Zweig Group, the leading provider of management consulting, research, and education for the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry, has released the 2026 Workforce Policies + Practices Report, the AEC industry’s most comprehensive benchmark of workforce management practices.
For the first time, the report combines the data previously featured in Zweig Group’s Policies, Procedures + Benefits and Recruitment + Retention reports into a single resource, giving firm leaders a broader view of how their workforce strategies compare with the industry.
The report includes hundreds of benchmarks covering HR structure and spending, recruiting and hiring, compensation, workplace policies, benefits, retirement, career development, turnover and retention, and more.
Key trends from the 2026 report include:
- Hybrid work is firmly established, but so are expectations for office presence. Eighty-six percent of firms allow employees to work from home on a fixed, regular schedule, with flexibility cited as the primary reason. At the same time, employees working remotely are required to spend a median of three days per week in the office.
- Recruiting remains challenging, costly, and increasingly technology-enabled. The average time to fill a position is 54 days, increasing to 128 days for the most critical positions. Seventy-one percent of firms use an HRIS or applicant tracking system, and half of those systems incorporate AI features such as candidate matching, resume screening, sourcing, and predictive analytics.
- Compensation investment remains steady, but formal pay structures are not universal. Ninety-three percent of firms budget for staff pay increases, with a median increase of 4% both in the last completed fiscal year and projected for the current year. Yet 42% report having no formal compensation program establishing pay ranges by grade, experience, or other factors.
- Firms invest heavily in professional development, but formal career paths remain an opportunity. Ninety-three percent of firms pay professional exam application or registration fees, 94% pay for professional society memberships, and 55% provide a salary increase or cash bonus for passing a first professional exam. Only 35%, however, have formal advancement tracks separating professional or technical careers from managerial paths.
- Retention is strong, particularly among key talent. Firms report a median overall retention rate of 88% and a median one-year retention rate of 91% for new hires. Retention of key talent, including top performers, leaders, and licensed professionals, reaches a median of 98%, while median employee tenure is 6.7 years.
“In a competitive labor environment, firms need more than internal comparisons to understand whether their workforce practices are keeping pace,” said Chad Clinehens, president and CEO of Zweig Group. “Bringing these benchmarks together gives leaders a clearer view of how recruiting, compensation, development, benefits, and retention connect and where there may be opportunities to improve.”
Together, the findings offer firm leaders current context for evaluating how they attract, develop, reward, and retain employees. While internal data can show how a firm’s practices have changed over time, external benchmarks reveal how the market is changing around it.
The 2026 Workforce Policies + Practices Report is designed to help AEC leaders identify potential gaps, evaluate the competitiveness of current practices, and prioritize workforce investments using current industry data.
