Annual ElevateAEC Conference

What does B+K’s S.W.I.F.T. (Superior Quality, Wellness, Integrity, Family, Teamwork) core values mean to me:

“S.W.I.F.T. is the foundation from which our firm was built. It determines our actions, speaks of who we are and what we represent.”

Beverly Williams is the Chief Human Resources Officer and Principal at Langan. She leads all aspects of human resources, including strategic staffing, employee retention, career development, performance management, employee relations, benefit and compensation plans, as well as, human resource policies and procedures. Her human resource experience spans over 20 years and has included leadership roles within the engineering, marketing and communications, and financial industries.

Williams earned her Senior Professional in Human Resource Management (SPHR) certification from the Human Resource Certification Institute and the SHRM Senior Certified Professional certification from the Society for Human Resource Management. She is a member of the Association for Talent Development (ATD), Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), CIANJ Human Resource Steering Committee, and is a member of the National Association of Professional Women (NAPW), and New Jersey Organization Development (NJOD).

Williams was an adjunct professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University in the graduate degree program for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. She has lectured at the Graduate Business Program at DeVry University, the Graduate School of Business & Technology at Capella University, and the Graduate School of Business at Touro College. She has also been a panelist at the Environmental Financial Consulting Group (EFCG) Human Resource Conference and a presenter at the PSMJ Human Resource Summit and the American Academy of Podiatric Practice Management (AAPPM) Conference.

Bill McConnell, co-founder and CEO of The Vertex Companies, Inc.(VERTEX), has worked in the construction industry for nearly his entire life. He rose through the ranks from a union construction worker during high school and college summers, to a project engineer at a top 50 construction company, to a senior executive at VERTEX. In addition, Bill is a top expert witness for construction disputes as he has testified approximately 170 times, most notably for cost and/or standard of care opinions. Many construction, engineering, and law organizations have published Bill’s articles and reports over the past two decades. Bill is a lifelong learner (MS, JD, and PhD student) and a firm believer in the value of industry-academic collaborations.

Since inception of VERTEX in 1995, Bill has led the organization by example. Under his leadership, VERTEX has seen consistent year-over-year growth of more than 20%. Twenty-five years later, in addition to setting strategy and leading VERTEX, Bill works on billable projects while also contributing as an active teacher and student in academia. Bill has a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Maine, a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Denver, and a Master of Science degree from Columbia University. Bill is working towards his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Colorado. He also completed a part-time three-year business program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Bill serves on the Industry Advisory Board for the University of Colorado Denver (CU) Construction Engineering and Management program.

Blake has been President of Client Savvy for 5 years and thrives off of creating win-win-win situations.

"Aligning strategic priorities with a client experience strategy not only enables our clients to achieve their goals, but it makes our Clients’, clients, happy!"

Bolanle Williams-Olley is the CFO and co-owner at Mancini Duffy, a national design firm with a 100+-year-old history and tech-forward approach based in New York City, where she oversees the firm's financial and operational performance. She has over 15 years of experience working in the AEC industry with a strong background in financial analysis and strategic initiatives. At her core, she thrives on building relationships between finance and management teams to ensure the overall financial success of projects and her firm. Her clients include American Airlines, Soho House, Brooklyn Nets, Boqueria, Verizon, and NBC Sports Group.

She is a dynamic leader within the AEC industry who has been a guest panelist for the American Institute of Architects' Women's Leadership Summit, National Organization of Minority Architects 47th Conference, and Mother Honestly Summit. Bolanle is passionate about service and is the founder of several impact organizations:

Before her current position at Mancini, she served five years as a Senior Project Accountant at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and five years as Project Accountant at HLW. She holds a Masters in Education & Social Policy from NYU, Masters in Applied Mathematics, and a Bachelors in Mathematics from the City University of New York, Hunter College. Bolanle is a board member of the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation (BWAF).

She is also the author of the best-selling Build Boldly: Chart your unique career path and lead with courage. She is married with two kids and obsessed with throwing fun, themed parties.

Engineer by Day and Professor by night, I develop methodologies and software to increase significant efficiencies in the AEC field. Also, an instructor of students at a local community college, teaching not only design principles and CAD but also engineering business management and best practices. 

YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

41

AFFILIATIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS

• American Council of Engineering Companies of Hawaii (ACECH), member/ Past President, President Elect, Past Secretary, and Treasurer
• Construction Management Association of America (CMAA), Hawaii Chapter, member
• Society of American Military Engineers (SAME), member
• Aloha United Way, Board Secretary
• The ESOP Association, Executive Committee of the Public Policy Council

EDUCATION

• U.S. Army War College, Master of Science / Strategic Studies
• University of Hawaii at Manoa, Master of Business Administration / Business Administration
• United States Military Academy, Bachelor of Science / Engineering Mechanics

Chad Clinehens is the president and CEO of Zweig Group. Passionate about the business side of design and technical service firms, Chad has built a career on leading them through growth and change. He has worked with AEC firms throughout the U.S. on a variety of needs – strategic business planning, turnarounds, partner separations, organizational restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, marketing and sales, growth campaigns, and more.

As a registered professional engineer, Chad brings an in-depth knowledge of what makes professional service firms and the people who work for them unique. Working in the industry for more than 20 years, he has been involved in many aspects of the business including design, project management, department management, regional office management, and directional leadership. He holds a MBA and BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Arkansas and is a registered professional engineer in several states.

Chad Coldiron is a Principal, and the Director of Development, at Zweig Group, where he helps AEC firms that are experiencing critical leadership transitions. Chad’s passions are focused on all things involving the team and culture-building process, whether it is internally or externally focused. He has coordinated executive searches to fill C-Suite, Board of Directors, and other top-level positions within nationally recognized design firms. His professional background has included experience in the areas of leadership, retention, recruiting, employee experience, sales, risk management, social behaviors and contract negotiation.

Prior to joining Zweig Group, Chad developed and directed the client retention department for one of the fastest growing independent insurance brokerages in the U.S. Since joining Zweig Group as an advisor, he has worked with AEC firms throughout the U.S. on a variety of strategic hiring initiatives as well as organizational restructuring, ownership transition, employee training, marketing, and growth campaigns. He brings a commonsense approach to building the right teams in order maximize the client’s growth potential while driving down their overall cost per hire.

Chad launched his career by developing strong and valuable relationships in the local and professional communities around Northwest Arkansas. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Financial Management from the University of Arkansas’ Walton College of Business. Outside of his work at Zweig Group, he enjoys spending time with his family and friends while engaging the community that raised him. You’ll often hear him say “My life is pretty simple, and I love that”.

Dan is an executive consultant with Zweig Group, putting his 40-year career in AEC to work for our clients. Starting as a design engineer, Dan has experienced essentially every aspect of the profession. For the last 15 years of his career he served as COO and then CEO and guided his firm during rapid growth from 200 to over 700 employees while opening 19 new offices.  His firm finished both in the top three of the Zweig Best Firms to Work For and as a Zweig Hot Firm for five consecutive years.Dan is now offering his expertise to Zweig, providing business consulting, strategic planning, cultural initiatives, and executive coaching. Dan has extensive experience in developing effective boards, ownership transition strategies, organizational restructuring, internal training programs, mergers and acquisitions, and much more.  He is currently completing his certification in executive coaching and is effective working one-on-one or with leadership groups.Dan served on the boards of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission – Science and Technology Division, the Arkansas Academy of Civil Engineering, the Arkansas Research Alliance, the Arkansas State Chamber, the UofA Engineering Advisory Council, and the executive committee of the North Little Rock Chamber. He is a graduate of the Arkansas State Chamber Leadership Arkansas Class VIII. He is the recipient of the College of Engineering Distinguished Alumni Award and was selected Arkansas Business Executive of the Year in 2019. He holds a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Arkansas and is a registered professional engineer in several states.

Darin has served as Chairman and CEO of Salas O’Brien since September 2006, guiding the company through an era of impressive growth to become one of North America’s leading engineering and technical services firms.

Darin’s enthusiasm and drive are evident in his four passions in life: his family, creating a better world, affordable education, and adventure. Whether he’s taking a family trip, competing in an ultra-marathon, or sharing career advice with students, he leaves nothing in the tank. This passion carries through to his aspiration for Salas O’Brien to be “the most respected firm in the galaxy” and, ultimately, a model of leadership for other organizations.

He has led large engineering and construction organizations for nearly 3 decades years in the capacity as CEO, COO, and CFO. He is a proud alumnus of the University of California-Riverside, past Chair for the California Coast Chapter of the Young President’s Organization, past chair of the UC Riverside Foundation Board of Trustees and was named Ernst Young (EY) Entrepreneur of the Year in 2016.

I have over 20 years of experience marketing A/E services. Under my leadership overseeing business development, MWM has experienced great strides in gaining work and clients, resulting in unprecedented backlog, larger projects and increased employee count. In part to my leadership alongside MWM's CEO, our growth has been recognized by Zweig Group ‘Hot Firms’ list four years in a row- 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and our company is recognized as a "Best Firm to Work For" five years running- 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.

I also lead the firm's People Operations and with a focus on recruiting and retaining top talent for our growing firm.Personally, I am a mother of four who enjoys gaming, Texas Hold'em, golfing, building connections, and spending time with my family and friends.

Ed is President and CEO of SES ESOP Strategies, a Stevens & Lee/Griffin-affiliated company, and co-chair of Stevens & Lee's ESOP Group and its Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Group. He concentrates his practice in helping companies navigate the complexities of ESOPs.

Co-founder and executive vice president of Patel, Greene and Assoc., a firm with a mission to elevate their families, communities, and profession.

Roadway and Drainage Engineer with a lot of experience in Florida Department of Transportation interstate and highway design. Bridge Hydraulic Reports, No-Rise Certification Reports, Pond Siting Reports, Environmental Resource Permitting, etc. Received MBA degree in 2008. Interested in continuing to improve the efficiency of the design process.

Gordon Greene has built a career in management, leadership, and public service. He has been an integral part of PGA’s 5-year strategic plan and has helped grow the firm from its initial two employees to now over 75. Greene is also active within his community, serving several projects and projects throughout Bartow and the state.

Harry Clark is a highly-awarded serial entrepreneur, business advisor, board member, and keynote speaker on entrepreneurship. He was the founder and CEO of two Inc. 500 companies, was awarded Entrepreneur of the Year, and has had two exits. 

He was formerly the CEO and co-founder of a modular design-build and development company. He grew it from a start-up to $100 million and 450 employees in five years. The company earned its ranking on the Inc. 500.

Harry was also CEO and founder of a municipal fintech and finserv company. The company was ranked in the Inc. 500 and he was also awarded Entrepreneur of the Year. Harry sold this company to MBIA, a $14 billion Fortune 100 company.

Harry has been a member of YPO for over 30 years and served as the first Learning Chair for the YPO Entrepreneur + Innovation Network and founded the YPO Silicon Valley Summit. 

Prior to joining Bernhard Capital Partners, Jamie Claire served as Managing Principal and Director of Advisory Services at Zweig Group, a management consulting and research firm serving the AEC industry. While at Zweig Group, her responsibilities included leading the merger and acquisition practice providing strategic leadership to all of Zweig Group’s consulting areas, and serving directly as an advisor to AEC firms of all sizes. In addition, she co-founded Zweig Group’s ElevateHER platform to improve industry-wide recruitment, retention, and engagement. She has prior experience in commercial banking and law and serves on the board of the Buffalo River Foundation.

Jamie Claire received her B.A. in History, J.D., and MBA from the University of Arkansas.

A decorated Air Force combat veteran and seasoned recruiting professional with extensive experience inside corporate, agency and consultant-based recruiting environments, in both domestic and international markets. Deep recruiting expertise across multiple industries to include: Architecture, Engineering, Construction, Retail, CPG, IT/Telecommunications, Energy, Aerospace and others.

CEO at Verdantas, a private equity-backed sustainable engineering and environmental services company.Jesse has held positions of progressive leadership as an Engineer, Project Manager, Business Development Manager, US Director for Power, New England District Leader, Chief Operating Officer and finally CEO. He worked in multiple environments within WSP USA for 22 years, starting as an intern in the Energy market and being promoted to New England District Leader responsible for business and technical operations across all WSP USA market segments in the New England geography. These markets included Transportation, Buildings, Environment, Water, Energy, and Advisory Services with approximately 600 staff and $120 million in annual revenue. Jesse is now the Chief Executive Officer at Verdantas, a private equity-backed sustainable engineering and environmental services company focused on developing and supporting a people-focused culture, and future-focused expertise across most markets and geographies in the US. In the COO role Jesse led the operational team thru rapid growth from 400 staff to approximately 800 staff over a 1-year period while simultaneous improving profitability, staff retention and engagement. In the role of CEO, Jesse is focused on accelerating the company’s people focused culture, collaboration across geographies, and digital integration. Verdantas is currently geographically diverse in the US with approximately 40 offices, 900 staff, and generating approximately $200M in revenue.Prior to his leadership roles, Jesse had the unique entrepreneurial experience of successfully founding one of the world’s largest online endurance sports coaching businesses back in 2004, and becoming a Random House published nutrition book author. As part of these endeavors, Jesse coached some of the world’s most successful professional IRONMAN athletes to dozens of race wins and has competed in 15 IRONMANs himself including 3 at the world championship in Kailua Kona Hawaii. Although not competitively racing or coaching any longer Jesse can be found - in his spare time - running and biking south of Boston where he lives full-time with his wife, two kids, and their Boston terrier.

Kevin Honomichl, P.E., P.S., is president of BHC RHODES, a civil engineering and surveying firm in Overland Park, Kansas, which he co-founded in 1992. He received his bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University and master’s from the University of Kansas, both in civil engineering.

Honomichl began his career as a structural engineer at Black & Veatch performing structural steel design for power plant projects and led design projects for portions of AT&T’s initial transcontinental fiber-optic cable projects. He joined Ross Stephenson & Associates, Modesto, California, and continued his focus on fiberoptic telecommunication projects throughout the western United States. He and colleagues launched Brungardt Honomichl & Company P.A. in June 1992, later rebranded to BHC RHODES.

He served on the board of directors of the American Council of Engineering Companies-Kansas, including a term as national director and as the group’s national political action committee chair for Kansas. He serves on the board of directors of the Wyandotte County Economic Development Corporation and the De Soto EDC. He was elected to the De Soto City Council in 2017.

Honomichl is a trustee of the KSU Foundation and served on the K-State civil engineering advisory council. K-State President Richard Meyers appointed him to serve on the Johnson County Education and Research Triangle board of directors. He received the Professional Progress Award from the K-State Department of Civil Engineering and the Distinguished Service Award from Kansas State University.

Dr. H. Kit Miyamoto, Global CEO of Miyamoto International, built a worldwide engineering and disaster
management firm from a small engineering practice into 25 locations on four continents with one
purpose: make the world a better, safer place. Its purpose-driven mission and a strength focused
culture drive the growth of the company and attracts equally purpose-driven, passionate, teamwork
focused team members.
Dr. Miyamoto is a world-leading expert in disaster resiliency engineering, disaster response and
reconstruction. He provides expert engineering and policy advice for USAID, World Bank, UN agencies
and various governments.
Dr. Miyamoto holds graduate degrees from the Tokyo Institute of Technology and California State
University, where he has been recognized as a Distinguished Alumni. He has won the Engineering News
Record’s “Global Best Project” award an unprecedented three consecutive times. Major media such as
ABC, CNN, LA Times, NY Times and Rolling Stone have profiled him. He is featured in the “Designing for
Disaster” exhibit at the National Building Museum.
He currently travels around the world to saves lives, impact economies.

With over 25 years of experience, Kristin specializes in marketing and business development communications (both strategic and tactical) for B2B and B2C organizations. This includes sales and process development, client stewardship, brand materials management, planning and maximizing budgets, public relations, and research. She is able to generate measurable and definitive results in the pursuit of overarching strategic initiatives by planning/implementing/evaluating the creative concepts - from origin to completion to distribution - that achieve them.

As Corporate Communications Leader, Laura Nick leads the in-house communications team for Garver, charged with all facets of branding, strategic marketing, and internal communications throughout the firm’s 14-state footprint. Since joining the firm in 2011, she created the firm’s competitive recruitment program; developed GarverGives, the company’s employee-driven charitable giving program that prioritizes STEM partnerships; and spearheaded Garver’s multi-state centennial year celebration. Laura was named to the Arkansas Business 40 Under 40 Class of 2019. She is a graduate of Leadership Arkansas (Class XI) and serves on the steering committee of Women Empowered for the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas.

Mailena Urso, Founder and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Concord Adams, joined Zweig Group as a fractional/contract CMO in February 2023. Mailena and her team have been instrumental in the advancement of marketing and e-commerce at Zweig Group for over two years. Since then, Concord Adams redesigned Zweig Group's website, which has improved ZG's online presence, and supported brand enhancements. 

Mailena has 15+ years experience leading and developing marketing teams in B2B and B2C organizations. She is an entrepreneur and has built two successful businesses. She's excited to join Zweig Group in this new capacity! 

Mailena holds a bachelor of arts degree in journalism with an emphasis in advertising and public relations from the University of Arkansas. She and her family live in Northwest Arkansas. 

Michael Graves is an accomplished team partner and leader with an impressive track record of success in the civil engineering industry. With a career spanning over 19 years, he has made significant contributions to the field and has been instrumental in driving growth and excellence within the organizations he's been associated with.

Michael's expertise lies in the realm of Environmental Engineering, Water Supply, Water Treatment, Water Quality, and Municipalities. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated a deep understanding of these critical areas, contributing to the development and implementation of sustainable solutions for various projects.

Currently serving as the Executive Vice President at Garver, Michael plays a pivotal role in the company's strategic growth and expansion.

Oleg V. Petrenko is an Associate Professor in the Strategy, Entrepreneurship, Venture and Innovation Department at the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. He received his PhD from Oklahoma State University. His research broadly focuses on the micro-foundations of strategy in large corporations and new ventures. Specifically, he examines the psychology of executives and entrepreneurs and how it impacts strategic decision-making and firm performance. Oleg’s research focuses on creating knowledge that will help the leaders of tomorrow be successful at leading their organizations and taking on new challenges.

Ryan Suydam co-founded Client Savvy in 2004, to help firms create fierce client loyalty by designing, implementing, and measuring Client Experiences. He has coached over 300 organizations and over 10,000 professionals on the skills required to be “client savvy.” His clients are twice as likely to be recommended by their clients, three times as likely to realize above-average financial returns, and consistently attract and retain better employees.Ryan studied architecture at N.C. State University, before beginning a career in an architectural firm. He quickly began leveraging technology and process to solve new problems in creative ways, leading to the creation of the Client Feedback Tool and later the foundation of Client Savvy.

He speaks at events across the nation, including national conferences such as the Lean Construction Congress, American Council of Engineering Companies Annual Convention, American Society of Quality, and the Society for Marketers of Professional Services.

In 2015, Ryan also founded the Client Experience in Professional Services (CXps) group, hosting an annual conference bringing together professionals to share ideas and strategies that advance their firms’ ability to deliver differentiated client experiences, every time.

As co-founder of the Dallas branch in 1994, Steve serves as JQ’s CEO. With a significant portfolio of structural projects with varying project delivery methods over nearly three decades, Steve guides clients through all stages of a project, from inception to completion. As CEO, his role includes recruiting and retention — which starts by attracting skilled and savvy engineers and helping them evolve as creative problem solvers who excel at delivering JQ’s signature style of client service.

Stuart is the CFO of DYNE Hospitality Group, and manages the company's financing, investor relations, and business planning activities. A North Little Rock native, Stuart spent the past thirteen years providing corporate financial services to small and mid-sized businesses throughout the U.S. When not spending time with his wife, Mandi, and their three children, he helps develop the next generation of entrepreneurs by teaching finance and management at UA Little Rock as well as mentoring through startup accelerator and incubator programs.

Tom joined Zweig Group after a 19-year career as the Chief Operating Officer of a Washington DC-based engineering company. In that role, he was responsible for the business operations of a multi-office firm, to include oversight of the finance, accounting, human resources, information technology, facilities, and legal functions. Tom was a member of the firm’s Executive Committee and helped guide it through two economic shocks (the 2008 Great Recession and the 2020 Covid Crisis), an ownership transition from founders to the 2nd generation of leaders, and periods of high growth. Prior to this, he held operations and management roles in the telecommunication industry and served on active duty as a nuclear power-trained Submarine Warfare Officer in the United States Navy.

Systems thinking is a particular area of interest for Tom. He brings a strong understanding of the complex interactions between clients, employees, and the economic/business goals of AEC firms.

Tom holds a MBA from the University of North Carolina, and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Duke University.

As CEO, Tony Mirchandani is responsible for RTM's vision, strategy and operations to provide quality engineering in a customer-focused culture. By leading a collaborative team, he fosters RTM's commitment to continuous quality improvement, best practices initiatives and enhancing the professional development programs.Throughout the firm's growth, Tony has formed partnerships with local and national architectural firms accounting for 75% of new business, tripled the original clientele base and drove 50% year over year growth since 2004.

His expertise spans mergers and acquisitions, business development, financial management, engineering and leadership. With a strong background in both technical and operations environments, he has a unique understanding of project management, quality control and the ability to exceed client expectations.

Over the last 19 years, Tracey has completed valuations ranging from small businesses to multi-million dollar operating companies to holding companies with a variety of assets.  She has worked in the industry since 2010 and specializes in valuations for architecture, engineering and planning firms. Assignments include companies in the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Spain.  Additionally, Tracey serves as an expert witness on business valuation litigation matters. Tracey holds the senior-level Certified Business Appraiser (CBA) designation conferred by The Institute of Business Appraisers, the Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) designation conferred by the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts, the Business Certified Appraiser (BCA) designation conferred by the International Society of Business Appraisers, and the Certified Machinery and Equipment Appraiser (CMEA) designation conferred by the NEBB Institute. Tracey currently serves as the co-chair of the International Society of Business Appraisers’ Board of Governors.  She holds a BS from Louisiana Tech University and an MBA from the University of Arkansas, Sam M. Walton College of Business.  She is a member of the Institute of Business Appraisers, NACVA, the NEBB Institute, and the International Society of Business Appraisers.

https://zweiggroup.com/pages/will-swearingen

A firm believer that complacency breeds failure, Ying is driven by innate curiosity and life-long learning with a growth mindset. She is passionate about leading with purpose, inclusion, and authenticity. With over 13 years of diverse experience in the AEC industry, Ying has served in various capacities including strategic planning, design, and implementation; marketing and business development; CRM operations and commercial pipeline; client team management and capture win plans; as well as proposal development and oversight. Her unique strengths lie within her ability to integrate tactical thinking and strategic insights into business planning and capture qualitative and quantitative components to convey a cohesive message.

Prior to joining Zweig Group in 2022, Ying served as the Deputy Chief Strategy and Growth Officer for the US Operations of a Paris-based multinational architectural and engineering consulting firm specializing in public transportation and mobility solutions. Recognized as an innovative strategist who can integrate multiple perspectives into a shared vision, Ying was promoted to this growth-focused strategic role at the onset of COVID to partner with C-suite executives and cross-functional teams to develop a 2-3 year strategic plan for organizational survival and return to growth. She was also responsible for managing the implementation and execution effort of the strategic plan by facilitating regular performance reviews against pre-established KPIs to drive organizational growth and profitability.

Ying holds an MBA with a concentration in management and strategies and a Bachelor of Business Administration in international marketing, both degrees from the City University of New York (CUNY) Baruch College. Spurred by simple curiosity and a genuine interest in sustainability, Ying obtained her LEED AP BD+C credential in 2021. She is also multilingual - fluent in English, Korean, and Chinese, with intermediate proficiency in French and Japanese.