Search results

By Mark Zweig | The financial choices young professionals make in their first five years can put them on a completely different trajectory from their peers.

By David Coyne | New technology rarely eliminates professional demand, because greater efficiency creates new ways for experts to add value.

  Zweig Group is the leading advisory firm for the AEC industry, providing expert guidance across the entire M&A lifecycle. With deep industry knowledge and decades of experience, we help firms navigate transactions, maximize value,...

By Aaron Quesada | By adapting to shifting expectations, embracing innovation, and acting with integrity, firms can become indispensable partners in their clients’ growth and success.

By Will Swearingen | Firms that are truly boosting profitability aren’t just raising rates; they’re reengineering how they charge.

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

By Mark Zweig | Having little understanding of banking could result in missed opportunities for growth or thorny problems that could put your firm out of business.

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

By Matthew Miller | By understanding and addressing the factors that contribute to scope creep, project managers can mitigate its impact.

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

By Mark Zweig | Entrepreneurship is all about seeing and doing things differently from everyone else, so maybe you should be more questioning of the status quo.

By Florencia Kratsman | Businesses must embrace sustainable interior design, prioritizing eco-friendly materials, longevity, and heritage to mitigate environmental impact and meet consumer demands.

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.    ...

By Liisa Andreassen | Founder of Chrisland Engineering (Lebanon, PA), a small civil engineering firm which specializes in subdivisions, land development, and municipal engineering.

Zweig Group advisedShumaker Consulting Engineering and Land Surveying through its acquisition by HUNT Engineers, Architects, Land Surveyors & Landscape Architect, DPC.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of NTM Engineering (Dillsburg, PA), a civil engineering firm that specializes in water resources design, bridge design, and engineering instruction.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of DOWL, LLC, a firm that offers a wide range of engineering services to public and private clients, from the Arctic Ocean to the Rio Grande.

By Mark | If your project managers did these six things consistently, your projects and your firm would be more successful.

By Dan Piselli | While the symbolic act of signing a voluntary environmental commitment is important, action toward honoring it is more meaningful.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of GRAEF (Milwaukee, WI), an international multi-discipline engineering, planning, and design firm that was founded in 1961.

By Mark Zweig | This is the time of year many of us, and many of our clients, will take a family vacation, so do what you can to step away and enjoy it.

By Liisa Andreassen | Founder of Trahan Architects, a global architecture firm that mobilizes artistry and innovation to develop thoughtful structures that enhance quality of life.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Galloway (Denver, CO), a firm with a streamlined process that addresses all its clients’ design needs – from architecture to civil engineering and survey.

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 Jim Pappas | How scalable systems can be used to find the right people, bring a new product idea to life, and help it grow quickly and profitably.

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

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Fuss & O’Neill (Manchester, CT), a company that – since its founding in 1924 – has grown to include 10 regional offices, one LLC, and more than...

By Mark Zweig | There are many ways to show courage, and Jerry Allen showed real courage in his willingness to confront every single obstacle in his life.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Fishbeck (Grand Rapids, MI), a firm of engineers, scientists, architects, and constructors in the business of problem solving, inspiring results, and bringing ideas to life.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and founder of PaleoWest, a heritage consulting firm that guides clients’ projects through regulatory challenges posed by prehistoric, historic, and paleontological resources.

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.

By Mark Zweig | Entrepreneurs and small business owners have fundamentally different views on the opportunity each has in front of them.

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

By giving employees the opportunity to own company stock, you can develop a culture in which employees have a greater stake in the company and more opportunities to reap the rewards of capital ownership. 

By Jamie Claire Kiser | Despite the challenging environment, there are tremendous opportunities to be had.

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

Montrose Environmental Group (Irvine, CA) acquired Emerging Compounds Treatment Technologies (ECT2) (Portland, ME) from its parent company Haley & Aldrich (Burlington, MA). ECT2 is a leader in cutting-edge solutions that mitigate the impact of emerging...

Using both sides of his brain, and with empathy, can-do man is engineering a great career in Seattle.

Taylor Dayton, EIT, is a project engineer at Aspect Consulting’s office in Wenatchee, Washington.

By Edward Friedrichs | Of all the things I can think of to recommend to fellow professionals, the top one is this: Never stop learning.

CEO of Ware Malcomb (Hot Firm # 21 for 2017), a 440-person international design firm based in Irvine, California. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Succession planning has been an important part of our culture for more...

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

Client management is something anyone who owns an AEC firm should be concerned about. After all, if you don’t do it effectively, not only will your projects probably turn out poorly, but your firm won’t...

Change can be difficult, and sometimes it can feel punitive, but it’s crucial to the process of leaving those bad yesterdays behind. I’m a student of Lyndon B. Johnson. Being the father of a seventh-generation...

On this episode of the Zweig Letter Podcast, we had a chance to visit with Mitch Fortner, PE, President of KSA Engineers in Longview, TX. Mitch shared some great advice and life lessons that he...

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...

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...

Sustainable design is becoming a must, but you need to drill down to the roots of every project to get the most out of the process. First, full disclosure, I have never been a “climate...

 The concept of a work family is nice. The problem is, you’re stuck with family, good or bad. With a team, you can pick and choose. On many occasions, we’ve heard office culture described as...

President and CEO of Universal Engineering Sciences (Hot Firm #85 for 2016), a 715-person multi-discipline firm based in Orlando, Florida. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “We make a distinction between marketing and sales,” Israel says. “We...

Good old American ingenuity is what we need to save the planet, not a cumbersome set of rules and regulations. A great deal has been written, and there has been significant handwringing, about America backing...

CEO of Coffman Engineers (#62 Hot Firm for 2016), a 400-person virtual, multi-discipline firm with offices across the West Coast, Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Outside members can act like guests at...

The first industries to adopt a new technology are the ones that succeed. Is your firm prepared for the age of artificial intelligence? According to Zweig Group’s 2016 Financial Performance Survey, net service revenue per...

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

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,”...

How we treat the environment is coming full circle, from the sustainability of the Native Americans, to the factory and dump era, and, finally, to remediation. We are in the midst of an environmental restoration...

With a focus on renewable energy and environmental conservation, and a need to improve a vast and aging infrastructure, opportunity abounds. Things are going pretty well for nearly all these days. Those downturn doldrums are...

Your ability to sell work is probably the most crucial skill you can have IF you really want to maximize your opportunities in the AEC world we all live in. Here are a few pointers...

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...

Mark Zweig offers six pointers that will help resolve conflict inside the company. Professional services firms such as architecture and engineering companies are owned and run by smart people. I’ve said it before – as...

Smart investments and ability to effectively manage debt are key to success at these firms. By Christina Zweig What are fast-growth firms doing differently than their competitors in the A/E/P and environmental consulting industry? We...

By W. Hobson Hogan Principal, ZweigWhite Consulting In today’s environment, many firms believe that they must become more diversified and larger to compete. In most cases, firms turn to mergers and acquisitions as a way...

This article first appeared in The Zweig Letter (ISSN 1068-1310) Issue # 991 Originally published 1/28/2013 When the sky is a different color on the other side, the likelihood of coming to an agreement is...

Press Release: November 8, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (November 8, 2011) – Take cue Apple. Holding on to too much cash can be perilous for business enterprises, not the least design firms. An article in the...

Press Release: May 3, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (May 3, 2011) –New evidence points to a brightening mood among the leaders of design firms, with bonuses, raises and incentives now poised to make a comeback. A...

Press Release: February 8, 2011 Increasing regulation and a new focus on efficiency are turning the water market into one of the hottest commodities for engineering firms, The Zweig Letter discovers. A reinvigorated focus on...

As someone who teaches entrepreneurship in The Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, one of my responsibilities is to mentor students who enter business plan competitions. In these competitions, students...

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

My six month-old daughter Olive has already said her first word. It is “clock.” She says it practically every time we show her the black reproduction “Kit-Cat” clock on the wall in her bedroom. For...

It’s been said before that “cash is king.” It’s also been said that you can be profitable and still go out of business if you run out of cash. That said, our industry— that of...

With my work as a board member for the College of Business at Southern Illinois University, and the teaching I’m doing at the University of Arkansas this semester, I have found myself giving a lot...

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

The idea came to me at 3:50 p.m. on Sunday, January 2, 2000. It was a balmy afternoon here in the Boston area— temperatures in the 60s, sunny and bright. I took out my wife’s...

One of the great things about the A/E/P and environmental consulting business is that it always provides you with a challenge. Right now, many firms are feeling particularly stressed— with a higher than normal workload,...

For most A/E/P and environmental consulting firms, working with a bank is a necessary part of being in business. Very few companies can get by without some sort of credit line to finance receivables or...

Let me tell you a little story about two managers. Both head divisions for the same large, international engineering and environmental company. By most any standard, one of the two, who we’ll call “Jed,” is...

Several recent experiences with consulting engineering firms lead me to believe that it’s time all of us looked at our compensation schemes and put some incentive back into the business— especially for principals. The desire...