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By Chad Colidron | As firms grow, alignment, accountability, and execution become the difference between getting bigger and getting stronger.

By Sarah Kinard | Economic shifts, regulatory change, technology, and evolving client expectations rarely arrive as disruption – they appear first as signals.

By Mark Zweig | The strongest project managers make the work feel clearer, calmer, and more focused from the very beginning.

By Jeremy Clarke | Most governance problems are not execution failures but clarity failures around who owns decisions and who is accountable.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

The value of this data extends far beyond the award itself – it’s something firms can use to guide strategy, inform leadership, and drive performance over time. 

By Ezequiel Tovar | The firms that deliver the best client experiences are often the ones that invest most intentionally in employee experience.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Rachel Gresham | Culture erodes when organizations ask people to behave one way while systems, incentives, and authority structures reward another.

By Wendy Travis | When partnerships are grounded in purpose and guided by care, they endure – creating better outcomes for clients and communities. 

By Mark Zweig | The fastest way to suffocate a productive AEC firm isn’t bad projects or markets, it’s too many pointless meetings.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Barbara Stiles & Jennifer Knox | AEC clients judge project managers not only on technical delivery, but on leadership under pressure and clarity amid complexity.

By Sara Parkman | Rising Stars reveal what today’s young AEC leaders truly value in their firms.

By Mark Zweig | Succession fails when managers cling to control instead of building leaders behind them.

By Tom Godin | In AEC M&A, the real risk isn’t finding deals; it’s being unprepared to integrate them.

By Mark Zweig | Great planning forces hard choices, clear accountability, and alignment across the entire firm.

By Gerry Devine | Industry lines are blurring as AEC firms evolve from service providers into strategic partners guiding investment, risk, and long-term value.

By Ying Liu | How to recognize the right moment for strategic growth planning and why timing matters more than most leaders think.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Brandon Pinkerton | Small decisions compound into either prisons or possibilities, and today offers the rare opportunity to choose differently.

By Mark Zweig | Better project management isn’t about new systems, it’s about disciplined leadership, clear decisions, and relentless execution of fundamentals.

By Chad Clinehens | Becoming a principal isn’t a reward for past success – it’s the start of owning responsibility for future value.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Kyle Ahern | Outdated pay benchmarks are quietly undermining retention and credibility in today’s AEC compensation decisions.

By Tom Godin | Performance problems in AEC firms are rarely effort issues; they’re organizational design failures leaders must own and intentionally fix.

By Stefanie Richter | Firms at the frontier of change thrive by pairing AI adoption with a culture of agility, data trust, and teams built to adapt at scale.

By Daryl Simons Jr. | Technology can enhance recruiting efficiency, but human connection, trust, and judgment will always define successful hiring.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Kyle Ahern | A closer look at the structures, risks, and rewards shaping leadership in today’s AEC industry.

Zweig Group has released the newly updated Business Operations Benchmarking Tool, a powerful resource designed to help firm leaders evaluate, optimize, and defend their operational decisions with confidence.

    “If you're going to be an entrepreneur and you're going to accomplish anything and you're going to grow your business in spite of a lot of negative things happening, you've got to be...

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Daryl Simons Jr. | Rethinking first impressions creates fairer decisions, stronger relationships, and lasting benefits for candidates and firms.

By Tiara Marcus | Great project delivery goes beyond efficiency, blending precision, clarity, and empathy to build trust and lasting client partnerships.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Thomas Mitchell | AI is transforming dispute resolution by predicting outcomes, reducing conflicts, and enhancing decision-making – while raising vital data privacy concerns.

By Chris Catton | Having the right people on your board may be the most valuable investment you make for the future of your firm.

By Steven Rushmore | As technology advances, AEC firms must embrace digital adoption to secure long-term success.

By Chad Surprenant | A one-profit-center approach encourages teamwork across offices and disciplines, minimizing silos and supporting sustainable, firm-wide growth.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

The leading source of business management insights, research, and strategies tailored specifically for leaders of AEC firms.

By Jeremy Clarke | Independent directors give AEC boards the objectivity, capacity, and perspective insiders can’t provide.

By Kyle Ahern | The 2025 Mid-Year Compensation Update highlights key salary shifts and industry trends shaping AEC firm strategy.

By Dave Williams | Policy slack combines structure with flexibility, empowering leaders with the room to move, own decisions, and grow.

By Scott D. Butcher | To succeed in disruption, AEC firms must refine client focus, target markets, and go/no-go processes.

By Greg Sepeda | By taking lessons from the dugout, we can better handle change – turning challenges into opportunities, and transitions into a winning season.

By Hal Rosner | Proper planning, organization, and understanding of data can mean the difference between a project’s success and failure.

By Chris Catton | Recruiting is tough, but AEC firms that master the basics gain a serious competitive advantage.

By Nick Heim | Innovation in AEC succeeds when people, processes, and technology work together with purpose and alignment.

By Kraig Kern | Packed calendars hurt productivity, but smarter meeting habits can help AEC professionals reclaim focus time and boost meaningful work.

By Chad Clinehens | Firms that prioritize employee experience data see higher retention rates, improved collaboration, and greater innovation.

By Mercedez Thompson | As our industry and client expectations evolve, so must our strategies for winning complex, high-stakes project pursuits.

By Janki DePalma | Small actions today can reduce stress, improve efficiency, and make life easier for your future self.

By Morgan Stinson | Leading with purpose helps firms navigate uncertainty by reinforcing values, fostering trust, taking ownership, and turning challenges into opportunities.

By Ying Liu | The essential structural and tactical elements that underpin successful strategy execution in AEC.

By Steve McAdams | A seasoned financial executive plays a pivotal role in enhancing profitability, growth, and market value.

By Jeremiah Harrington | Thorough preparation across all project phases is crucial for navigating challenges and ensuring construction project success.

By Emily Gaines | The words and numbers used to describe design concept, building component, and client goal form a dataset that guides decisions and improves project success.

By Ezequiel Tovar | The decisions you make today will have monumental impacts on your next generation of owners tomorrow.

By Fred Smith | AI-driven conversational interfaces offer leaders instant, data-driven insights, streamlining decision-making for enhanced efficiency and profitability.

By Sara Parkman | Compensation trends reveal critical strategies to boost employee retention and satisfaction.

By Emily Gaines | As data proliferates at an exponential rate, firms are increasingly recognizing the importance of leveraging data to enhance decision-making and creative processes.

By Taylor Dolan & Nathan Greyard | How the Supreme Court’s overturning of the Chevron deference will impact design firms.

By Mark Zweig | Anyone who is a design professional and who wants to get ahead is probably going to have to learn to be a manager.

By Westwood | Lessons learned and outcomes from the initial exploration through the process, and advice for firms looking to pursue an acquisition.

By Ezequiel Tovar | What qualities give founders peace of mind and the necessary trust to hand over the reins of their business?

By Travis White | You must attach the right structure, systems, and incentives in order to shift employee mindset.

By Ezequiel Tovar | In turbulent times, strategic capital allocation is crucial for firm survival.

By Lauren Martin | There has never been a downside to reporting circumstances to your professional liability insurance carrier, but there can be a huge downside for failing to report them.

By Sara Parkman | The success of any firm relies heavily on finding the right candidates, but this process can be complex and costly.

By Sara Parkman | The success of any firm relies heavily on finding the right candidates, but this process can be complex and costly.

By Jesse Fortune | Technology evolves quickly and it is imperative that AEC firms make smart decisions when selecting the software that powers project files, data storage, and financials.

By Mark Zweig | Single-person management may be one of the single most limiting factors to any AEC firm’s growth.

By Lauren Martin | If you find yourself facing a lawsuit alleging malpractice, here’s what you need to look for when considering an expert witness.

🎙️ In our latest TZL Podcast episode, we dive into an enlightening chat with Zweig Group's data analytics guru, Keith Sequeira. We unpack how data is revolutionizing decision-making in design firms.

By Tyler Suomala | Understand why and how decisions are made so you can leverage the power of the human brain to increase your value and improve your clients’ experience.

By Conrey Guy | Your mission, vision, and values make up the backbone of your firms’ identity.

By Ryan Belyea | Utilizing AI as a partner will increase our ability to design effectively, be creative, and capitalize on the possibilities of this technology now and in the future.

By Mercedez Thompson | A firm’s approach to proposal development greatly impacts how marketing and proposal professionals do their job and how they understand their role.

By Mark Zweig | These are the most important qualities that decide who gets to move up as firm leaders, managers, and future owners.

Zweig Group is excited to announce the release of its 2023 Recruitment & Retention Report of AEC Firms. This comprehensive survey presents valuable statistics and data on the latest methods and challenges faced by AEC firms...

By Mark Zweig | Know the pros and cons of both, and don’t kid yourself about the ramifications of either insisting everyone be there or allowing people to work remotely.

By Ezequiel Tovar | The four pillars of ownership transition strengthen your firm and provide a foundation for success.

By Eric Wilson | With the right set of values and organizational alignment, you may find yourself in a positive feedback loop where shared principles guide you toward collective goals.

By Kyle Ahern | Making sure you’re taking steps to ensure your employees have the best experience possible can go a long way.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Manhard Consulting (Lincolnshire, IL), a civil engineering and surveying firm serving public and private clients nationwide.

Zweig Group is excited to introduce an all new interactive data platform: Zweig Insights. This new platform provides AEC firms with data visualization and customized intel, including benchmarking against both comparable firms and industry-wide data.  The pilot program for...

By Joseph Lauk | Firms often have the same “ingredients” for creating great places to work. Your success really boils down to how you choose and blend these elements together.

By Will Swearingen | When considering a transition, it’s important that you stay flexible and don’t wait until the end to plan your exit.

By Justin Smith | Calling the ideal plays will only work for you if your team understands the role that they each play in executing.

By Justin Smith | Training opportunities that use the best of both worlds – science and experience – will bring your firm to the next level.

On this episode of The Zweig Letter podcast, we sit down with Allan Tsang and Dan Oblinger, professional negotiators from Oblinger & Tsang. We had a far-ranging conversation about negotiation and active listening for design...

Knowing who does what, who needs to weigh in, and who makes the final decision is critical to success.

By Gustavo Rodriguez | A collaborative design process where a diversity of voices are present and have ownership allows room for new ideas and points of view to emerge.

By Julia DeFrances | It’s natural to want to go back to normal – but remember that employees are your firm’s most important asset, and their needs are critical to your continued success.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of PRIME AE Group (Baltimore, MD), a firm that creates vibrant communities by connecting people and conserving culture and the environment.

By Jake Voorhees | Whether it be remote flexibility considerations, how firms make strategic growth decisions, or hiring tactics in general, engineering workplace culture is changed forever.

By Jon Parrish | Getting everyone to think and act like an owner will result in more of your people making day-to-day decisions with the best interest of the company in mind.

By Stephen Lucy | Actively work to shape your own legacy, otherwise it will be defined by others and probably not as positive as you would want.

Allan Tsang and Dan Oblinger discuss negotiation, active listening for design professionals, telling clients “No!” and more in this episode of the podcast. 

Leading research firm for the AEC industry, Zweig Group, has launched two new surveys to best capture important changes in the environment for the AEC industry. The first survey is an iteration of the Impacts...

By Stephen Lucy | In the past year, we’ve learned a great deal about how we can do better and have begun to seize opportunities created by 2020.

By Chad Clinehens | 2021 is looking to be a year of increasing freedom, control, and opportunity.

By Mark Zweig | Know your purpose, intent, and philosophy of business, but be willing to change if it becomes prudent to do so.

Current world events are changing the way we value everything. This pandemic highlights the need for collaborative and equitable decision-making between leadership and staff.

By Mark Zweig | Many owners fail to understand how much value they can create in their companies if they make the right decisions.

Educating yourself about these biases as well as potential strategies for mitigation can help you avoid prejudice in your decision-making.

By Justin Ramirez | Nothing is as certain as death and taxes. But an owner’s retirement can be, too. If done correctly, an owner’s retirement and its benefits can be just as certain as death...

By Jamie Claire Kiser | Though the immediate impact of COVID-19 is bleak for many in our industry, there is reason to see the foundation forming for a different type of AEC firm.

Communication, decentralized decision-making, and rapid assessment and implementation are key, in both disaster response and your business.

It's more important than ever to have good data to guide your business practices. In order to produce the data your firm needs to benchmark and make important management decisions, we need your help and...

By Chad Clinehens | Break out of the spreadsheet mentality and build an ownership team that drives value and performance long-term.

Make your business more sustainable and build a loyal team by training your people to manage themselves and their projects the way you would.

By Jamie Claire Kiser | What differentiates us now as leaders is our ability to roll with the punches and make sharp, sober decisions.

“It will take everything we have as leaders to get our firms and ourselves through this.”

Good client service is not complicated; it’s just not always easy to maintain. However the benefits we reap are well worth the effort.

Leaders of employee-owned firms must focus on people, transparency, and vision to achieve long-term success.

CEO of ISG (Mankato, MN), a multi-disciplinary design and engineering firm that has growth in its DNA.

Getting a better handle on your data helps you identify what your firm is truly good at, and where the highest profits are.

“Are you making decisions as quickly as you should, or is this a problem that you keep facing over and over again? Just like all problems in this business, there’s always something you can do!”

“Are you missing out on this valuable knowledge in these or any other areas that it is needed? If so, amend your evil ways and make better use of your marketing talent!”

In our industry, diversity and inclusion are dawning, so seize the day by incorporating an open mindset throughout your firm.

CEO and founder of Partner Engineering and Science, Inc. (Hot Firm #9 for 2018), a 700-plus person engineering and environmental due diligence consulting firm. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “There’s no boundary between entry-level and senior-level...

In the early rush to make our names in the AEC business, we often overlook the basic building blocks for a great career. As a younger engineer, I occasionally spent time doing the wrong things....

Undisciplined growth, poor people focus, low financial performance, and a weak capital structure can sink a firm – even big ones with brand names. I’ve been working with several colleagues for the past four years...

A lot of people leave their jobs because they hate their bosses. They stay because the C-suite listens to what they have to say. The results of the Best Small and Medium Workplaces 2018 present...

“Right now, at the start of the new year, is a great time to be selling. Organizations of all types, public and private, have new plans and new budgets to go along with them.” Right...

When you look at principals of firms in this business who are really happy and successful – who have growing, profitable companies – you’ll see certain common traits that emerge. Here are a few of...

Picking the ideal business partner or partners is an inexact science, but a critical one nevertheless. The subject of how people find business partners in the AEC industry is one that is rarely discussed. Usually,...

In yesteryear, leadership could get away with glaring inconsistencies, but these days, young professionals aren’t having it. In my last article, “Prove It,” I explained why organizational trust, employee choice, in addition to path and...

Co-founder, president and CEO of WSB (Hot Firm #34 for 2018), a 475-person, full-service consulting and design firm based in Minneapolis. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Early on, I paid too much attention to those who...

Lack of information leads to assumptions and guessing. Good and complete information at the appropriate time leads to informed decision-making. Over my 30-year career, I’ve had the opportunity to work on a wide range of...

Each week, The Zweig Letter features commentary from top-flight leaders of AEC firms. Here is a compilation of how they handle, and move beyond, failure. By The Zweig Letter Staff John Hiltz, president of OHM...

In this episode of The Zweig Letter podcast Randy Wilburn sits down with Mark Zweig to talk about the importance of speed and why those who move the fastest will win most of the time....

It’s OK to wrestle with yourself as you chart the path to success. The AEC industry needs its performance metrics and monetary goals, but don’t forget about your heart. Recently I saw a coffee mug...

If you lead an AEC firm, you have a lot of tough questions to ask yourself, and the answers aren’t always pretty. But ask and answer you must. In a romanticized view of the business...

I’ve written about it before but apparently not everyone got the message. In business today, speed is everything. Whoever is faster will be the winner. Good leaders realize this is true and act accordingly. Here...

The second someone becomes a principal, they (erroneously) think they know everything there is to know about their industry and how their firm fits in. In the Fiddler on the Roof song, “If I Were...

The art of business is one that is best demonstrated when the organization being managed has sustained success over a period of many years. Rarely does this happen. Surprisingly few companies ever make it to...

Chairman and CEO of David Evans and Associates, Inc. (Hot Firm #93 for 2016), a 1,000-person engineering firm based in Portland, Oregon. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Barkouli joined DEA in 1988 as an engineer-in-training. He...

If you’ve ever actually done a litmus test you know that one of the best things about it is that it’s fast. Dip the paper in the solution or put a drop of solution on...

Under threat, firms solve problems when leaders commit to the right roles and the right people to inform, inquire, and act. You’ve all been there. A room full of eight, 18, or even 80 anxious...

In a hot M&A market, the opportunity to sell is there, but staying put could also be a good path to take. The activity with mergers and acquisitions is quite high. There seem to be...

Can project owners be the judge of disputes? Of course they can, especially if the contract clause allows for judicial review. We’ve heard children ask parents to explain their decisions, only to get this response:...

Participate in the Policies, Procedures, and Benefits Survey and save $320! The 2018 Policies, Procedures & Benefits Survey of Architecture, Engineering, Planning & Environmental Consulting Firms provides you with industry norms on policies and procedures,...

Randy Wilburn recently had a chance to speak with JJ Brantingham, co-founder of Planifi, a software company that helps A/E firms see and understand their most valuable resources: their people and projects. JJ and his...

Randy Wilburn recently had a chance to speak with JJ Brantingham, co-founder of Planifi, a software company that helps A/E firms see and understand their most valuable resources: their people and projects. JJ and his...

Generational ownership and leadership transitions pose unique challenges. Anyone you promote to the highest level must be cut from the right cloth. The statistics bear repeating: Most professional services firms are aging at the top....

The word “strategy” is kicked around a lot in the A/E industry when referring to the “business” of the business. But, like many other words, I find it widely misunderstood and subject to different interpretations....

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...

If your firm does not have a well-crafted system for handing out employee bonuses, you run the risk of creating the haves and the have nots. 2016 was a good year in the domestic A/E...

In this episode, Randy talks with Chris Catton, Zweig Group’s San Francisco office leader and executive search consultant. They had a chance to talk about all things recruiting and retention related. Chris recently spoke at...

Claims are not like fine wine – they do not get better with time. So take these four steps to assess and manage potential exposures. Design firms are always looking for ways to increase revenues...

In the A/E industry, it’s easy for PMs and firms to claim ownership of projects, but the only owners are the clients, and they always make the final call. Over the last four decades, I...

Remember, thinkers and modelers, there is plenty of time to get to the bottom of whatever pressing issue we are facing. I’m an analytical person by nature. I am in a committed relationship with Microsoft...

The decision to pursue an M&A growth strategy can benefit your firm, but it helps to know what you’re doing on the front end. At our annual Hot Firm and A/E Industry Awards Conference in...

Executives who delegate important decisions to the second tier, and not the principals, run the risk of curbing their firm’s potential. Since when is it okay for a firm’s senior executive to outsource leadership? Hopefully,...

It’s time for a quick review of what firm leaders should – and should not – be doing. There are a lot of people with the “principal” title in A/E of environmental firms. But I...

Ireland-raised David Spillane likes both the past and the future, kayaking in the sea, and doing whatever it takes to keep his firm nimble. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Like many of his colleagues, David Spillane,...

A Q&A might be just what the doctor ordered if you want to shed new light on your career and the choices you’ve made along the way. A start-up company I’m mentoring here in Reno...

As the bumper sticker says, "Shit Happens." Unfortunately, it rarely occurs at the ideal time. Problems crop up that you didn't anticipate – health problems, a parent dies, a key employee quits, divorce, IRS audits...

If you are you stuck in neutral, break out of the rut by asking questions, altering your approach, and accepting the possibility that there may be a problem. Some of us have a hard time...

Successful ownership transition is difficult to achieve, and for it to happen, the first tier has to embrace the transformation brought on by the second tier. Over the last two years, Zweig Group has supported...

In a good economy, it’s easy to take on a lot of work and fill the pipeline, but some of that work can be bad for your firm. In a robust economy like the one...

Firm leaders often think they know what the company needs, but in reality, are looking for answers in the wrong places. I receive a lot of phone calls from firms inquiring about many of Zweig...

How we approach the decision process is as important as the decision itself. We all make dozens of decisions each day. Some are relatively simple, such as which shirt to wear in the morning. Others...

Make your firm more valuable by making yourself irrelevant and surrounding yourself with leaders. Firms that command high market premiums are ones in which the owners are, in many ways, always seeking to become less...

If you’re an owner of an A/E/P or environmental consulting firm, you can’t risk not knowing the value of your business. Whether it’s for external purposes, such as a firm sale or merge, or internal...

Leadership, accounting, rewards, and more contribute to an organizational culture of positivity and high morale. ​Great projects happen, and successful firms become even more so, when morale is high inside the firm. It’s one thing...

Being human, we all have opportunities to learn (and re-learn) valuable truths for dealing with others. You’re never too old to learn, if you keep your mind open to it. I have found over the...

Quantitative and qualitative data provide industry leaders with valuable information for making decisions. One of the distinctions of companies that do well over the long-haul, versus those who enjoy only a limited period of growth...

Five things that differentiate entrepreneurs from the rest of the people in the world. I was watching a show on Netflix the other night with my eight-year-old daughter. It was all about humans with superhuman...

Four additional suggestions from Mark Zweig because the time is now. It’s here – the New Year. They keep coming faster and faster. It’s kind of funny to see the past futurists’ ideas about what...

Mark Zweig lists five questions you need to ask before tackling your next opportunity. Attention all readers in the A/E/P business – you have got to make some BIG changes to the way you’re marketing...

This article first appeared in The Zweig Letter (ISSN 1068-1310) Issue # 995 Originally published 2/18/2013 Sometimes it’s more about gut, patience, clarity and follow-up than just following recipes. You can talk all you want...

By Hobson Hogan Principal, Investment Banking There is a time in everyone’s life when you are holding onto something too tightly. I was reminded of this fact by my son on Christmas Day. Santa had...

Press Release: August 8, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (August 8, 2011) – A ZweigWhite survey reveals that while many architecture, engineering, planning and environmental firms still see value in participating and attending trade shows, other faster...

By Tracey Jeffers Principal, Valuation Consulting ZweigWhite If you are involved with financial management at some level in your firm, you expect to regularly review the typical balance sheet and income statement. A smaller percentage...

By W. Hobson Hogan ZweigWhite Principal, Investment Banking I have represented many businesses in M&A processes and I have analyzed both great and not-so-great firms. In all of these M&A processes, I have witnessed some...

We’re in the middle of some tough, turbulent times. It seems like every market served by A/E/P and environmental firms is full of uncertainty. No one knows whether or not tomorrow will be harder than...

Architects, engineers, planners, and allied professionals by and large have a really hard time defining exactly who they want to sell their services to. The unfortunate truth is that most will sell their services to...

For my kickoff presentation at our eighth annual The Zweig Letter Hot Firm Conference and Awards Celebration in Boston last month, I decided to talk about the differences in entrepreneurial A/E/P firms from those that...

I should be reading now, sitting here in my tight blue “pleather” Northwest Airlines seat on my umpteenth flight this month. But I’m not. Instead, I just wasted a half hour on “Brick Breaker,” a...

How many times have you seen it— one or more of the best people in either your firm or another local AEC firm quit their jobs and start a new company? By year’s end, word...

When I first got out of graduate school with my MBA back in 1980, I went to work for a consulting/recruiting firm in St. Louis that specialized in serving the construction and real estate development...

It’s kind of funny. I was out visiting a firm the other day— a rapidly growing, multi-office, multi-service firm— that is apparently beating the pants off of its larger, more established competitors. I’ve seen it...

The fact of the matter is that design and environmental firms are not easy organizations to lead. Their cultures are fragmented. The people who work in them are all too smart, their egos too big,...

We just ended our most successful Zweig Letter Hot Firm conference ever. It was successful from three points of view— attendance numbers, attendance quality, and speaker quality. I won’t bore you with the numbers but...

If you ask me, one of the biggest factors contributing to poor financial performance, bad morale, and confusion about direction and purpose in A/E/P and environmental firms today is inaction from the company’s management. I’m...

I don’t want to be negative nor schizophrenic. Sure, there was panic after 9/11, but the fact is our industry (overall) has been remarkably healthy since then. The data still looks good in many sectors....

“You can lead a horse to water, but first, you’ve got to have a horse,” is one of the homilies my old friend Mike Latas of ) used to use all the time. I don’t...

I have had a chance to work with a great number of firm leaders over the years. Some were incredibly effective people. Some were incredibly ineffective, too. When you look at the characteristics of those...

Having a hard time keeping your staff? Are your new graduates working a year or two and then moving on? Are your mid-level folks, just below principal, moving on before you move them up? If...

You want to know something that drives me crazy— right up the wall? It’s all of the darn committees that A/E/P and environmental firms keep creating for one reason after another. Most of the time...

If you consider the truly successful people you know who own and manage A/E/P or environmental firms, I think you’ll find that they think differently from everybody else. They are irreverent. They defy logic. They...

Summer’s here. Our local swimming hole— “Farm Pond”— in the town I live in (Sherborn, Mass., pop. 4,300) is also a social gathering spot. Late in the afternoon and on weekends you’ll see all of...

I spend more of my billable time helping A/E/P and environmental consulting firms with their business planning than anything else. Most firm owners want to do more with their businesses, to be more successful. But...

A funny thing happened to me the other day on the way to the office...... I pulled up to a stoplight. A few seconds later, another fellow pulled up in the lane next to me...

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...

After I got my MBA, my first job was with a consulting firm that served the construction and real estate development industry. They worked for large and small companies of all kinds— general contractors, heavy/highway...

We often run into firms that need help turning things around. The scenario usually includes some combination of the following: Principals/top managers who aren’t billable. Excess debt caused by poor collection of accounts receivable. Owners...

One reason the A/E/P and environmental consulting industry is predominated by small, not-so-successful firms is that it has too many weak leaders. A firm can end up with a weak leader for many reasons. The...

A lot of firms in our business are going through some serious introspection. And if they aren’t, they probably should be. Change is occurring at an accelerating pace. Yesterday’s hot firm may be a dog...

“Leadership development” for our industry too often translates into another boring all-day seminar on liability reduction, or a weekend retreat with a soft-spoken consultant who walks us through “team building” exercises. We say we want...

It is almost heresy in this day and age of “customer service” to say it, but in the A/E/P and environmental consulting business, the customer is not always right. In fact, many times the customer...

One of the most important milestones in the development of an A/E/P or environmental firm is the first time the company turns down work. Knowing what work to take on and what work to refuse...

Conventional wisdom (CW) isn’t always so “wise.” Let’s take a look at some of the wisdom frequently heard in the halls and conference rooms of A/E and environmental consulting firms: The company will be profitable...