1292 results found for “IT strategy”
Zweig Group is excited to join the 2025 ACEC Fall Conference as a Patron Sponsor, bringing leading-edge insights, research, and practical strategies directly to the engineering community. Held October 5-8 at the Marriott Marquis San Diego...
Zweig Group, the leading provider of management consulting, research, and education for the architecture, engineering, and construction industry, has released its 2025 Recruitment & Retention Report of AEC Firms, offering a comprehensive look at the...
By Kyle Ahern | The 2025 Mid-Year Compensation Update highlights key salary shifts and industry trends shaping AEC firm strategy.
Zweig Group deepens its AEC industry advisory capacity with promotion of Ying Liu and Ezequiel Tovar.
By Stuart McLendon | This strategy is becoming an essential tool for growth, innovation, and resilience, especially in AEC.
By Matt Cooper | In 2025, faster firms win – optimize key processes from proposal to payment to stay competitive in AEC.
Zweig Group is excited to join the 2025 AIA Florida Convention & Trade Show – bringing leading-edge industry insights, market research, and practical strategies directly to Florida’s architecture community.
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 Mailena Urso | The Zweig Group team is hitting the road to share fresh insights on how AEC firms can stay ahead.
The 2025 AEC Innovator Award, presented in partnership with KP Reddy Co., is the first and only innovation assessment and award for AEC companies.
Zweig Group, the leading provider of advisory services, research, and education for the AEC industry, has released its 2025 Fee & Billing Report of AEC Firms. This definitive resource offers a clear picture of today's fee...
By Josh Crawford | Our industry currently faces unique hurdles; success hinges on adopting tailored solutions combined with tried-and-true principles.
By Javier Suarez | Companies should focus first and foremost on “doing” and then worry about “saying” what they are doing.
By Mercedez Thompson | As our industry and client expectations evolve, so must our strategies for winning complex, high-stakes project pursuits.
By Chuck Miller | Selling requires building credibility, showing up consistently, and proving that you’re in it for the long haul.
By Laura Poteat | Effective cultural integration during a firm acquisition lays the foundation for a thriving, resilient organization.
Stambaugh Ness (SN) and Zweig Group, two leading business and consulting services firms serving the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry, are excited to announce a strategic partnership designed to elevate and expand the service...
By Ying Liu | Employee experience plays a crucial role in maximizing strategic outcomes.
By Ying Liu | The essential structural and tactical elements that underpin successful strategy execution in AEC.
By Carlo Lebron | Take the time to define your culture, engage your team, and make this a central part of your operational strategy – the rewards are well worth the effort.
By Matt Gross | Build success by fostering strong culture, investing in people and infrastructure, prioritizing cybersecurity, and planning strategically.
Zweig Group is excited to announce strategic additions and promotions to its team. These appointments reflect Zweig Group’s continued commitment to delivering innovative solutions and exceptional service to its clients.
Kristin Kautz delves into the evolving landscape of AI, emphasizing its transformative potential in business and daily activities. Highlighting tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft's Copilot, and Unanet's CRM integration, she illustrates how AI can enhance...
By Ying Liu | How do you ensure your firm has both the will and the way to succeed in this increasingly competitive market?
By Kyle Ahern | Firms that adopt these competitive strategies will be better positioned to achieve sustained success.
By Justin Stephenson | Utilize these strategies to secure wide-reaching media coverage and build credibility, boost visibility, and attract new clients.
October 14, 2024 – Fayetteville, AR – Zweig Group, the leading provider of consulting and research services for the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry, is excited to announce the release of its latest report:...
This refinement of our service structure is designed to streamline our offerings, providing our clients with a more efficient path to enhanced business performance and optimization.
By Mailena Urso | Zweig Group experts will present on mergers and acquisitions, AI, compensation, and recruiting and retention at key AEC industry conferences this fall.
By Jeff Bornemiss | This investment enhances employee engagement and serves as a powerful tool for recruitment and retention.
We’re thrilled to bring back one of our most downloaded episodes on the Zweig Letter Podcast! In this popular episode, a seasoned structural engineer, Scott Harvey-Lewis shares his unique perspective on leadership, innovation, and the...
By Victoria Verlezza | By implementing these strategies, you can lead virtual meetings that are more inclusive, engaging, and conducive to collaboration among participants.
We’re thrilled to bring back one of our most downloaded episodes on the Zweig Letter Podcast! In this popular episode, Justin Smith, a distinguished leader in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry, joins the...
By Mark Zweig | Here are some ways your CEO could be even more helpful to your company than they already are.
By Ying Liu | Five essential practices you can use to actively engage board members and forge invaluable business partners.
In this engaging episode of The Zweig Letter Podcast, host Randy Wilburn delves into the ever-evolving world of recruitment and retention within the design industry. Joined by Jeremy Clarke, Director of Recruiting and Retention at...
By Leisbel Lam | Having a service recovery mindset in your projects is essential in order to keep your organization’s sustained competitive advantage.
By Ying Liu | The hidden signs your firm’s plan is neither strategic nor growth-driven.
The inaugural 2024 AEC Small Business & Entrepreneurship Forum, coming to Atlanta May 21, brings together entrepreneurial AEC industry leaders to discuss the unique issues of managing and growing a business in the AEC industry.
Zweig Group announces its client The HFW Companies has finalized yet another new strategic growth partnership in 2024, this time with Dallas, Texas-based civil engineering firm KFM.
By Kyle Ahern | Prioritizing EX is a strategic imperative for firms looking to thrive in an increasingly competitive landscape.
By Stjepan Mikulić | This approach ensures the foundation of change is built on a solid understanding of human behavior, enabling more sustainable firm-wide implementation.
In this episode of the Zweig Letter podcast, host Randy Wilburn welcomes Dave Witsken, CEO of UES, to delve into the secrets behind the company's string of accolades as a "Hot Firm." Dave's insights give...
The event, to be held May 22-23 in Atlanta, will bring together AEC industry leaders to explore and collaborate on the transformative impact of technological advancements shaping the field.
By Mallory Lindgren | Improve your ability to solve complex problems and better support your colleagues and clients.
By Katherine Nanowski | Understanding and participating in government affairs can play a valuable role in a company’s business development process.
By Robert McGee | Proactive marketing anticipates industry trends, leveraging research, analytics, and simultaneous use of multiple tools for an impactful and budget-optimized campaign.
New focuses align with evolving AEC needs, including AI, tech, and small business growth.
By Kyle Ahern | Best Firms invest in an employee-centric culture, organizational efficiency, and leadership development.
By Travis White | Effective corporate strategy requires defining a direction, fostering collaboration, and leveraging strengths for diversification.
By Bryan Powell | By following these steps, any organization can navigate significant change with confidence and continuity.
By David Keith | Prioritizing diversity, evolving leadership structures, nurturing emerging leaders, and fostering a sense of ownership drives innovation and collaboration.
By Ying Liu | Insight into the unique challenges and opportunities often faced by CSOs in the AEC industry.
Zweig Group, is excited to announce a strategic partnership with illuceo inc., an expert in performance-based diversity, equity and inclusion
By Leisbel Lam | We need to be holistic, bold, and nimble in order to transform our organizations to better align with a service culture and gain a competitive advantage.
Zweig Group announces the release of the highly-anticipated 2023 Information Technology Report of AEC Firms. Representing a comprehensive comparison between 2019 and 2023, this report offers a striking snapshot of the industry's technological evolution from pre-pandemic...
By Javier Suarez | Participating in more tradeshows is not necessarily the best course of action, and you probably aren’t getting the best bang for your buck if this is your strategy.
By Kraig Kern | It is essential for companies to reevaluate their meeting culture and prioritize efficiency and effectiveness for long-term success.
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 Andy Chavez | We’re seeing increasing M&A activity in AEC industry, rising private equity involvement, and growing demand for infrastructure-related sectors.
By Mark Zweig | Don’t forget that the real purpose of this exercise is to have something meaningful that everyone in the business can get behind.
By Dathan Gaskill | A chief financial officer provides critical financial leadership, insight, and guidance to your firm.
By Lindsay Young | Investing in marketing helps you grow, recruit employees, and gets you the projects you want to work on.
Zweig Group – the leading research, publishing, and advisory services resource for firms in the AEC industry – served as an intermediary for The HFW Companies.
By Adrian De la Garza | In 2022, mergers and acquisitions continued to flourish as a growth strategy throughout the AEC industry.
By Johnny Smith | What characteristics of a job, firm, and industry act as predictors of voluntary turnover?
By Ying Liu | Use this tool to uncover the macro external factors that influence your company and understand how those factors could create opportunities or threats.
By Mark Zweig | When used consistently, this strategy will allow you to grow faster, raise fees, shed bad clients, and ramp up your pipeline of job candidates.
By Kart Vaith | Provide added value to your clients and approach every project with an emphasis on building trust and exceeding expectations.
Zweig Group is proud to announce that Kyle Ahern has been promoted to Employee Experience and Data Strategist.
Zweig Group is excited to announce the addition of Keith Sequeira in the role of Director of Data Analytics, and Ying Liu in the role of Strategy Advisor, to the team. Keith is a collaborative...
By Dathan Gaskill | Committing to this will make your firm safer, more resistant to adversity, and change cashflow and profit for the better.
By Scott McNally | If you swing for the fence, remember the fans, watch for curveballs, and rally your team, your firm will be successful.
By Amber Milot | Creating a recruiting culture and focusing on retention are business savvy strategies to help your organization continue to thrive in today’s job market.
Erica Olsen, COO and co-founder of OnStrategy, discusses how her company combine hands-on services with customized software to design great strategies and automate the process for managing execution.
By Ernesto Aguilar | Achieving rapid expansion through both organic and inorganic growth while maintaining a strong, employee-centric culture.
By Phil Keil | Strategic planning is an incredibly deep and nuanced practice that every firm needs to consider.
By Mercedez Thompson | It’s worthwhile to continue conversations around what marketing is and is not and why it’s critical to your bottom line.
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.
Zweig Group, a full-service AEC management advisory firm, is proud to announce that Drake Hamilton and Andrew Chavez, CM&AA, have been promoted to advisors on Zweig Group’s Mergers and Acquisitions team. "Drake and Andrew have...
Zweig Group is the leading AEC Industry advisory service provider. We blend industry and sector knowledge with experience across the M&A lifecycle to help you capture value for shareholders. Reach our Mergers & Acquisitions Advisory team here. Domestic Transactions:...
Zweig Group is the leading AEC Industry advisory service provider. We blend industry and sector knowledge with experience across the M&A lifecycle to help you capture value for shareholders. Reach our Mergers & Acquisitions Advisory team here. Please...
By Phil Keil | Firms with purpose driven leadership have tangible benefits and more successful outcomes.
By Rick Cloutier & Kart Vaith | By formalizing a few key integration strategies, you could effectively leverage the synergy of each new acquisition leading to sales, operations, and delivery benefits.
Zweig Group, AEC advisory firm who facilitated $300M in transactions in 2021, has announced the list of speakers and discussion topics for the upcoming M&A Next Symposium, to be held in Charleston, SC...
By Tangram Interiors | CEO of Tangram Interiors (Santa Fe Springs, CO), encourages leaders to be intentional about striking the right balance between remote and physical workspaces.
By Dathan Gaskill | Our industry hasn’t done a great job of managing risk comprehensively or systematically. There’s a better way.
By Lindsay Young | With a little effort, you can put a plan in place that will empower your firm to work with the types of clients you want on the types of projects you...
By Brian King | Instead, consider regular performance discussions and an annual strategy meeting to set, implement, and evaluate goals and initiatives.
By Katie Harrel & Charlotte Knight | Finding commonalities can help you build trust and strengthen relationships in this changing work environment.
By Phil Keil | Think of strategy as a revolutionary process requiring continual iteration and agility.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 22, 2021) – Zweig Group, a leading provider of advisory services, research, and education for the AEC industry, announced that Dathan Gaskill has joined the firm as Managing Director of Zweig Group...
By Stephanie Warino | These 10 ideas can increase engagement and create a truly effective doer-seller culture.
Zweig Group, a global leader in products and services to the AEC industry, announces the addition of Tom Godin to the Strategic Planning team. Prior to joining Zweig Group, Tom enjoyed a 19-year career as...
Will Swearingen, an ownership transition advisor at Zweig Group, discusses how leadership in firms big and small are planning out their next steps in the face of continued uncertainty, and how company owners can take...
AUSTIN – (May 3, 2021) — STG Design, an integrated architecture, interiors, and planning firm transforming businesses through design, announced that Sandra M. Parét (AIA, IIDA) has been named Chief Executive Officer for the firm,...
By Stephanie Warino | To be successful, firms must find their “blue ocean” of uncontested market space.
By Phil Keil | Systems, value creation, simplicity, and granting authority to the most local level.
By Chad Coldiron | Over the last 12 months, firms have been forced to rapidly adjust how they approach many workplace strategies – including recruitment strategies.
By Brian Rice | These three core strategic planning areas have unique opportunities for value depending largely on the culture of your organization.
By Phil Keil | This will inform your strategy development and ultimately allow you to build a legacy.
By Eduardo Smith | Strategic thinking enables us to enlarge the value and impact of our work, connecting it much more than a technical solution.
Zweig Group, a global leader in products and services to the AEC industry, announces the new addition of Stephanie Warino, P.G., WV LRS, PMP, to the strategy services team. Prior to joining Zweig Group, Stephanie’s...
FAYETTEVILLE, AR (February 3, 2021 – Zweig Group today announced the 2021 ElevateHer™ cohort, a special task force comprised of individuals with a commitment to promote diversity as a means to combat recruiting and retention...
Phil Keil, Zweig Group's director of strategy, discusses the importance of strategic planning and how strategic planning can be the difference between a firm that's just getting by and a firm that's thriving – even...
By Christina Zweig Niehues | If you don’t have a social media and online marketing strategy for your AEC firm, now is the time to get started.
By Phil Keil | We can learn a lot about mission and vision through the context of some of America’s founding documents.
Zweig Group and OnStrategy Announce Industry Partnership to Offer OnStrategy’s Strategy Management Software and Process Management Best-Practices to the AEC Industry Fayetteville, Arkansas and Reno, Nevada (September 9, 2020) – Zweig Group, a leading provider...
Educating yourself about these biases as well as potential strategies for mitigation can help you avoid prejudice in your decision-making.
By Phil Keil | Developing a legacy-building strategy requires looking within to the sources of your greatest purpose and potential.
By Chad Coldiron | Having a set strategy for when the internet is down will prove you are the leader you are striving to be.
By Will Swearingen | When considering a deferred compensation strategy for your ownership transition, keep these pros and cons in mind.
By Phil Keil | Recommendations for how your firm can adjust budgets and make smart investments of your money, your time, and your energy.
Michael Davis, senior vice president and chief strategy officer at WGI, talks to Randy Wilburn about the state of affairs at his firm and how they’re responding to COVID-19.
It’s possible for a mature company to stay innovative – the key is unlocking talent from within.
Exceptional brand leadership is a must for a firm to be exceptional in today’s challenging business environment.
For firm leadership, marketing may not always be top of mind. For your marketing staff, it is. Make sure they have a seat at the table.
By putting energy into the power of habit, deep work, productivity tools, and daily scheduling, you will see immediate and lasting productivity gains.
WATCH HERE PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: Zweig Group's research shows that recruiting and retention are the #1 challenges AEC firms have faced in the last few years. With a shortage of design and construction professionals - at...
By Phil Keil | Understanding this is essential in your ability to grow your firm and successfully execute your strategy.
By checking in either monthly or quarterly, you can ensure that those responsible take the time necessary to follow through on your marketing plan.
Phil Keil, Zweig Group’s director of strategic services, knows how to put the pieces together to craft unique strategies and implementation plans for AEC firms.
FAYETTEVILLE, AR (January 20, 2020) – Zweig Group today announced their 2020 ElevateHer™ cohort, a special task force comprised of individuals with a commitment to promote diversity as a means to combat recruiting and retention...
The effort to chart a new path should begin long before firm founders retire, and should be exhaustive.
Branding and growing a diverse firm while staying true to your roots is possible, but you have to know why you’re in business.
Your peoples’ top priority is development. If you want to keep them, you need to identify the ideal learning and development strategy for you and your firm.
Zweig Group has announced the list of speakers and discussion topics for the upcoming M&A Next Symposium, held on October 2, 2019 at the Green Valley Ranch Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. This highly interactive...
There are plenty of tell-tale signs your AEC firm needs a set of third-party experts to help you achieve your goals.
Find your ‘why’ and ‘how,’ make a plan, and – with the help of a few strong mergers – achieve astronomical growth.
If you want to run a successful firm, there are employees you just have to keep. But in other instances, turnover can be a good thing.
“One of the things they teach you about entrepreneurship in business school is that you should have your exit strategy in mind as you start and grow your company.” One of the things they teach...
“Anyone who owns a business today will be better off if they accept certain ‘truths’ about their business, and business in general.” Anyone who owns a business today will be better off if they accept...
“If we know recruiting and retention are the biggest challenges and our employees are telling us that training and development are the solution, isn’t the investment in a training program at your firm worth it?”...
As an industry, we generally leave a lot of money on the table and drive up costs with our lack of effectiveness in management and training. When we think of improving, we often turn to...
For a firm to find the transformative, positive change it’s looking for, leadership needs to be intentional and steadfast in its commitments. Management – planning, budgeting, staffing, organizing, controlling, and problem solving – helps you...
Firms are super busy, but that doesn’t mean all is well. How are profit margins, recruiting, and employee training holding up? The AEC industry is busier right now than it has been in a long...
July 19, 2018 Press Contact: Christina Zweig (800) 466-6275 corporate (479) 445-7564 mobile Zweig Group, LLC 1200 N. College Ave Fayetteville, AR 72701 czweig@zweiggroup.com www.zweiggroup.com FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 19, 2018) – American author, television host,...
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (June 25) – Zweig Group recently deepened its bench with the addition of Bill Fox, who brings a wealth of expertise in small-business administration, financial management, and strategic planning to the firm’s full-service...
Find an expert with a proven track record, someone with real-world applications of industry knowledge who is a team player, not a lone wolf. Today’s business landscape requires organizations to be increasingly dependent on the...
Do you need shoes on your feet, a roof over your head, and food on your plate? If you don’t have a plan, start working on one! More than one-fourth of firms in the AEC...
There are a few ways to transition out of your firm. The internal transition is popular because it has great value and keeps the firm going. At some point in every A/E firm owner’s business...
By Scott Johnston | Time is a luxury AEC teams do not have. And time spent on a losing effort drains resources, morale, and bandwidth on existing projects.
So many firms want to be at the top of the list for growth, but to get there, you have to be good, not necessarily fast. There is much hullabaloo made in our industry about...
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 strategic thinking be learned? Sure, if you know where to start and are mindful of the mileposts along the way. Halfway through a two-day strategic planning retreat, a senior leadership team member nervously pulled...
You can leverage M&A to accelerate strategic shifts and implement your growth strategy, but there are plenty of risks along with the reward. While M&A is not a strategy in and of itself, it is...
The rationalization process is all about determining what is working and what is not – especially with a sharp eye to the future. Most companies are doing very well these days and the effort to...
The idea of sustainability has to expand to include the development of buildings that promote healthy outcomes for the public. After reading Ed Friedrichs’ article, “The New Grand Strategy,” I was inclined to email him...
When it comes to large projects that affect a lot of people, a multi-pronged communications effort is the best way to bring stakeholders together. When planning regional infrastructure projects, getting the right amount of engagement...
In this episode, Randy Wilburn speaks with Ozzie Nelson, chairman and CEO of NELSON, a global integrated services firm focused on design, architecture, and strategic consulting. Ozzie started working for his dad at NELSON after...
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....
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...
Book about elevating sustainability as a national strategic imperative is an impressive guide on how the US can shape a prosperous future. My daughter was at a sustainability conference in Santa Clara, California recently. She...
Make your marketing count. Here are seven marketing metrics you need to be tracking. Revenue/Sales goals: While not exactly a measure of your firm’s marketing success, revenue or sales goals should be the cornerstone of...
CEO of RTM Engineering Consultants (Best Firm #37 Multidiscipline and Hot Firm #50 for 2016), a 120-person firm based in South Barrington, Illinois. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent The Zweig Letter recently caught up with Tony...
You know what you’re supposed to do, but since your marketing department is understaffed and disempowered, you can’t make it happen. I’m sure many of you have found yourselves in that familiar seminar or conference...
If firms employ these operational and financial strategies, their chances of weathering a downturn, regardless of how bad it is, will increase. Last week, June Jewell outlined five ways to insulate your firm from the...
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,...
If you want to drive traffic to your website and your brand, it helps – a lot – to be an expert in your given field. It’s true. The origin of your web traffic is...
As we move deeper into the final quarter of the year, now’s the time to look ahead to 2017’s backlog, pipeline, and cash flow. As we move deeper into the last quarter of fiscal 2016,...
Your firm might want to try rolling business plans with one-, three-, and 20-year projections. It’s a lot of work, but it beats starting over again and again. It is generally good business to create...
In a recent article, I wrote about how important it was to prepare your firm for sale even if you are not thinking about an external ownership transition. You can read that article here. This...
No two M&As are alike, and the more you know about them, the better prepared you are for the unknowns. Westwood’s long-term plan includes organic growth and the strategic procurement of companies and people that...
Annual resolutions are short-term planning at best. Now that another new year is in full throttle mode, are you checking off your list of resolutions, or are you envisioning your firm’s future? Annual resolutions are...
Here are some tips to get the most out of your strategic plan and realize your firm’s aspirational goals. How much does a strategic plan cost? If you hire a consultant, pull your senior-leadership away...
Competition can be a good thing, especially if it stimulates others to make themselves better; survey data shows that now is the time to think about your competitive edge. I’ve spent most of my career...
Bill Murphey has joined Zweig Group as the new director of education. This new role will strategically expand Zweig Group’s seminars, webinars, and other forms of education. Additionally, Murphey brings experience that will aid Zweig...
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (Sept. 18, 2015) – Bill Murphey has joined Zweig Group as the new director of education. This new role will strategically expand Zweig Group’s seminars, webinars, and other forms of education. Additionally, Murphey...
G2 Consulting Group (Troy, MI), a 50-person engineering firm, is taking home fourth place in the Integrated Marketing category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its integrated marketing strategy. In April 2013, G2...
This is part one of a two-part series on the acquisition process, written by Jamie Claire Kiser, Director of M&A Services, and Ryan Renard, Financial Analyst/Consultant. Part one focuses on the search phase of an...
RTM’s CEO Tony Mirchandani has built his career pragmatically and encourages sustainable growth within his firm. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Tony Mirchandani, CEO, RTM (South Barrington, IL), a 100-person engineering consulting firm, has expertise in...
Diverse firms can implement rules-of-thumb to establish priorities and see results for years to come. By Andrea Bennett Managing Editor A/E/P and environmental firms have several items on their to-do lists at any given time:...
Over-confidence going into a proposal or interview can create a self-fulfilling prophecy; front-runners must be sure to wow clients. We have all been there. We find out we are short-listed for that project that we...
Press Release: July 22, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 22, 2011) –ZweigWhite has consolidated and branded its internal consulting team which manages mergers, acquisitions, valuations, and ownership transition under the new moniker, MAVALOT. Right now these...
Press Release: July 5, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 5, 2011) –A large number of A/E/P and environmental firms have made the decision to leave “survival mode,” but how to increase sales and grow is a...
Press Release: March 15, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (March 15, 2011) — Seasoned marketing professional Debbie Frederiksen has joined ZweigWhite as Director of Marketing Consulting Services, boosting the firm’s stable of expanding consulting services to architecture,...
1. Buy-Side Representation ZWEIGWHITE has been focused on business management services, research and information for architecture, engineering and environmental consulting firms since 1988. As such, we are uniquely qualified to find the right business(es) to...
By Hobson Hogan I recently attended a conference on alternative investments for asset managers and investors. The attendees were mostly representatives from large institutional investors, endowments, hedge fund managers, and corporate bankers. The conference focused...
Press Release: November 17, 2010 M&A activity is expected to accelerate in 2011 as many struggling firms look for an exit strategy and firms that are doing well look for bargains and distressed sales. “2011...
Although there have been many compensation-related articles over the years in the pages of The Zweig Letter, I thought perhaps it was time to clearly articulate my own strategies for compensating employees in A/E/P and...
When the company sold many years ago we learned in business school that the greatest asset of the Reader’s Digest was its subscriber database. Supposedly, it contained so many names of people who could buy...
As the economy gets worse, and panic sets in amongst the management of too many A/E/P and environmental firms, mistakes will be made that are difficult to recover from. I’m referring to decisions such as...
NOW, not later, is the time to take a hard look at your strategic plan for improved performance. The new year is just around the corner. The environment is volatile. It’s hard to see what’s...
I just saw a blurb in our ZweigWhite’s 2008 Marketing Survey of Architecture, Engineering, Planning & Environmental Consulting Firms that stated A/E and environmental firm’s number-one marketing strategy is “relationship building.” While most people in...
One of the many things I have learned over the years about architects and engineers is that they are can-do, independent people. As such, they like to do everything that they can do themselves. Yet,...
After doing business plans for more than 20 years, the truth has finally sunk into me: You cannot please everyone with one strategic plan. In other words, the strategic plan for internal purposes is probably...
Just about everyone in the A/E or environmental business thinks that they have strategies. I don’t think many really do because most people don’t even know what strategies are. “Strategies” are philosophies— your core philosophies...
While there have been some “experts” who’ve made names for themselves by bashing IT and saying it is, at best, a necessary evil, I completely disagree with them. There are so many ways IT can...
Thankfully, just about every A/E or environmental firm does a business plan these days. I no longer have to relentlessly beat my drum here in The Zweig Letter on all the reasons to do so!...
I just got another of the many announcements that come through the ZweigWhite e-mail system today— one of our clients just bought/merged with/sold to another firm. We see so much of this that I barely...
I have never been big on “business is a game” analogies. The people I have met over the years who’ve used this analogy never seemed to exemplify the kind of values that I think you...
Say “strategy” to an architect, engineer, planner, or scientist and you are bound to get a negative reaction. These folks have been through all of the strategic planning meetings conducted by the management consultant of...
I think I know something about what it takes to make a firm grow. Three times in the last few weeks, I’ve conducted our new, 1½-day seminar, “Managing a Growing Firm.” I attended the “Inc....
We’ve all heard it before from people we work with: “I’m going to...” or “We’re going to...” or “I would have, but....” or “Some day, we’ll...” These “do-nothing” people may work for you, with you...
Although I’ve been trying to preach the gospel for years now, most principals of A/E/P and environmental consulting firms still do not understand what human resources management is all about. First, there’s the way so...
