Search results

By John McGill | AI may speed up rendering and iteration in AEC, but human judgment still determines accuracy, compliance, and meaningful design innovation.

By Shirley Che | From fees to client care, lessons learned from a season of conferences highlight growth, adaptability, and connection.

By CJ LaPorta | Retirement plans play a critical role in M&A and should not be overlooked during planning or integration.

By Hugh Smith | Community outreach and engagement are foundational to the success of any project.

By Josh Crawford | Our industry currently faces unique hurdles; success hinges on adopting tailored solutions combined with tried-and-true principles.

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

By Sara Grayum | By collaborating closely, marketing and business development can craft stories that will steer your firm toward success.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Southern Steel Engineers (Lexington, SC), a firm that provides state of the art engineering and analysis for structural steel projects.

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 Leisbel Lam | Harnessing the power of a growth mindset and the S-curve of learning to transform human capital in the AEC industry.

By Daryl Simons Jr. & Jeremy Clarke | Rather than a liability, these candidates could offer an opportunity to uncover exceptional talent.

By Morgan Stinson | AEC firms that focus on fostering genuine client relationships build trust, loyalty, and long-term success.

By Nathan Hamm | Firms must blur the lines between business units to allow for better collaboration, client service, firm growth, and sustainable returns.

By Earl Mott | Thoughts from both sides of this mutually beneficial relationship over the course of a career.

By Eric Lannen | Internships provide real-world experience, mentorship, brand recognition, and foster long-term relationships, benefiting both students and organizations.

By Jane Lawler Smith | Creating non-traditional peer groups allows AEC marketers to gain fresh perspectives and enhance creativity.

By Anastasia Welch | Transforming team dynamics and strategies for improved leadership skills, operations, and project implementation, leading to business success.

Multidisciplinary design firm Cushing Terrell is joining forces with Eclipse Engineering, a structural engineering firm with offices in Colorado, Oregon, Montana, and Washington. “Cushing Terrell and Eclipse Engineering have been working on projects together for...

By Alicia Kamischke | This is a versatile segment of your organization that should be tailored to best fit your company structure, strengths, weaknesses, goals, and needs.

By Leisbel Lam | Having a service recovery mindset in your projects is essential in order to keep your organization’s sustained competitive advantage.

By Dan Houf | If AEC firms cannot have certainty in how they operate and grow, it will be difficult to stay competitive.

By Sara Karstetter | The employee-focused recruiting, retention, and compensation strategy.

By Liisa Andreassen | JQ, now IMEG, a team of professionals providing structural and civil engineering, geospatial and facility performance services within a diverse group of markets.

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

By Jon Leach | In a world in which employee engagement is steadily decreasing, it’s increasingly important for firm leaders to understand the psychology behind their office spaces.

By Greg Sepeda | If you can clear out the unnecessary underbrush, you will benefit from a staff that finally can breathe, see new paths, and move your firm forward.

By Ezequiel Tovar | Firm owners must have a clear vision, build a solid culture, and celebrate achievements big and small to be good stewards.

By Mercedez Thompson | Proposals have adapted to a new way of reading, emphasizing concise, compelling headings to convey complex solutions and deliver winning messages.

By Matt Johnson | Client managers face new challenges post-pandemic, requiring increased client contact, realistic budgeting, and managing expectations for success.

By Jesse Sievers | Enhance recruitment by focusing on individual connections, forming partnerships with diverse institutions, and building robust internship programs.

By Rachel Wilde | By engaging working mothers in the workplace effectively, we can help retain top talent in our industry and create a better tomorrow for our daughters.

By Kristin Kautz | AI is becoming a crucial component in reshaping the AEC industry, especially in the realm of marketing.

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 Stewart Haney | This tool helps businesses become more focused, disciplined, and accountable, which ultimately leads to improved performance and profitability.

By Wesley Jones | Empowering diverse groups within your organization is paramount to understanding your employees, your clients, and the industries you serve.

By Tyler Suomala | If you ask great questions, you can guide yourself and your clients through a powerful process of discovery.

By Fran Curtis | You’re shaping the next generation of leaders, so it’s important to be available to junior staff who are looking for a mentor.

By Alexis Eades | Put your interns to work and gain long-term positive benefits for yourself, your firm, and the young people who may one day be your employees.

By Gregory Teague | Engaging with your community enriches company culture, employee development, and offers an inside advantage to local projects.

By Robert Speed | If you can make your culture about the employees, you and your firm will reap the rewards over the course of your career.

By Reid Poling | As much as school can and does teach you, there are some lessons that can only be  learned “on the job.”

By Lauren Martin | It’s important for design firms to understand the potential peril to all parties involved should there be a third-party beneficiary clause in any contract.

By Lauren Rhodes Martin | As natural disasters continue to increase in frequency and severity, so will the potential exposure to the design community.

By Ezequiel Tovar | These continuing education opportunities offers valuable insight into what makes successful AEC firms stand out from the rest.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Cushing Terrell, a multidisciplinary firm that empowers creative designers to discover imaginative, responsible first-of-their-kind environments.

By Keyan Zandy | The disruptions we’re facing today are forcing us to get creative and evolve the ways we think and work. New opportunities are in reach if we stretch for them together.

By Lindsay Young | Knowing what people really think will help you grow your business and serve your clients even better than you already do.

By Peter Atherton | If we can establish trust, clearly communicate what winning looks like, and have a unifying mission and vision, we will never need to limit our success to any location.

By Mark Zweig | There are so many positive aspects of this industry, and it’s important that we keep reminding ourselves and our people why this is such a great business.

By Josh Blair | This intriguing and fulfilling career path leads to new experiences, new opportunities, and new ways to expand your skills every day.

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 Liisa Andreassen | CEO and co-owner of Pape-Dawson Engineers (San Antonio, TX), the largest civil engineering firm headquartered and exclusively located in Texas.

By Matt Hoying | Implementing strategies to enhance collaboration can lead to better projects, better productivity, and better profits.

By Liisa Andreassen | Owner and managing principal of Arrive Architecture Group (Bedford, TX), a firm that specializes in multi-housing residences for individuals, families, and seniors.

By Katie Harrel & Charlotte Knight | Finding commonalities can help you build trust and strengthen relationships in this changing work environment.

President of Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam (Houston, TX), a civil engineering firm that delivers exceptional quality and measurable value for the nation’s infrastructure.

By Lindsay Young | Investing a small amount of time and money to train employees on presentation skills could lead to millions of dollars of work for your firm.

By Montgomery Spillane & Dillon Reio | If you’re willing to go the extra mile to help young professionals grow, they will also go that extra mile for you.

By Liisa Andreassen | Partner at //3877, a boutique design firm that’s committed to providing innovative and creative designs that enhance and enrich the lives of its clients, partners, and communities.

By Dave Martin | To be an effective leader, you have to be authentic, acknowledge what you don’t know, and be willing to make mistakes.

By Seth Carlton | This requires more than just a clever slogan. It is a call to be focused, driven, and dedicated to a common goal.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Lawrence Group (St. Louis, MO), an integrated design, development, and construction firm using the power of people with great ideas to bring clients’ dreams to life.

By Wendy Culver | ERGs to get your people involved to make changes from the heart of your organization, rather than being imposed from the top down.

By Kim Fowler | If you chip away at your organization goals one task at a time, you will begin to see the benefits.

By Mitchell Shope | Leveraging reinforcement theory will connect the action to the reward and bolster your firm’s morale and cultural identity.

By Phil Keil | Decentralization of structure within our firms allows for a more agile, adaptable, and unified organization.

Make a great first impression, showcase your experience and expertise, and stand out as a top architect in your market.

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 | With new cases of COVID-19 on the rise, now is not the time for complacency. Instead, it is a time for self-reflection and new action.

Baby boomers and millennials may use different leadership styles and cope differently in business and in life, but the interaction of both can deliver some key benefits.

It’s our responsibility as AEC professionals, as well as citizens, to champion solutions to problems that affect our global and local communities.

Changing your mindset and discarding your assumptions allows you to start a dialogue to improve performance, relationships, and model the type of leadership that you want to see in others.

President and CEO of Ramey Kemp & Assoc. (Raleigh, NC), a transportation engineering, planning, and design firm founded in 1992.

Cross-marketing is the low-hanging fruit of business development. But will it work for your firm?

Through solid communication, planning, and leadership support from both organizations, a smooth transition is under way.

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

Charting a sustainable future requires a willingness to critically evaluate your firm and prepare for the year ahead.

If you want to be a great consultant, you have to step into the client’s shoes and see the world as they do.

Trust your judgement, speak up, and keep learning. Your efforts will pay dividends down the road.

Leaders of employee-friendly firms talk about how being a Best Firm affects recruiting, culture, and opportunities.

Connections across teams and offices increase employee engagement and performance, but the connections must be fostered.

When identifying your next generation of leaders, there are some qualities you should look for, and some you should avoid.

CEO of TLC Engineering Solutions, an Orlando, Florida-based firm pushing its way into the future.

While management plays an obvious role in this process, employees must also do their part by knowing their roles and doing their jobs.

Breaking into new markets isn’t easy, but it can be done if you have a long-term, coordinated plan of attack. Following 30 years as an Army Engineer officer, I went to work as a market...

Diversity and inclusion are good for your bottom line. To get the right people, you have to cast your net in the right places, and jettison the bias. It’s alarming. According to 100 percent of...

Getting there is one thing, but staying there is another. Figure it out and your firm will have the world in the palm of its hand. Being “top of mind” with your clients and potential...

We’re all busy with our personal and professional lives, but that doesn’t mean we should stop educating ourselves. I have spent a good portion of the last eight months crisscrossing the country training professionals in...

Brenden Sherrer, an M&A consultant at Zweig Group, talks about the state of M&A in the design industry, a legal extern program that Brenden introduced, and millennials in the design industry.

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...

HGA has acquired the Sustainable Engineering Group, a leading engineering firm focused on energy optimization and sustainable design. The acquisition of SEG, based in Madison, Wisconsin, reinforces and broadens HGA’s existing expertise in energy and...

President, CEO, and chairman of the board for T&M Associates (Hot Firm #73 for 2016), a 350-person engineering firm based in Middletown, New Jersey. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Gary Dahms, PE, PP, CME, has been...

Managing principal and president of HED, Inc. (Hot Firm #34 for 2017), a 350-person design firm with offices in Illinois, Michigan, and California. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Small changes often lead to significant results,” says...

It’s not about what emotions we experience, but how we harness and direct our emotions that will impact our success or failure. In the AEC industry, each constituent group has a stereotypical emotional profile. Engineers...

Ditch the lecture-and-listen style of training and replace it with something much more effective – the do-it-to-learn-it style. In the ultra-competitive AEC job market, professional growth is becoming the new perk. Employees and candidates –...

Digital is critical, but don’t fixate on having an army of followers. Instead, use social channels to build your brand equity. What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?...

Learning from external sources can be highly beneficial, but you must also master the art of blocking out the noise and staying the course. I have to admit it: I often feel like a fraud...

Handle the difficult conversations by knowing who you are, learning about other people, and knowing what’s needed to win. This time he went too far. Milo, your senior engineer, will not budge on his code...

The transition from boomers to millennials is going to happen anyway, so put in a good-faith effort and make it a positive experience. By 2020, 50 percent of the U.S. workforce will be millennials. In...

Wold Architects and Engineers, based in St. Paul, Minnesota, recently acquired Ruck Pate Architecture, a move that expands Wold’s presence in Illinois by adding design capabilities and enhancing services offered to its clients. Jamie Claire...

When the company you acquire has better ideas than your firm’s, you have to remain open to change and be willing to learn. Acquisitions help companies in many ways. They enable access to the professional...

Through enlightened business practices, young firm leaders are embracing a world of freedom, harmony, prosperity, and compassion. It’s energizing to be around young entrepreneurs with exciting ideas. My wife and I are honored to be...

Working with millennials was a hot topic at the recent Hot Firm and A/E Industry Awards Conference. Most researchers define the millennial generation as those born anywhere between 1982 and 2004 (although some sources end...

Collaboration between centralized and decentralized resources is the ultimate secret weapon effecting success in any organization. To centralize or not to centralize. Is that the question? For years, leadership groups and marketing professionals across the...

Did your interns live the dream? If so, great, but if not, it might be time to retool your program by taking these six simple steps. As a communications major with an interest in broadcast...

Your employees will work harder if they’re enthusiastic about their role in your firm; here are some tips to make that happen. As firms finalize their strategic plans for 2016, we hear a consistent desire...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (September 9, 2015) – Zweig Group successfully completed a strategic search for GPO Group (Barcelona, Spain), leading to a partnership with Sam Schwartz Consulting, LLC. “Sam Schwartz Consulting is excited to enter into...

Take an honest look at your client relationship and ask yourself if it’s still mutually beneficial; if it’s not, it is time to do the hard thing. In addition to working at Zweig Group, I...

Make your company stronger by involving marketing folks in the sales process. I recently attended a SMPS “Spring Training” one day seminar in Oklahoma. The first speaker, Carolyn Ferguson, asked several probing questions about developing...

Press Release: August 15, 2011 Time to love thy neighbor or raise the draw bridge? A/E/P Experts have mixed feelings on when to share information and if it’s always beneficial. FAYETTEVILLE, AR (August 9, 2011)...

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 Ed Friedrichs I admit, I’m of a generation that grew up and spent the early part of my career without a computer, to say nothing of the Internet, e-mail or Facebook. Every time I...

Most of us know that it isn’t really hard to start an A/E or environmental firm. You don’t need a lot of capital or other resources to hang a shingle and make a run for...

A few of us just got back from “Racing to the Future ‘97,” a CEO get-together we sponsored in West Palm Beach, Florida. Let me tell you, it was a great experience. Having a dozen...

No doubt about it, all of us who are managers in an A/E/P or environmental firm have to face some tough situations from time to time. They aren’t usually “fun” decisions, or situations that give...

This is the time of year that many A/E/P and environmental consulting firms hold an annual management retreat. The larger a firm is, the more likely it is to have a retreat. Typically at these...

It is widely accepted that any well-managed A/E/P or environmental consulting firm should monitor and report on the profitability of the projects it undertakes. Pick up practically any management newsletter, or look in the practice...

The ability to think creatively is critical for anyone working in an architecture, consulting engineering, or environmental consulting firm— not just the design staff. The business side of the professions is just as demanding as...