The roundtable, although now almost a thousand years old, is providing tremendous value to AEC firm leaders.
Three years ago, Zweig Group launched our “experience” themed leadership roundtables. The first two were held in Kentucky around tours of the various bourbon distilleries that produce 95 percent of the world’s bourbon. The rich family history and how these distilleries approach their business combined with the explosion of demand for bourbon was an inspirational backdrop for these events. The real benefit, however, is getting a group of AEC firm leaders together who are willing to share their struggles and successes and to be able to both receive and give advice. The environment was rich.
The Round Table originated as King Arthur’s famed table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregated. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status. Over my more than 25 years in this industry, I’ve witnessed the evolution of leaders in AEC becoming not only open to sharing their challenges but their magic bullets as well. We’ve become comfortable helping each other as we realize there is plenty of work to go around and elevating our firms – and the industry – requires us to work together. The roundtable, although now almost a thousand years old, is providing tremendous value to leaders in AEC firms.
This is why I am delighted that after two years of being unable to conduct these events, we are hosting our first in-person roundtable next month in Dallas. Unlike previous roundtables, this event is like two events in one. We are hosting several industry experts who will share powerful insight through short talks and panel discussions, with the roundtable sessions in between and themed around the areas of discussion. Each attendee will be able to choose 18 topics they want to discuss over the day-and-a-half event. It really will be an innovative event with a unique structure that allows attendees a lot of time to discuss exactly what they want to learn more about while getting access to experts on some of the industry’s greatest challenges. Roundtable topics will cover every area of the business including recruiting, retention, scalable growth, succession planning, cybersecurity and IT, the role of the CEO, risk management, M&A, private equity, flexible work policies, training and development, compensation and incentive structures, arbitration versus litigation, corporate giving programs, the role of the CSO, building a motivated and aligned leadership team, creating a positive and productive culture, leadership transition, getting more done with fewer people, the economic outlook, and more.
This will be a powerful day-and-a-half to focus on you and your firm as you learn and collaborate with industry peers. It will also provide a great connection to keep the conversation going at ElevateAEC in September where we will have some follow-up activities for this group. I hope to see you in Dallas June 23-24 as we reharness the power of the roundtable! Click here to register or to find out more info.
Chad Clinehens, P.E. is Zweig Group’s president and CEO. Contact him at cclinehens@zweiggroup.com.
