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By Mailena Urso | Award-winning AEC marketing connects creativity, strategy, and measurable results to move the firm’s most important priorities forward.

By Mark Zweig | Selling expensive services is not about closing faster, but about building enough trust to become the obvious call later.

By GinaRenee Autrey | As AI makes content easier to create, AEC marketers create value by building trust, connection, and meaning.

By Mailena Urso | When everyone has access to the same AI tools, strategy and a recognizable voice become the real competitive advantage.

"AI is definitely raising the ceiling and making things possible that were not possible before... We need to increase the ceiling of what is possible going forward and reward people putting the effort into increasing...

By Michael Sanderson | Firms that want to grow must evolve leadership, systems, and culture or risk being outpaced and ultimately absorbed.

By Chris Catton | Recruiting is the AEC industry’s biggest challenge, yet most firms still operate without a real recruiting plan.

By Morgan Stinson | AEC firms win when purpose, not profit, drives client experience.

By Janki DePalma | When we measure collaboration instead of individual wins, teams shift from rivalry to shared success.

By GinaRenee Autrey | AEC marketing doesn’t fail from lack of expertise – it fails when firms keep telling safe stories in increasingly noisy markets.

By Wallace Smith | Giving back is a responsibility that strengthens communities, builds better businesses, and reminds leaders their greatest impact starts beyond the blueprint.

By Gregory D. Teague | A strong culture isn’t built once – it’s nurtured daily through shared values, genuine investment in people, and lasting community impact.

By Mailena Urso | This year’s winners prove marketing done right delivers higher margins and stronger growth.

By Chad Clinehens | Record-breaking performance, bold innovation, and a new generation of leaders are redefining what’s possible in AEC.

September 1 – RESPEC (Rapid City, SD), an innovative geoscience, engineering, and technology firm, acquired Albertson Engineering (Rapid City, SD), a structural firm experienced in civic buildings, public art, commercial spaces, and industrial facilities. [More...

One of my all-time favorite Zweig Letter articles was written by no less than Mark Zweig himself, titled, “Frank Wouldn’t Be Happy.”  The “Frank” in this case was Frank Lloyd Wright, and the article described...

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO and president of Drummond Carpenter, a service-disabled veteran-owned small business specializing in civil, environmental engineering, and applied research.

By Chad Clinehens | Honoring the firms building the future of AEC through culture, creativity, innovation, and smart growth.

By Sara Parkman | The top 2025 Marketing Excellence Award winners share how strategy, authenticity, and collaboration drive real AEC marketing impact.

Zweig Group, the leading provider of management consulting, research, and education for the architecture, engineering, and construction industry, is proud to announce the winners of the 2025 Marketing Excellence Awards. This program honors outstanding and...

By Lindsay Young | Continuous investment ensures that when the market eventually slows down, your firm remains resilient and well-positioned.

By Kate Gray | Utilizing technology built around your best work can become an inspiration tool for marketing teams.

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

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of Dunaway (Fort Worth, TX), a leading independent multi-discipline design firm in Texas.

By Mark Zweig | You will be less stressed and might find your business more successful if you can shed some baggage.

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

By Greg Sepeda | Success comes from creating a space where people feel comfortable asking questions, helping each other out, and wearing different hats when needed.

The conversation dives into the importance of maintaining a vibrant company culture in the face of evolving work environments. They highlight how, despite the chaos that keeps everyone up at night, there are strategies to...

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 Kraig C. Kern | Corporate giving today should be about about creating meaningful opportunities for employees to make a difference while developing professionally.

By Gabe Lett | Enhance marketing by embracing creativity and disruption to craft surprising, memorable, and engaging campaigns.

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...

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...

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

By Mailena Urso | Zweig Group’s Marketing Excellence Awards showcase top creative campaigns that elevate AEC industry branding.

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

      Domestic Transactions: 8/1/2024Kimley-Horn (Raleigh, NC) (ENR #10), a leading planning and design consulting firm, joined forces with A.D. Engineering (Chattanooga, TN), a firm with expertise in planning, site layout, grading, stormwater design, water system design,...

By Sara Parkman | Zweig Group’s 2024 Marketing Excellence Award winners share the strategies behind their winning campaigns and the impact on their firms’ success.

Zweig Group is excited to announce the winners of its 2024 Marketing Excellence Awards, which recognize outstanding and effective marketing in the AEC industry based upon overall creativity, messaging, results achieved by the campaign, and level of...

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...

By Janki DePalma | Late bloomers gain wisdom, resilience, and unique insights, proving there’s no fixed timeline for achievement.

By Javier Suarez | AI provides opportunities to bolster our understanding of our intended audiences while supporting our efforts to refine our messages.

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.

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

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

By Liisa Andreassen | Senior principal and president of 19six Architects (San Luis Obispo, CA), one of the oldest and most established architectural firms in California.

By Jeremy Clarke | The past few years have had a lot to teach us about winning the war for talent.

By Dawson Fercho & Jordan Wilson | Year-end Congress faces challenges in repealing R&D amortization rule, with political divisions, tax revenue impact, and party dynamics at play.

By Ivy Mendoza & Justin Patterson | By effectively communicating the complexities of engineering, graphic designers and marketers add value to a AEC firms.

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...

By Javier Suarez | Successful newsletters are relevant and valuable to readers, easy to consume, actionable, and loyal to your brand.

Kristin Kautz, an artificial intelligence consultant, discusses the impact of AI on the design industry and how essential it is to get into this technology race.

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...

Zweig Group’s 2023 Marketing Excellence Award winners share the strategies behind their winning campaigns and the impact on their firms’ success.

Zweig Group announces the winners of its 2023 Marketing Excellence Awards, which recognize outstanding and effective marketing in the AEC industry based upon overall creativity, messaging, results achieved by the campaign, and level of design.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Schaefer (Cincinnati, OH), a firm that provides all aspects of structural engineering across a broad range of projects and industries.

By Keyan Zandy | This tool can help you develop a deeper understanding of your client’s experience by exploring their emotions, motivations, and attitudes.

By Liisa Andreassen | Executive principal and chief strategy officer at AG&E (Dallas, TX), a full service firm that provides sustainable structural engineering design for all types of projects.

By Mark Zweig | Things are only going to get more competitive, so it’s time to raise the bar with your marketing.

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 Liisa Andreassen | Principal at JQ (Dallas, TX), a team of professionals providing structural and civil engineering, geospatial, and facility performance services within a diverse group of markets.

By Janki DePalma | We need to examine the connection between confidence, competence, and our sense of self in the corporate world.

By Jane Lawler Smith | By applying various levels of rewriting, redesign, and repackaging, you can successfully bring adaptive reuse concepts into your AEC marketing realm.

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...

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal at Derck & Edson (Lititz, PA), a planning and design firm that shapes the natural and built environment in innovative and functional ways.

By Kyle Ahern | Gathering data on your employees’ experience is the first step, then you have to create action items to effect positive change.

By Ernesto Aguilar | Achieving rapid expansion through both organic and inorganic growth while maintaining a strong, employee-centric culture.

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 Christina Zweig Niehues | Zweig Group’s 2022 Marketing Excellence Award Winners have created some outstanding marketing campaigns, displaying incredible imagination and creativity.

By Kyle Ahern | Best Firms To Work For and Hot Firms continue to distinguish themselves in a highly competitive industry.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (June 29, 2022) –Zweig Group is proud to announce the winners of the 2022 Marketing Excellence Awards. These awards recognize outstanding, results-driven marketing in the AEC industry in fifteen different categories. Award entries...

By Lindsay Young | Best practices for AEC firms will continue to evolve, but firms that take steps to innovate will be the ones that succeed.

By Derek Clyburn | AEC firms and the industry as a whole should be communicating the value we provide at every level of interaction and throughout the design process.

By Liisa Andreassen | Zweig Group’s 2021 Jerry Allen Courage in Leadership Award winner on being nominated and what it meant to win the prestigious award.

By Jane Lawler Smith | Over time, evolving client needs and approaches could erode your marketing foundation. Take the time to shore up your foundation before it crumbles entirely.

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal at VMDO, an architectural planning and design firm that creates community-centered environments that connect people and place through design.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Campos Engineering (Dallas, TX), an MEP engineering, testing, adjusting and balancing, and commissioning firm.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Martin/Martin (Denver, CO), a full-service civil and structural engineering and surveying firm founded in the 1940s.

By Ashley Heinnickel | A rebrand is an opportunity to elevate your firm’s identity and build excitement about where you’re going.

By RLG Consulting Engineers | Principal at RLG Consulting Engineers (Dallas, TX), a firm that specializes in civil, structural, survey, and forensic engineering.

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal at Brenner Design (Indianapolis, IN), an award-winning, woman owned architectural firm that designs and constructs innovative buildings and interior spaces.

By Liisa Andreassen | Senior principal at Lamar Johnson Collaborative (Chicago, IL), a full-service design and architecture firm committed to enhancing the quality of the human experience.

By Mark Zweig | Here’s what you really need to do to get more job candidates for any opening you have, increase your job offer acceptance rate, and speed up the hiring process.

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 Jane Lawler Smith | When interviewing your co-workers, peers, and clients, take a walk and harness the power of storytelling together.

By Mark Zweig | You’ll never be able to eliminate uncertainty, but there are some things you can be sure of. Keeping these in mind will help you be ready for what lies ahead.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 6, 2021) – Zweig Group is proud to announce the winners of the 2021 Marketing Excellence Awards. These awards recognize outstanding, results-driven marketing in the AEC industry. Award entries were judged by...

By Shibani Bisson | Biases and self-image issues can dampen girls’ interest in STEM from a young age, but the AEC industry can take action to change this trend.

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 Chad Clinehens | Let’s take all the support we’ve been unable to show over the past year and fire up businesses impacted by COVID.

We don’t know what this year will bring, but by focusing on existing relationships and building stronger relationships, we can ensure long-term success.

President and CEO of Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. (Northbrook, IL), a global firm that’s committed to helping clients solve, repair, and avoid problems in the built world.

By Christina Zweig Niehues | There are several management areas where award-winning, fast-growth, and very high profit AEC firms stand out.

The texture of varying beliefs, values, and backgrounds inform how we see the world, and are at the very core of our ability to serve our clients and community.

President and CEO of Payette (Boston, MA), a firm that values the close relationships it builds with its collaborators on the journey from design to reality.

To manage time effectively, you need to know – not just believe – you are spending time productively.

For many leaders, business development resides outside their core competencies and comfort zone, to their firm’s detriment.

CEO of Wendel (Williamsville, NY), an innovative AEC and energy efficiency firm that collaborates with clients for a holistic project approach.

Marketing has a role in building brands, developing strategies, winning work, and more – and the firms that invest heavily in marketing reap the rewards.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 8, 2020) –Zweig Group is proud to announce the winners of the 2020 Marketing Excellence Awards. These awards recognize outstanding, results-driven marketing in the AEC industry. Award entries were judged by a...

By Mark Zweig | If we care about the success of our people and our businesses, we cannot keep ignoring the importance of people skills.

President and CEO of CORE Consultants, Inc. (Littleton, CO), a professional services firm with a unique culture that empowers its people to thrive at home, at work, and in their community.

From training your staff to making sure your firewall is up-to-date, it’s important that you take action to protect your firm’s data, your clients’ data, and your network from cyberattacks.

By Mark Zweig | Are you doing what you really should be for your business right now? Or are you just floating along on a sea of uncertainty, afraid to move or you’ll turn over your...

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

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

Founding principal of Kudela & Weinheimer (Houston, TX), a landscape architecture firm that has produced beautiful, exceptionally built environments for more than 25 years.

By combining traditional marketing tactics with unique approaches for our industry, AEC firms can get ahead of the competition, stay relevant, and win more and better contracts.

CEO of A&E Architects (Billings, MT), a firm that believes all disciplines can live together within any given project.

In this digital era of PURLs, OKRs, and java scripts, a dimensional mailer and handwritten note are still the best way to grab attention.

In the 24th deal in Texas this year, Bleyl Engineering (Conroe, TX), a civil engineering firm specializing in the design of municipal and private development projects, expanded its foothold in central Texas with the acquisition...

Marketing spending has climbed to an all time high, according to Zweig Group’s 2019 Marketing Survey.

“Sometimes in business you just have to do something that generates results NOW. There’s no time to waste. You need action and something good to happen. Your prosperity depends on it.”

President and CEO of Eclipse Engineering (Best Firm Structural #12 for 2018), a Montana firm that likes to have a little “phun.”

There are plenty of tell-tale signs your AEC firm needs a set of third-party experts to help you achieve your goals.

Portland office leader for PCS Structural Solutions believes in the legacy of engineering as a community builder.

President and CEO of RLG Consulting Engineers (Best Firm Structural #13 for 2018), a Dallas-based firm in business for 65 years.

A good attitude and honest effort are central to California engineer’s mission to build a meaningful career.

“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?”...

If your firm has a weekly or monthly newsletter, great. But if not, you need to get cracking on that important piece of internal communication. Does your firm have an internal newsletter or some kind...

President, Alta Environmental (Best Firm #4 Environmental for 2018), a 50-person firm based in Long Beach, CA. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “It’s said that people typically don’t leave companies, they leave bosses,” Kay says. “Making...

The process must be deliberate and multifaceted, but don’t forget the human touch. Be yourself and enjoy finding clients that reflect your values. Recently, I had a conversation with a very busy, newly promoted division...

CEO of Huckabee (Hot Firm #7 and Best Firm Architecture #3 for 2018), a 300-person architecture firm based in Fort Worth, Texas. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “For us, diversifying is a bad thing,” Huckabee says....

By Christina Zweig Niehues | AEC credentials are necessary for the work of designing and building, but that’s not the case regarding firm management and ownership.

Come to the 2018 Hot Firm + A/E Industry Awards Conference in Dallas this September 20-21, and bring your colleagues with you! People are understandably reluctant to leave the office and their clients to attend...

A failed leadership transition can destroy a brand. Take plenty of time, focus on the company, and beware of politics and interpersonal conflict. Several years ago I visited the church I grew up in and...

By Christina Zweig Niehues | A larger client database, higher shortlist rates, and measurable metrics. Yes, marketing is expensive, but it’s a good place to spend a bit of gold.

By Edward Friedrichs | Reducing consumption and finding new ways to re-use water will become increasingly important as populations grow.

Non-creatives have to understand and respect what marketers do, or we run the risk of demotivating those who are critical to our success. A recent study by InSource reported that “Creative professionals are being asked...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (June 5, 2018) – Zweig Group has announced the winners of the 2018 Marketing Excellence Awards. The Marketing Excellence Awards recognize outstanding and effective marketing in the architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting...

Founder and CEO of GATE (Hot Firm #35 for 2017), a 300-plus person oil and gas engineering consulting company based in Houston. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “When clients/friends see what we post and comment to...

Gaining access to executives is not easy, but there’s plenty of opportunities to show value, establish credibility, and, in the end, make the sale. The most effective way to gain access to CXOs is through...

I was thinking about social media and what a phenomenon it is and how it is now such a big part of our culture. Even though the odds are against it, you may be someone...

Debating entering Zweig Group's 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards? Here's a few reasons why you should enter this year: 1) Double your marketing efforts. The Marketing Excellence Award winners get a lot of attention: The list...

Founder and president of Gunda Corporation (#32 Hot Firm for 2017), a 60-person engineering consulting firm based in Houston. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “I’m not a big fan of utilization rates,” Gunda says. “I believe...

Let’s try to tell our story so that we can go above and beyond the traditional marketing that AEC firms are known for. Think about some of the most iconic advertisements of the past. Many...

To save scarce resources, provide enhanced services, and reduce costs, the trend is to look at multiples of buildings as a district with common utilities. The emphasis on water and energy conservation and enhanced security...

Whether it’s a monthly email campaign, promotional event, thought leadership piece, or blog post, firms need to give marketing the time it needs to evolve. “Do you want the job done right or done fast?”...

For many, growth means losing their beloved workplace. But think again. Growth can mean increased capabilities, not increased numbers. We talk a lot about growth here at Zweig Group. It’s a philosophy that underpins all...

There’s plenty of excuses as to why you won’t bring one of your rising stars to meetings with clients, and none of them are good. The best training is experiential. Take your rising stars to...

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...

A successful marketing campaign is difficult to measure using hard metrics, so don’t get caught in the quicksand of trying to quantify nebulous numbers. It’s Monday, 9 a.m., and as you get comfortable in an...

All of us have a story to tell, so don’t shy away from it in your professional life. It could be the key ingredient for your firm’s success. Everyone loves a good story. That’s why...

President of Wakefield Beasley & Associates (Hot Firm #14 for 2016), a 165-person architectural design firm based in Alpharetta, Georgia. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “We are a fast-paced, high-performance company, and underperformers are detrimental to...

Mick Gronewold, Principal, Fehr Graham Principal at Fehr Graham (Hot Firm #72 for 2016), a 170-person engineering and environmental firm based in Rockford, Illinois. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “If you ain’t falling down, you aren’t...

Co-founder, president, and CEO of P2S Engineering, Inc. (Best Firms To Work For Multi-discipline #8 and Hot Firm #27 for 2017), a consulting engineering firm in Long Beach, CA. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “The belief...

On this episode of the TZL Podcast, Randy Wilburn and Sanjay Jenkins discussed a mini social media campaign they executed for AECWorkforce on August 2, which was Licensed P.E. Day. They talked about the power...

What does your contract say about the ability to recover legal fees or staff time incurred to recover unpaid fees? Good question, huh? Two recent cases show that architects with good contracts can recover not...

This is the first article in a new series detailing Modern Marketing in the AEC Industry. Learn how to use the tools that will make your marketing more effective without wasting your time. The Achilles’...

The landscape keeps changing, but accept it and roll with the punches. The payoff could be big for your firm. In media, the only constant is change, and here’s what we’ve got our eyes on...

Marketing is the backbone of sales and business development, so be proactive and stop thinking of it as just an overhead function. I am passionate about marketing. Everyone who works with me knows it. I...

Break free from immediate metrics and returns, because with marketing, the ROI could take months or even years to realize. Growing up in the ‘80s, the recent passing of George Michael brought a lot of...

CEO and founder of Comprehensive Environmental Inc. (Best Firm #3 Environmental for 2016), a 30-person firm headquartered in Marlborough, MA. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent A cornerstone of great project management? “Be available,” Pannetier says. A...

Hill International cut its teeth on international public-private partnerships in Spain, and is now using that experience to excel in Turkey. By Richard Massey Managing Editor As the massive healthcare buildout in Turkey continues, Hill...

President and CEO of Jones|Carter (Best Firm Multidiscipline #17 and Hot Firm #18 for 2016), a 465-person engineering firm based in Houston, Texas. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “The board must conduct itself as a board...

Marketers, what does your job really entail, and what should you be doing to move your company forward? Whether you are in an exclusively marketing related job or have a different title but actively participate...

What do architects and engineers do? What is our “industry” called? Is it AE, A/E, AEC, or A/E/C? Is it even an “industry?” Why are these questions important?

As a firm grows, new people have to come on board. But if those people threaten to damage your culture and sink the ship, you can always toss them back out to sea. We tell...

As architects and engineers, we need to be on the front line in the campaign against inefficiency and waste. I just listened to an excellent edition of National Public Radio’s TED Radio Hour titled “Finite,”...

Get the word out to your people that any form of illegal conduct – bribery and racketeering among them – will be grounds for immediate termination. Last week, attorney G. William Quatman, FAIA, Esq. wrote...

President and CEO of Ghafari, a big Michigan firm, has broadened its services, allowing it to weather tough times and maintain an era of growth. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent As president and CEO of Ghafari...

Campaign finance laws, bid rigging, price fixing, and bribery. We hear about this with contractors, but how about design professionals? Several times each year, there is an article about some contractor being debarred or convicted...

If you want to groom the next generation of leaders, you’ll have to make sure your firm is changing with the times. I’m a millennial. Gasp! There, I said it. A lot has been made...

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...

Office amenities are shifting from a focus on whimsy to a focus on meaning, and that adds up to improved productivity and increased profitability. As someone who designs workplace environments, it’s fascinating to participate in...

The holiday season always motivates us to give back, but a company-wide campaign can provide for charity where and when it’s needed most – locally and all year long. I really like this quote from...

Cincinnati CEO usually operates at about 150 miles per hour, but from time to time he puts on the brakes. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent When it comes to leading, David Arends, CEO of CR Architecture...

Florida multidiscipline firm Kisinger Campo and Associates, with four decades under its belt, knows how to treat clients and employees. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Kisinger Campo and Associates (Tampa, FL), a multidisciplinary engineering firm of...

A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows architects and engineers have the fifth highest suicide rate among 22 occupations. By Richard Massey Managing Editor A report recently issued by the Centers...

A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows architects and engineers have the fifth highest suicide rate among 22 occupations. By Richard Massey Managing Editor A report recently issued by the Centers...

A visionary rather than a command-and-control type of leader, Mike Sanderson has a musical side to him that some might find surprising. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent He doesn’t like the word “client.” He prefers “customer.”...

An influx of foreign capital and an acute housing crisis have created a surge in tall buildings, and in an ancient, low-slung city, that’s controversial. By Richard Massey Managing Editor Once dominated by landmarks like...

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,...

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...

Lonnie Laffen, CEO of JLG Architects, is a Bison who likes burgers and fries, a big motor bike, but not politics. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Twenty-seven years ago, Lonnie Laffen, president and CEO of JLG...

In decline since 1950, the city is finally reversing its downward trend, and architects and engineers are taking part in the recovery. By Richard Massey Managing Editor When architect Michael Tunkey graduated from his hometown...

Bells and whistles are nice, but when it comes time to write a winning proposal, a strong, focused message is still the way to go. In recent months I have seen a number of questions...

McMahon Associates celebrates its accomplishments as it moves into a new era with continued focus on staff, shareholders, and clients. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Exciting things are happening this year at McMahon Associates, Inc. (#21...

ACI Boland Architects of Kansas City was betrayed by an office manager who, over a decade, funneled millions into secret bank accounts. By Richard Massey Managing Editor A long-time office manager at one of Kansas...

In the form of growth, profitability, and important projects, multidiscipline firm based in upstate New York is reaping the benefits of a well-executed ownership transition. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent In 1977, when Wayne Wegman joined...

If your content is consistently valuable, potential clients might give up their personal information to have it, and chose your firm over others when it’s time to close the deal. Are you lost in marketing...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (August 15, 2016) –Zweig Group has announced the winners of the 2016 Marketing Excellence Awards. Zweig Group had the most competitive year to date for these awards, with a record number of applicants....

The use of video in your recruiting campaign might be what it takes to create buzz for your firm, and in the end, land great employees. This summer movie season is going to be pretty...

With college debt at an all-time high and expected to increase, now’s the time to think about adding loan reduction as a benefit. Recruiting great talent takes skill, a little bit of luck, and some...

New Recruitment and Retention Survey sheds light on key issues in finding, hiring, and keeping the best talent in the design industry. One thing I enjoy about working here at Zweig Group is that we...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ar. January 15, 2016) – Four Zweig Group award programs for the architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting industry are now open and accepting registrations/nominations: Hot Firm, Best Firms To Work For, Marketing Excellence,...

Four Zweig Group award programs for the architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting industry are now open and accepting registrations/nominations: Hot Firm, Best Firms To Work For, Marketing Excellence, and Jerry Allen Courage in Leadership....

Garver, LLC (North Little Rock, AR), a 375-person multidiscipline engineering firm, is taking home fifth place in the Integrated Marketing category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its 95th anniversary campaign. 2014 marked...

Sanderson Stewart (Billings, MT), a 65-person regional community development firm, is the fifth place winner in the Special Event category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its SSymposium event. The purpose of SSymposium...

Though most everyone on your team is important, there are 4 major positions that no successful firm can do without. Managing your business effectively means the business grows, makes a profit, and has good employees...

Harris & Associates (Concord, CA), a 200-person engineering and construction management firm, is the fourth place winner in the Internal Marketing category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its ownership campaign and the...

Klohn Crippen Berger Ltd. (Vancouver, BC) – a 500-person international engineering, geoscience, and environmental consulting firm – is taking home second place in the Internal Marketing category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for...

Hickok Cole Architects (Washington, DC), a 95-person architecture and interior design firm, is the second place winner in the Integrated Marketing category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its “Great Chemistry, Great Design”...

Smith Seckman Reid, Inc. (Nashville, TN), a 375-person engineering firm, is the fifth place winner in the Online Marketing category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its new website. SSR leadership wants to...

HKS, Inc. (Dallas, TX), a 1,000-person architecture firm, is taking home third place in the Special Event category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its JOIN US event. 2014 marked HKS’ 75th anniversary....

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...

Larson Design Group (Williamsport, PA) – a 290-person engineering, surveying, and architecture firm – is taking home fourth place in the Special Event category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its Daniel C....

Westwood Professional Services (Eden Prairie, MN), a 350-person professional services firm, is the second place winner in the Special Event category of Zweig Group’s 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards for its Brand Refresh Launch event. Westwood...

Keynote Title: Driving more ROI from your Existing IT Investments Speaker: Noah Eckhouse, VP Portfolio Development Description: Plenty of software vendors are anxious to sell CIOs and CFOs "the next great thing”; however, only a...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (May 29, 2015) – Zweig Group successfully completed a strategic search for Wold Architects and Engineers (St. Paul, Minn.). Wold A&E is a 150-person industry leading service provider for public sector education and...

Many lessons from ‘Small Enterprise Management’ can be applied to A/E/P and environmental firms. As most readers know, one of my “other” jobs is that of a college professor, teaching entrepreneurship at the Sam M....

A/E/P and environmental firms have tons to juggle, but ensuring that your company is finding the best candidates to fill openings should top the list. Recruitment is important to the health of a company, and,...

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...

Debating entering Zweig Group's 2015 Marketing Excellence Awards? Here's a few reasons why you should enter this year: 1) Double your marketing efforts. The Marketing Excellence Award winners get a lot of attention: The list...

FINLEY (Tallahassee, FL), celebrated their 10-year anniversary in a campaign that landed them the fourth place in Zweig Group’s Marketing Excellence Awards in the Special Event category. Craig Finley, Jr., president and founder, and Ann...

Expert message Barton Associates (York, PA), a 57-person MEP engineering firm, created a marketing campaign to target their two niche markets: education and healthcare. The campaign took home fourth place in Zweig Group’s Marketing Excellence...

Your job is to instill harmony between those who thrive on change and those who prefer the status quo. After working with A/E firms for about 35 years, I have come to the conclusion that...

The holidays are a great time for fun and creative marketing pieces. Taking home second place in Zweig Group’s 2014 Marketing Excellence Awards in the Online Marketing Category, Clark Patterson Lee (Rochester, NY), a 220-person...

These comprehensive campaigns are more than a marketing exercise. Do you roll your eyes when you hear of a firm going through a rebranding? Be honest. Certainly the concept of branding has been slow to...

Results of long-running study show that those who wait for reward do better in the end, Mark Zweig writes. Back in the ’60s a Psych professor at Stanford, Walter Mischel, gave a famous test to...

FAYETTEVILLE—October 1, 2014—Zweig Group has introduced a new corporate name and logo which reinforces its commitment to growth through an investment in new products and services as well as delivery methods. The company has changed...

Modernizing corporate identity part of plan for growth FAYETTEVILLE—October 1, 2014—ZweigWhite has introduced a new corporate name and logo which reinforces its commitment to growth through an investment in new products and services as well...

Portfolio: Mascot delivers the good news Internal newsletter modeled after internal mascot an award-winning success. By Christina Zweig Contributing editor ECS Carolinas, LLP (Chantilly, VA), placed first in the Internal Marketing Category of Zweig Group’s...

This over-used word can be working against you. In one of our seminars, we ask the attendees to spend 5 minutes developing a short pitch to convince a potential client why they should hire the...

If vertical or horizontal expansion (or both) is in the cards for you, approach with caution. Business has been good lately in the A/E professions. Opportunities abound, yet many firms struggle with the question of...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 28, 2014) – Zweig Group is proud to announce the winners of the Zweig Group 2014 Marketing Excellence Awards, an award recognizing outstanding and effective marketing in the A/E/P and environmental consulting...

Consider the unexpected in your next candidate search and you’ll be that much closer to winning the war for talent. Dwight Eisenhower made a statement once that bears repeating. He said: “Plans are nothing; planning...

Mark Zweig contrasts five examples of individuals best avoided. It has been said before that you “can tell a lot about someone by the company they keep.” It is such a true statement! Successful people...

Mark Zweig offers five steps to keep your expanded departments happy and productive. When I started working in the A/E/P and environmental consulting industry in 1980, most companies in the business did NOT have a...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (Feb. 19, 2013) – Business consulting firm ZweigWhite has hired Chad Clinehens as its Executive Vice President. Clinehens brings more than 15 years of consulting engineering and management experience to ZweigWhite, and he...

Press Release: October 28, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (October 28, 2011) – To recognize philanthropic efforts and acknowledge those in the A/E industry who are making a difference for the greater good, ZweigWhite and Deltek, Inc....

Press Release: Sept. 9, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (Sept. 9, 2011) – In recognition of exceptional marketing efforts of architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting firms in the United States and Canada, ZweigWhite announces the winners...

By Jeremy Clarke Director, Executive Search Consulting ZweigWhite Recruiting and selection can be a meticulous and costly campaign. Those who recruit regularly know that an average management-level search can last 90 days or more. These...

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)...

By Jeff Clark, Principal, Investment Banking I have been a Nevada resident and have seen it all, from boom to bust, over the past seven years since I moved here from California. “Viva Las Vegas,”...

By Mark C. Zweig We have come a long way in the A/E/P business over the last 30 years. Not only is it OK to market to clients, we even have computers on every desk...

Press Release: January 7, 2011 If the A/E/P and environmental consulting industry has learned one thing in 2010, it’s that recov­ery doesn’t happen overnight. Last year there was an expectation that 2010 might provide the...

The proverbial title gets right to the point but do all staff members understand their role? Who, exactly, are the bees? Rebecca Martinez, associate principal and director of marketing at Cuningham Group (Marina del Rey,...

I can admit it. I’m a little “bah, humbug” about the upcoming holidays. I sure don’t need or want anything for myself I don’t already have. All of us in the Zweig family have so...

When I passed the baton to Dick Ryan as our CEO three years ago, it allowed me to move on and do some other things I have always wanted to do. One of those activities...

It seems like yesterday that I was “the young guy.” And that’s the last thing I wanted to be. I always tried hard to look and seem older than I really was so people would...

This morning, I am sitting on a bench outside Vol Walker Hall in the beautiful old campus area here at The University of Arkansas. Vol Walker Hall is home to our School of Architecture. Today,...

Though I’ve always known it, I don’t think I’ve ever written about it— running an ethical business that is socially responsible can pay big dividends. The fact is that the more educated your clients are,...

They’re making their lists. Nope— I am not talking about the Santa Clauses of the world. I am talking about your employees, and more specifically, your key employees. And the lists they are making don’t...

Last week, I took my oldest daughter Christy (she’s a high school junior) and one of her friends on a day of college tours. We went to three schools and took the guided tour at...

Many firms are becoming increasingly aware of the fact that they don’t know how much to spend on marketing. On the one hand, it’s harder than ever to get work, there’s downward fee pressure resulting...

Start talking about marketing these days, and eventually the conversation will get around to positioning. We use that term— positioning— constantly ourselves here at ZweigWhite. In simple terms, it means making your firm the expert...

I was out working in my yard this weekend, cutting brush and chopping up fallen branches with my 18-horsepower trailer-mounted chipper, when one of my friends and clients dropped by. He’s an architect and was...

I just got back from a College of Business Advisory Board meeting at my alma mater, Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. Thanks to the State of Illinois, I got my BS and MBA degrees...

Every A/E/P or environmental firm finds it necessary to hire outside consultants at some point. Whether it’s simply to get tax advice or to plot out a new course for a growing firm, it’s inevitable....

Call me any names you want. It won’t be the first time. But it doesn’t matter. I’m tough. I can take it. I have the power of my own convictions and conscience to get me...

Every once in awhile I feel compelled to unload a few disconnected thoughts that might be of value to our readers. This is one of those times: Company cars: When it comes to picking company...

There’s a good article in the September 9, 1996, edition of The Wall Street Journal, entitled “How to Survive When I Take the Reins.” It’s in the “Manager’s Journal” section and was written by Albert...

I don’t think anyone who knows me or reads my stuff is confused about where I stand on at least one subject— how many hours a professional in this business should work each week. There’s...

No matter what the self-appointed experts are telling you, right now is a great time to buy a firm or to be acquired by or merge with another firm. But, like most things, it’s not...

Reflecting back on all of the A/E and environmental consulting firms that we came in contact with during 1992, one thought comes to mind. By and large, our industry’s management expertise has significantly improved. The...