Valuation formulas are subject to many influences, so it helps to periodically test them out to make sure they yield accurate results. Many firms in the A/E industry are attracted to using a “valuation formula”...
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (May 18, 2017) – Zweig Group is proud to announce the release of the 2017 Best Firms To Work For Awards, a prestigious ranking honoring the creation of outstanding workplaces at architecture, landscape...
Marketing is the backbone of sales and business development, so be proactive and stop thinking of it as just an overhead function. I am passionate about marketing. Everyone who works with me knows it. I...
"Principals return to their firms primed for success and armed with leadership and team building strategies to share with other principals, managers and staff. " The Principals Academy is for anyone who is—or wants to...
Did you ever hire someone who didn’t work out? Someone who effectively “fired themselves” by either refusing to accept your coaching and input or recognize the signs that they were in trouble and change their...
Let's talk about project managers: The average hourly billing rate for a project manager was $144 last year. Project mangers who were working in the south central region, at fast-growth firms, or at firms of...
Sound like someone you know? "I wish I had received more business and financial training/education prior to becoming a principal." "My number one problem will be getting a proactive commitment from other principals at the...
Donald Trump has single handedly breathed life back into the “other social media app” – Twitter. The platform had gone stale. It loses money every year and had a declining user base. Cue the late-night...
We often talk about compatibility in the context of marriages. Oftentimes, when there’s incompatibility, one spouse tried to change the other. We all know how well that works out! It rarely does. If people aren’t...
Firms that prepare together find that the investment in time and resources equates to project wins and good relationships. Teaming with other AEC firms is a common strategy to win work that requires different types...
President of JLG Architects (#4 Best Firm Architecture for 2016), a 110-person, employee-owned North Dakota-based firm co-founded in 1989 by Laffen. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “We love organic growth but it’s dependent on developing internal...
The transition from boomers to millennials is going to happen anyway, so put in a good-faith effort and make it a positive experience. By 2020, 50 percent of the U.S. workforce will be millennials. In...
Your firm’s reputation can be made, or broken, on the internet. Maintain a clean online image if you want to attract and keep top talent. I’m constantly fielding questions from clients and potential clients about...
By Richard Massey Managing Editor It started with a Volkswagen, a traffic light, and a ticket in Beaverton, Oregon, back in spring 2013. Mundane enough. But enter Swedish-born Mats Jarlstrom, the Oregon State Board of...
If we want to make this world a better place to live, it’s up to us, and not elected officials, to make it happen. Leadership is the single characteristic of behavior that determines a person’s...
The leading management newsletter for A/E leaders, The Zweig Letter, announced today that its site license, in which entire firms have access to the weekly publication, is available to subscribers for as little as two...
The leading management newsletter for A/E leaders, The Zweig Letter, announced today that its site license, in which entire firms have access to the weekly publication, is available to subscribers for as little as two...
I’ve written and said it many times. AEC firms have many different paths to success. There is no ONE single formula that always works better. Nor is there one magic bullet – a single thing...
If growth through M&A is part of your strategic plan, be prepared to embrace the integration process with an open mind. Last week we discussed strategic planning and how it is an integral part of...
If you rely solely on what you thought you once knew to be true, you run the risk of being an obsolete relic of yesteryear. Not too long ago, when my son was a senior...
Break free from immediate metrics and returns, because with marketing, the ROI could take months or even years to realize. Growing up in the ‘80s, the recent passing of George Michael brought a lot of...
Getting people to do what you want them to do. This is what leadership is really all about. And it is never easy. Especially today in the A/E industry, where finding a job is not...
President of Passero Associates (Best Firm #5 Multidiscipline for 2016), an 85-person engineering and architecture firm based in Rochester, New York. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “There’s lots of calculated risk,” Caruso says. A conversation with...
You want your firm to be more valuable at the end of the project than it was at the beginning. Start to GRIPE. Many of our clients turn to us for assistance in providing project...
