participating in local advisory groups, community service efforts, industry committees, and mentoring youth and colleagues, to bringing clean water access to thousands across the globe, they are working to make a positive change in the world. Some organizations they have worked with include: Haiti Outreach, One Warm Coat, ACEC, Emory University, Together We Rise, Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois, and more.
Overall, Peralte and Clark are incredibly proud of what they’ve built and the culture they’ve cultivated. Their shared dedication to improving the civil engineering field and to providing meaningful careers for their team has already made a profound impact, and they remain committed to continually refining their vision for the future.