We went to Scottsdale, Arizona, on a family vacation last week. Of course, we did the usual tourist stuff. We visited Montezuma’s Castle near Sedona and rode the stagecoach at Rawhide, the quintessential tacky tourist...
No doubt about it, all of us who are managers in an A/E/P or environmental firm have to face some tough situations from time to time. They aren’t usually “fun” decisions, or situations that give...
Every once in awhile I feel compelled to unload a few disconnected thoughts that might be of value to our readers. This is one of those times: Company cars: When it comes to picking company...
Let’s face it, readers— the A/E/P and environmental business just isn’t what it used to be. The old assumptions just don’t hold true. The old ways of doing things aren’t working. The people who can’t...
Oops.....I just used a four-letter word. Excuse me. But unfortunately, I don’t know a better term to describe people who constantly push the limits and question the status quo. In fact, I think having one...
I have long advocated the use of questionnaires as a marketing technique for A/E and environmental firms when they want to establish themselves as experts serving a particular client group. There really is something to...
There may be truth to the old adage: “Ignorance is bliss.” Because the fact is, there are a lot of people, many of them at the highest levels in A/E/P and environmental firms, who are...
You know, it drives me crazy when I hear some whiner complaining that you can’t make any money in the A/E/P or environmental consulting business. Sure, most people aren’t all that successful. The average firm...
You spend all kinds of money to get the phone to ring and to get on qualified bidders lists. Your best technical seller-doer-closers beat the bushes for new opportunities. Your glossy quarterly newsletters are mailed...
This week, I thought I’d dedicate my column to answering some of the recurring questions we are asked about the A/E/P and environmental consulting industry. Here goes: Should salaried people be paid for overtime? I...
If you’re not worried about who is going to take over when you’re gone, you should be. The second-tier management in an A/E/P or environmental firm is every bit as important as the first. This...
My daughter pointed out a great bumper sticker to me last weekend. It said “Stop Global Whining.” It got me thinking. With the state of the economy right now, it’s hard to understand how anyone...
Although conventional wisdom says that an A/E/P or environmental firm’s greatest asset is its staff, that may not always be so. I don’t want to diminish or underestimate the importance of the workers to a...
We’re seeing more and more multi-office A/E/P and environmental firms wrestle with this issue: should branch offices be profit centers or not? Or should some other organization units be the place where we measure profits...
One of the principals of a firm I have been acquainted with for a couple of years called the other day to tell me he had just left a board of directors’ meeting where they...
You’re all aware of it. The “circular theory,” otherwise known as “what goes around comes around.” It’s one of nature’s laws that seems to hold true as much as the laws of physics. If you’re...
I was thinking about what holds people back from being a success in this industry because I wanted to give you all some good advice to kick off the new year. Then it dawned on...
Did you ever notice how some companies muddle along while others seem to keep advancing? What allows some firms to make so much more progress and to get so much more accomplished than others? It’s...
Believe it or not, having fun helps your pocketbook. If your people are having fun, they’ll work harder, longer, and put out better quality work. And that will make you more money. I’m convinced that...
We’re in the throes of our annual business planning process here at ZWA. You know the routine— get everyone together, have an office party and a holiday dinner at a nice restaurant and spend a...
I’ve received several calls asking me if I had seen a recent article that appeared in The Wall Street Journal (November 21, 1996) on performance appraisals. Evidently, it is causing quite an uproar in the...
I just got back from the annual business planning meeting with the board of directors of a client of ours that underwent a significant turnaround in the last couple of years. They went through everything...
Not much gets someone who works in an A/E/P or environmental firm more upset than unnecessary bureaucracy. I’m talking about stupid forms to fill out, channels to go through, or steps to take that don’t...
There are a few firms out there that really have their act together when it comes to the finance and accounting function. But by and large, A/E/P and environmental consulting firms struggle with what should...
