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By Mark Zweig | Long-term firm owners stay motivated by evolving the business, mentoring emerging leaders, and staying close to the action.

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

By Sara Parkman | The Zweig Letter is moving forward, shifting to more dynamic digital formats that better serve AEC leaders.

By Mark Zweig | Meeting people face-to-face builds energy, strengthens relationships, and creates new opportunities.

By Brian Shannon | Healthy rivalries fuel collaboration and innovation, ultimately benefiting communities and strengthening the AEC industry.

By Michael Makris | Several of improv’s most fundamental rules are very much related to leadership and professional growth.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and COO of OBMI (Miami, FL), a global master planning, architecture, and design firm.

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 | ElevateAEC celebrates high-performance AEC firms moving fast and intentionally in a changing industry.

By Lynn Bruns | If we want to create workplaces where people thrive, innovate, and stay, we must go beyond managing to metrics.

By Ying Liu | The essential structural and tactical elements that underpin successful strategy execution in AEC.

By Janki DePalma | Extroverts can create meaningful connections by observing cues, balancing conversation, and actively listening.

By Mark Zweig | The ElevateAEC Conference in Tampa energized attendees, fostered invaluable connections, and showcased industry potential and success.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of MG2 (Seattle, WA), a global architecture, design, strategy, construction, and branding studio.

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

By Mark Zweig | Effective outside directors provide expertise and valuable relationships, enhancing AEC firm success with strategic guidance and forward-focused leadership.

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.

By Tyler Suomala | Sales is not the monster under the bed – it’s just a conversation, a shared meal, and a chance to offer solutions and forge lasting connections.

By Leisbel Lam | To integrate effective change management, identify needs, understand deeply, honor the past, mandate change, and provide a precise, optimistic roadmap forward.

By Miles Gullingsrud | When leaders take the time to invest in the development ambition of staff, they can create a system that supports people’s personal and professional sustainability.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of CHA Consulting (Albany, NY), an innovative, full-service engineering consulting and construction management firm.

By Angelique Silvestre | Companies can still create strong team bonds by using technology to implement team building activities that foster company values, trust, and friendship among co-workers.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of FEH Design (Dubuque, IA), a full-service architectural, structural engineering, inter design team that’s creating a better world through design.

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

Zweig Group has announced the 2022 ElevateHER™ cohort, a special task force comprised of individuals with a commitment to promote diversity as a means to combat recruiting and retention challenges in the architectural, engineering, and...

By Mark Zweig | How can you use change in your AEC firm to awaken your creativity and that of your people? Maybe it’s time to really think about that.

By Mark Zweig | If you want to encourage cooperation in your firm, take a look at your organization structure, accounting, and incentive compensation.

By Tim Schroeder | Making incremental changes to pay attention to what’s important to your people and rallying your team behind a common goal could lead to astonishing results.

By Michael Syracuse | There are many ways to connect to others and contribute to a person’s professional and personal growth.

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

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 Mark Zweig | “Being allowed to teach what I’ve learned about entrepreneurship and business to my students over my long career has been one of my greatest honors and privileges.”

By Jamie Claire Kiser | In this time of constant realignment, sustain success by appreciating your stars and making space for discussion.

By Mark Zweig | Now is a good time to take stock of the many positive aspects of our industry to help keep yourself and your employees motivated and directed in the midst of uncertainty.

Create a three-year vision thinking about what you need to achieve personally and professionally to be happy with your progress, and then work to reach your mountain.

President and CEO of DBR (Houston, TX), a 150-person Texas firm that values communication and superior service above all.

President and co-founder of ADC Engineering, Inc., a multidisciplinary firm based in Hanaham, South Carolina.

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

CEO of ATI (Hot Firm #43 for 2018), a California firm rooted in philanthropy, and with a bright future on the horizon.

“There’s a lot to know about your own business that you cannot know if you aren’t intimately involved with every detail of it at some point.”

President and CEO of Hitchcock Design Group (Best Firm Architecture #7 for 2018), a 35-person landscape architecture firm headquartered in Naperville, Illinois.

“Why do people lose interest in their own businesses and, perhaps more importantly, what can you do to keep this from happening?”

President of Bernardon (Hot Firm #39 for 2018), an 80-person architecture, interior design, and landscape architecture firm based in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

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...

It’s a daunting task, but can result in an energized, unified organization that can withstand setbacks while gaining strength. Companies with a highly engaged workforce have seen a 19.2 percent increase in operating income; highly...

President of LandDesign (Best Firm Multi-discipline #30 for 2017), a 165-person landscape architecture, civil engineering, and planning firm based in Charlotte, NC. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “From the day LandDesign was founded, it was intended...

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....

Everything feels different. Three weeks after the 2018 Hot Firm & A/E Industry Awards Conference in Dallas, our team is still on a high. Fueled by positive feedback, a wealth of exciting ideas for Las...

When creating your strategic plan, don’t forget that transformative ideas might be buried deep within your organization, so be inclusive with your staff. I recently overheard a CEO of a large AEC firm say, “We...

Friday, the 13th was our 30th anniversary as a company. That's a long time to be in business! We've had many ups and downs as a company over the years. We've grown like crazy. Acquired...

Shared values among staff are certainly important, but if a good fit is all you’re looking for, your firm could go stale. Editor’s note: This post first appeared on the Perkins + Will blog at...

President of OHM Advisors (Hot Firm #25 for 2017), a 440-person engineering and architecture firm based in Michigan. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Many firms tried to cut their way to success,” says Hiltz, looking back...

We all like and need profits, but there’s more to doing business than the bottom line, and the A/E industry should take heed. I’ve previously written about a group I’ve become active with here in...

While I am a big believer in promoting from within – it’s essential, really, if you want to have any kind of cultural consistency over time, not to mention that it’s more economical – it’s...

In this episode of the TZL Lifehacker Series, Randy Wilburn and Sanjay Jenkins discuss their morning routines, the importance of having a routine, and some steps A/E professionals can take to make the most of...

Zweig Group’s research data shows us that fast growth/high profit firms have a higher number of hours in their average work week. It makes sense – more hours put in by salaried people equates to...

Much has been made of how to design workplaces that attract and inspire millennials. But there might be a better demographic filter for your workplace. Millennials. Gen Y. Echo Boomers. Regardless of the name, this...

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...

It’s not always the employees’ fault. Improve the quality of your office, celebrate the individual, and watch your staff come alive. Workplaces across the globe are suffering through a zombie apocalypse. These zombies don’t have...

A command of soft skills is essential to delivering a project that’s on time, on budget, and with no surprises. If you’re in the business of infrastructure and you manage projects, staff, or both, you...

Your entire staff can sell the firm, and don’t forget, there’s no such thing as a completely internal role that doesn’t affect the brand. When it comes to business development, professional service firms typically have...

While success and security are good things, they can also zap your energy, so find something new. Chances are, if you’re reading this, things have gone pretty well for you. The company is doing well...

Here are some tips to help you make positive changes for your A/E/P or environmental consulting firm in the new year. The year has dawned and as many of our clients report, it has started...

Having fun and encouraging creativity can lead to the generation of fresh, new business ideas. I have long felt one of the problems with the A/E/P and environmental consulting business is that we have so...

Some insights for those planning to relocate or revamp their digs, because we just went through the process. We just moved into a new office space a couple weeks ago. It’s a big step up...

Press Release: September 19, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (September 19, 2011) —ZweigWhite, the nation’s leading consulting, publishing, and training firm for the architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting industry, just released the names of firms making...

By Ed Friedrichs There is no “right” or “wrong” about where work gets done today. Work and ideas flow freely across the planet. The marketplace will buy from the source that provides the right service...

As many firms in our industry are still reeling from a tough market for what they do, it is becoming almost blasphemous to suggest that they get back to a growth philosophy. It’s not that...

Bud Tomlinson was finally starting to feel pretty good about things again. Business was turning around. But the last eight months or so had been a real wake-up call... Back in July his firm, Tomlinson...

With so much negative information coming in— project cancellations, Warren Buffet stating in an interview that “the economy has fallen off a cliff,” and amazing stock market declines— along with layoffs and, for those who...

Now that we are fully working ourselves into a recession frenzy (whether we needed one or not), many A/E firms will be facing some tough choices IF they want to remain as profitable as they...

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...

Mitchellene Terrence was the 42-year-old director of human resources for Wright, Skidmore, and Johnson, a top-line A/E/P firm in Los Angeles. She was proud to be there. Graduating with a BS degree in 1986 from...

I got up this morning to an e-mail from one of my old clients and friends, Kit Miyamoto, CEO of Miyamoto International (Sacramento, CA), a fantastic structural engineering firm. He sent it at 4-something a.m....

It just doesn’t matter what type of business one talks about. Whether you are a housepainter, you sell window blinds, or you are in the architecture, engineering, or environmental consulting business— ALL of your clients,...

On the one hand, it would be easy to get negative and discouraged about the current business climate. The war efforts are dragging on with no clear end in sight. The Middle East, in general,...

It is so valuable… being THE place to work. What I mean by THE place is the firm that everyone wants to work at. It is the cool place, the desirable place to be, the...

Fred White, Claire Keerl, and I just got back from the 21st annual Inc 500 Conference at the Westin Rancho Mirage Resort in beautiful Palm Springs, California, held March 27th-29th. It has been a few...

You know what? Turnover is not always so bad. Sometimes people just don’t keep up with the firm. There are all kinds of reasons for it. Maybe they got tired. Maybe they got turned off....

If you look at the effect the events of September 11 had on everyone in this country, it’s really pretty amazing. The collective funk that ensued hurt businesses of all types in an unprecedented way....

As I write this, I have just returned from The Zweig Letter Hot Firm 2001 Conference and Celebration in San Francisco. Some things never change. The airports and planes seemed just as crowded as ever,...

Sure, you can learn from a fool. But how much more can you learn from a smart person? That’s why we’re focusing this special edition of The Zweig Letter on hot firms— firms that have...

I had a 56-year-old client say to me the other day that he just isn’t having any fun anymore. He wants to change his life, and he had decided to sell his firm so that...

Is all business planning necessarily strategic planning? That was the topic of a lively discussion among some of our most successful management consulting folks a few weeks back— whether or not to lump all business...

While we’re big believers in building a brand name for your firm through a variety of means so your phone rings off the hook with new opportunities, we also know that somebody has to eventually...

From my experience, I’d say that most owners and managers of A/E/P and environmental firms have forgotten that recruiting is selling. Instead of trying to create the best impression they can on every person who...

I’ve been thinking a lot about change lately, probably because I have been experiencing so much of it so fast. Moves are one type of change that most people find stressful. I know— I have...

Quickie Conference Review— This year’s PSMA National Convention held at the Red Lion LaPosada Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona, was the association’s best ever. It also marked the 20th anniversary of PSMA, which stands for Professional...

What holds us back as individuals and companies? That question is critical to any A/E/P and environmental firm that wants to be more successful— and being successful is what it’s all about. There’s a tremendous...