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

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

By Ying Liu | Real success depends on alignment, courage, and people ready to own the future.

By Lindsay Young | Firms that invest in marketing consistently drive growth, credibility, and long-term success.

By Steve McAdams | Firms that scale successfully evolve their leadership approach, formalize operations, and stay grounded in culture.

By Duncan Robertson | Shed the word “busy” from your vocabulary to focus on the priorities that will have the greatest positive impact on your firm.

By Mark Zweig | As a leader or manager, you are probably super busy and will get stuck if you cannot offload a lot of what you have to do.

By Mark Zweig | These qualities will be essential for entrepreneurial leaders in the AEC business to have in the coming months and years ahead.

By Ezequiel Tovar | These common leadership mistakes hinder the growth and success of your business.

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

By John Butt | The transition from being an individual contributor to a people leader is a significant milestone in a professional’s career – but it can also come with many challenges.

By Morgan Stinson | Delegation is crucial for growth, helping managers shift from doing the work themselves to empowering others effectively.

By Ezequiel Tovar | Firm owners need to first be intentional, vulnerable, and transparent in order to make their transition a success.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Vierbicher (Reedsburg, WI), a community planning and engineering firm that is a proven partner for thriving Wisconsin communities.

By Victoria Verlezza | Supportive leaders who prioritize communication and psychological safety can foster a positive work environment where employees feel valued and motivated.

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

By Greg Sepeda | Mastering the art of managing upward is crucial for career growth, involving understanding, aligning with, and proactively supporting superiors.

By Rolf Armstrong | This exercise empowers employees and provides clear direction, allowing leadership to let go and focus on success during periods of growth.

By Morgan Stinson | Low trust in workplaces incurs a hidden cost, hindering efficiency, innovation, and collaboration.

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

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

By Danielle Eisenstock | Three questions managers should begin asking themselves and their team to ensure employees are growing and enjoying the work they do.

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.

By Mark Zweig | To have extraordinary success, you need to make an extraordinary effort and have your full attention on the business.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Michael Graves Architecture, an innovative architecture and design company that provide services around the world for clients in multiple industries.

In this episode, CEO of Monograph, Robert Yuen, discusses his 2023 Strategic Risk Report for the design industry. As firms face economic uncertainty, Robert offers strategies to tackle the risks associated with money, clients, time, and talent. 

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal and chief engineer at Hayduk Engineering, a multidisciplinary consulting engineering firm specializing in civil and wastewater engineering.

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal of Vector Structural Engineering (Draper, UT), a full-service structural engineering company licensed in all 50 U.S. states, Puerto Rico, and Canada.

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 Megan Chang | Delegating is one of the best ways for senior staff to train and transition responsibility to junior staff, but many leaders find it challenging. There’s a better way.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and founder of ThinkForm Architects (Hopewell, NJ), a service-disabled veteran owned architecture and interior design firm specializing in “total environments.”

By Liisa Andreassen | Co-president and CEO of DB Sterlin Consultants, Inc., a 100 percent minority-owned firm comprised of professional engineers, architects, planners, and surveyors.

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 | CEO of MKSK, a collective of planners, urban designers, and landscape architects who are passionate about the interaction between people and place.

By Katie Batill-Bigler | Delegating demonstrates a strong sense of organization, self-confidence, and trust in your team – while also allowing opportunities for your team to grow.

By Stefanos Word | Investments of time and effort need to be made with younger engineers to effectively transfer technical and communication skills and establish robust future leaders.

By Todd Perry | Early successes, failures, and significant challenges, and how a young firm navigated through them.

By David Harvey | When well-trained staff are equipped with the skills needed to do their jobs well, everyone will reap the benefits.

By Danielle Eisenstock | Highlighting your commitment to career growth, flexible work options, and open communication will show staff your firm has an employee-first approach.

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 | We’ve all heard about the attributes of highly effective people, but what about the habits of highly ineffective people?

By Mark Zweig | If your business requires so much attention from you that you don’t have the overall quality of life you want, it’s time to do something different.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Dewberry (Fairfax, VA), a nationwide planning, design, and construction firm with more than 50 locations and more than 2,000 professionals nationwide.

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 | President of Raba Kistner, Inc., a firm that is committed to empowering employees to continually improve and deliver services right the first time, on time, every time.

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 Jamie Claire Kiser | It’s time to reevaluate every penny of our cost structures and ensure that our investments are going to our workforce.

By Mark Zweig | Only a small number of people really get the idea that building a business is not a sprint – it’s an endurance race. It is all about who can last the...

By Mark Zweig | Seeing the firm you started or used to run be successful when you’re gone is one of the greatest accomplishments you can hope for.

By Julie Benezet | People have adapted to new ways of working and living, and in the process discovered new ways of thinking.

By Mark Zweig | As design professionals and business managers, this is your only real path to business sustainability and personal freedom.

By Mark Zweig | An enduring firm will be worth much more – through an internal or external sale – than one where some of these issues are not addressed.

By Jamie Claire Kiser | The decisions firms make today will determine the talent available for the next professional generation.

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 Mark Zweig | The leadership abilities of you firm’s principals and managers will determine your collective success this year.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Bala Consulting Engineers (King of Prussia, PA), a multi-disciplined design firm with an environment designed for relationships to thrive and careers to flourish.

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

By Leo MacLeod | Delegation is a sign of a mature leader. It allows you to focus on how you can contribute at the highest level given your experience and wisdom.

By Kevin Token | A singular leader, in place for all time, might not be the best model for your firm. Consider a different way, one that plans for transitions and accommodates change.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of HEAPY Engineering (Dayton, OH), a leader in sustainability, engineering, and commissioning solutions with a vision to build a more resilient and sustainable society.

Focus on getting stuff done and moving forward by fitting the tasks on your to-do list to either the time slot or energy you have available.

Managing partner at Method Architecture (Houston, TX), a firm that practices ego-free architecture, creatively solves problems, and provides unparalleled customer service.

By Mark Zweig | These six traits are most likely to lead to success and are absolute “musts” for whomever is the CEO of the firm.

COVID-19 has pushed leaders in the design industry and beyond to develop new strategies to manage an increasingly untethered workforce.

Co-founder and executive vice president of Patel, Greene and Assoc. (Temple Terrace, FL), a firm with a mission to elevate their families, communities, and profession.

You don’t achieve success by going solo. You need allies – your manager and your direct reports – to make the load lighter.

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

Chairman and CEO of Mabbett & Associates, Inc. (Bedford, MA), a verified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business.

Before you pass the torch, you need to make sure that your next generation of leaders is up to the task.

“So many [A/E firm leaders] feel they are being pulled in so many directions that oftentimes, at the end of a day or week, it is hard to see what was accomplished.”

Good contracts can help, but timely and thorough reviews of shop drawings are, perhaps, the best defense.

“I find that using some of these other ‘screens’ can actually lead to greater success in buying.”

“I used to be addicted to social media … So I stopped. Today, I still use social media, though only for business purposes.”

CEO of Caldwell Associates, a firm that’s not afraid to fail, and that’s strong enough to pick up and keep going.

Sadly, fewer and fewer of us are interested in developing writing, speaking, or other communication skills as a significant professional goal.

When executives do too much, they might be avoiding a problem, and they can damage the firm in the process.

President of CEI, a 20-year-old minority-owned engineering and contracting firm based in Miami Lakes, Florida.

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

Do you want to survive the next year, the next recession, and the ongoing reset of the workplace, the marketplace, and the recruiting space?

President of Reaveley Engineers, a national structural engineering firm based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Use this seven step process to focus on project management for year-over-year improvement.

Being cautious and reasonable about your growth plans is a smarter move than filling seats just for the sake of beefing up the org chart.

When it comes to delegation, you have to pick the right person for the right job, and set them up to succeed.

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

Raise your fees to reflect value, prioritize lead generation, and delegate everything that is outside your zone of genius. Looking to grow the firm? Or maybe you have tried it before with no luck? Over...

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...

President and CEO of Morrison-Maierle (Best Firm #27 Multi-discipline for 2017), a 280-person firm based in Helena, Montana. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “It’s vital to our success,” Murphy says, referring to entrepreneurship in the firm....

President and CEO of Larson Design Group (Best Firm #5 Geotechnical and Best Firm # 29 Multi-discipline for 2017), a 300-person firm based in Williamsport, PA. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “One person alone can’t make...

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

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

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...

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...

Are all your processes in place in the event your firm is waylaid by a wildfire, earthquake, hurricane or flood? Things were pretty much business as usual in early December with sunny skies and strong...

By understanding the various risks associated with P3s and taking appropriate steps to manage them, A/E firms can put themselves in advantageous positions. As our nation turns to the urgent need to repair, replace, and...

CEO of Sullivan Engineering (Hot Firm #89 for 2017), a 20-person building envelope consulting firm based in New York, New York. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “We strongly reward autonomy and encourage each other to make...

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

President of WestLAND Group, Inc. (Best Firm #41 Multi-discipline and Hot Firm #45 for 2017), a full-service civil engineering and land surveying firm based in Ontario, California. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “It’s important to identify...

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...

We’ve all heard about (and do) multitasking, but the real ticket is figuring out how to do one thing at a time, and do it well. Editor’s note: Perry Shea will be a speaker at...

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...

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,...

The Klotz firm is reaping national accolades for its growth and its workplace, but since a firm never arrives, the quest for excellence never ends. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Maintaining the status quo is not...

“John,” the president, CEO, and co-founder of a 250-person midwestern E/A firm, was frustrated. After so many years of success, it seemed to him that all he was doing now was de-fusing irate clients, talking...

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

There are a few basic traits that differentiate firms that make money from those that scrape by. Chad Clinehens and I were talking in the office yesterday about why some firms we work with make...

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

Becoming a Better Project Manager aims to provide new, aspiring PMs with a knowledge base and toolbox to be successful in design, facilities management firms. By Andrea Bennett Managing Editor On May 5, Zweig Group...

Asking five questions can help competent men and women prioritize their endless workloads. When you look at those people working in A/E firms who seem to get a lot done, you find one of their...

The manager-producer dilemma and how it can affect your course. I am reflecting on the month of January as I write this. I was in the office for one business day and on the road...

It’s your employees; Mark Zweig offers five solutions to help deal with them better. I got a call from an old friend of mine from Boston the other day. He wanted to tell me how...

But let’s just be clear – no one really enjoys working in a maddening environment. I was working with an engineering firm two weeks ago and we were discussing ways to improve operations. They had...

By Christine Brack Principal, Business Planning Consulting ZweigWhite Our industry is not immune to buzzwords. In fact, there are several dozen tossed around at any given moment. Value proposition has been around for a while....

Press Release: April 14, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (April 14, 2011) – Many design industry services are becoming highly commoditized, with builders and architects often treating certain types of engineering services as merchandise, practitioners proclaim in...

By Christine Brack, PMP, ZweigWhite A CEC of Metropolitan Washington invited me to present a session on Effective Communication in February to their emerging leaders and other distinguished constituents. Good techniques and best practices are...

When things get ugly in a firm— as they tend to do when the firm’s financial status takes a downturn— you’ll often see fights break out. Some principals form factions with other principals or principal...

Over the years, in the pages of The Zweig Letter, we’ve spent a lot of time trying to help companies grow. But the fact is many of those running and operating A/E/P and environmental firms...

I recently accepted a more permanent position at The Walton College of Business, part of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. My role is teaching entrepreneurship classes to undergraduates, as well as promoting our entrepreneurship...

I can’t tell you how many business planning meetings I have sat in on in large firms where someone comes up with the novel idea of checking all project deliverables before they go out. It’s...

It’s always distasteful to compare your employees to your children. I hear firm owners do it all of the time, and I see the non-owners cringing when they do! That said, I have noticed a...

When you do what I do you see a lot of smart people. Architects, engineers, planners, scientists … who own and run firms. Many of these smart people started their companies; others were strong enough...

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

I’m seeing a lot of firms following a program of short-term profit-maximization right now. It’s easy to understand. Industry profits are down as the results from our 2002 Financial Performance Survey of A/E/P & Environmental...

When I worked inside an A/E firm as a human resources director, I would occasionally have someone in my office telling me that they wanted to be an associate. And I have to tell you,...

Designers, by all rights, should be fantastic managers. They understand how important motivation is to creativity. They are tuned in to context and are good at seeking input from others. They know how sensitive people...

Curt Robinson closed his middle desk drawer with a resounding thud. “This is the last time I’ll be sitting here,” he thought to himself as he threw last year’s calendar into the cardboard box of...

Everything I need to know was not taught in kindergarten! In growing our own business and working with hundreds of firms over the years to help them grow theirs, I feel like I have learned...

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

I said something to my 78 year-old father the other day about going someplace or another to conduct a “management retreat.” His response was, “Why not a management charge?” He went on to say that...

“Training.” It sounds like a good thing, right? Everybody likes training. It’s supposed to make people better at their jobs, and that’s good for them. The business news media tells us that Generation X-ers will...

Let’s face it, readers— the A/E/P and environmental business just isn’t what it used to be. The old assumptions just don’t hold true. The old ways of doing things aren’t working. The people who can’t...

This week, I thought I’d dedicate my column to answering some of the recurring questions we are asked about the A/E/P and environmental consulting industry. Here goes: Should salaried people be paid for overtime? I...

I spoke last week at the Iowa Engineering Society’s Annual Meeting in Cedar Rapids. My topic was “The Future of the Engineering Profession: Engineers as Leaders.” But before I get into that, I want to...

The experts will say “You have to learn to delegate if you are going to be an effective manager.” On this point, conventional wisdom is actually right. Delegation is critical to your ability to get...

I thought about a headline for this week’s treatise along the lines of “Second guessers, naysayers, and negative thinkers,” or “No more excuses,” or “Let’s cut the crap.” But I decided that none of these...

There is simply no excuse for rudeness— in the A/E/P business, or in any business for that matter. Rude people turn off, or even worse, visibly upset clients, contractors, vendors, consultants, and employees. I like...

Just about every A/E or environmental firm wants to grow. And there are a lot of good reasons for it. To paraphrase an old adage, “growth covers a multitude of sins.” When you are growing,...

Most A/E/P and environmental consulting firm insiders would agree that we, as a group of companies, do not manage very well. I say that because if we did, we would not be an industry made...

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...