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By Mark Zweig | The fastest way to suffocate a productive AEC firm isn’t bad projects or markets, it’s too many pointless meetings.

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

By Mark Zweig | Is your firm one that commands top fees and thrives, or one that will struggle to compete and keep up?

By Mark Zweig | If you want more “word of mouth” advertising, assess how your firm measures up against these six critical factors.

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

By Matt Verderamo | When your clients treat you like a partner, you run better projects, win negotiated work, and have happier people.

By Wesley Jones | Strategies for successfully managing work-life balance and reclaiming your personal life while continuing to grow in your career.

By Luke Carothers | AEC industry experts shed light on key topics for firm leaders, from employee compensation, career growth, and AI integration.

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

By Mark Zweig | Being able to see things through the eyes of the people you work with and who work for you is one of the most critical leadership skills you can develop.

By Mark Zweig | A lack of willingness to confront these things honestly has caused way too much frustration and unhappiness in the individuals who work in our organizations.

By Matt Verderamo | Talk to your employees about manipulation, get clear on your mission, and invest in marketing to transform your business from low-bid to negotiated work.

By Adam Bugielski | Burnout is a serious condition that can lead to decreased job satisfaction, productivity, and overall well-being – but there are steps you can take to prevent it.

By Conrey Guy | A standardized onboarding process is critical for the overall success of any organization, but especially in our industry.

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

By Matt Hoying | When mistakes happen, it can be difficult to look for the silver lining, but doing so and making the most of it will help your business now and in the future.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Living Stone (Black Mountain, NC), a design-build firm that has been crafting luxury, award-winning custom homes for more than 25 years.

By Brock Hoskins | Express gratitude to those people who are important to you, and find ways to make that a regular practice in your life and throughout your company.

By Malory Atkinson | Challenge your marketing team to think beyond proposals and begin to work to strategically impact the entire client experience.

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

By Mark Zweig | Four things you can do to build the kind of workplace over time that good people want to stay in.

By Liisa Andreassen | Co-founder of Juniper Design+Build, where award-winning design and advanced construction ensures beautiful and environmentally responsible projects.

By Alexis Eades | You can work to improve retention by promoting a positive culture, giving employees autonomy and empowerment, and actively showing appreciation.

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

By Mark Zweig | Older folks bring perspective, patience, and gratitude to your firm, so think twice before you run them off from your company.

By Jennifer Waters | Employees of firms are in many ways stakeholders of an organization’s success, and they can reap the dividends in a variety of ways.

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 Kevin Token | Anyone who touches other people’s lives, whether personally, professionally, or in their communities, can choose to make a positive impact.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of raSmith (Brookfield, WI), a multi-disciplinary firm of civil engineers, structural engineers, land surveyors, development managers, landscape architects, and ecologists.

By Adam Zach | Whether it’s by reading a book or going to a seminar, taking an active interest in your personal development could be the best thing for your career.

By Mark Zweig | Look in the mirror and ask yourself if you are still doing what you want to do every day. Maybe now is the time to get really serious about your transition.

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 Anne Melia | Healthy employees are more productive, have fewer sick days, fewer accidents, and are happier in their professional and personal lives.

Taking a break and letting your mind wander can bring a fresh perspective and the extra boost you need to make it through the day a happier, healthier you.

By Mark Zweig | If we truly want to elevate our people and help them achieve all they can achieve, we must help them be better communicators.

“Satisfaction with the status quo leads to complacency. Complacency is the enemy of motivation.”

“The new reality of living with the coronavirus is just getting started.”

It can lay the foundation for a positive relationship with bosses, subordinates, and co-workers when the time comes to go the extra mile.

"Doing these 20 things will only make you more effective and your company more successful. And none of them are difficult, so go to it!"

“Square peg for a round hole? No thanks! My first preference is square pegs in square holes!”

A culture of employee empowerment will define innovative, leading organizations in the years to come.

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

By Jamie Claire Kiser | A meandering mission statement won’t inspire your team. If you want your employees to rally around your brand, give them something they can believe in.

With the environment we are living in – crazy political stuff – potential nuclear war – mass shootings by maniacs – it would be easy to let it all get to you. But you can’t....

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...

It’s hard to find outstanding people to work in your AEC firm. It’s also hard to keep them working for you these days when they have so many other options. What are some things you...

President of JLG Architects (#4 Best Firm Architecture for 2016), a 110-person, employee-owned North Dakota-based firm co-founded in 1989 by Laffen. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “We love organic growth but it’s dependent on developing internal...

If we want to make this world a better place to live, it’s up to us, and not elected officials, to make it happen. Leadership is the single characteristic of behavior that determines a person’s...

If we want to make this world a better place to live, it’s up to us, and not elected officials, to make it happen. Leadership is the single characteristic of behavior that determines a person’s...

If you want to boost your project profits, analyze past failures, and use that knowledge to craft winning estimates. We have all had projects that for some reason did not meet our financial expectations. Over-budget...

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...

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...

Even if the strategic planning process turns out as hoped, it can still be an adventure with plenty of thrills and spills. Strategic planning connotes an organized, step-by-step effort. It’s true, but it’s also quite...

Virginia landscape architecture firm was acquired by a much larger engineering outfit from North Carolina, and big and small didn’t mesh. By Richard Massey Managing Editor The owners of what was then called H&G Landscape...

Zweig Group’s 2016 Financial Performance Survey of Architecture, Engineering, Planning and Environmental Consulting Firms, released on August 19, 2016, is a comprehensive study of industry firms with nearly 100 financial ratios, indicators, and statistics. The...

End-of-year bonuses and evaluations are obsolete. Try monthly or quarterly perks for your staff. It's clear to me that A/E firms are all in a huge rut when it comes to how they pay their...

Conference confirms that when people like their jobs, the firm is usually more profitable; here are some things to consider. On September 3 and 4, I had the pleasure of being at our annual Hot...

Years of travel have led to some rules-of-thumb that firm leaders can implement while building their companies. In the “good ol’ days” I used to fly 150,000-200,000 miles each year. Now I am down to...

Hot buttons, communication preferences, politics are just a few elements to know how – or how not – to address. It occurred to me the other day how crucial it is to really know your...

Five types of unnecessary practices that are making you lose big bucks, Mark Zweig writes. I’ve always thought there was a lot of time wasted in the typical AEC firm’s office, especially for the managers....

Mark Zweig offers two examples of divisive attitudes, and how to fix them. It kills me how some people working in our client companies forget that they are all working for one firm. These people...

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...

As someone who has worked, studied, and written about this business for 28 years now, I thought today is as good as any day to share some of what I’ve learned. Here it goes: What...

Although it doesn’t happen to everyone who becomes a principal in an architecture, engineering, or planning firm, it happens to many of us. What I am speaking of is the dilemma one faces when you...

Rupert Stanchion was the founder and only CEO Stanchion Associates had ever had from its founding in 1980. Now nearly 60 years old, he was beginning to get the idea that some people thought it...

Even though he’d only worked at Associated Consultants for about three weeks, Bob Smearhoff was sick and tired of his co-worker, Bruce McJerquartd. “That guy is an idiot,” Smearhoff found himself thinking at least a...

If you examine any business— a restaurant, a car dealership, or an A/E/P/environmental firm— they all seem to benefit from active leadership. Likewise, they all tend to suffer from a lack of it. I would...

In observing firm leaders of A/E and other firms over the years, one quality stands out in the best of them. These leaders do something that endears them to all in their employ— they deflect...

I was surprised to see in our latest 2004 Principals, Partners & Owners Survey of A/E/P & Environmental Consulting Firms that the balancing of work and personal life issue was barely on the radar screen...

George Alexandra was fed up. He was tired of always having to take a back seat to his partner, Mick Flashyman. “Just because Flashyman started the company (Godlike Architects, Inc.) didn’t mean it wouldn’t be...

One of the best benefits of working at ZweigWhite is the free food and drink we get. We give everyone whatever they want as long as you can store it in a cabinet or a...

Both of my daughters are into horses. I mean they are into horses and have been for the last five years. We have three of ‘em right now. They ride every day. Then we have...

When you get to work with all of the different A/E/P and environmental firms that we do here at ZweigWhite & Associates, it is apparent that many firms are marching blindly ahead, doing things they...

If you consider the truly successful people you know who own and manage A/E/P or environmental firms, I think you’ll find that they think differently from everybody else. They are irreverent. They defy logic. They...

We’re in the throes of our annual business planning process here at ZWA. You know the routine— get everyone together, have an office party and a holiday dinner at a nice restaurant and spend a...

Several times in the last few months, I’ve been asked to speak on the topic of what keeps people in A/E/P and environmental firms happy and productive. The first thing I always tell folks is...

We give out a lot of advice to our clients. Some of it’s free, but we get paid for most of it. In our business, just like yours, clients are usually happy when you first...