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By Kyle Ahern | The 2025 Mid-Year Compensation Update highlights key salary shifts and industry trends shaping AEC firm strategy.

By Alan Lloyd | In a fast-paced AEC world, servant leadership empowers teams, boosts outcomes, and shapes a culture people want to join.

By Mark Zweig | Success comes from bold, consistent marketing efforts that push visibility, build trust, and attract high-quality clients.

By Daryl Simons Jr. | How to create a stronger, more dynamic, and future-ready workplace – where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

By Josh Crawford | Our industry currently faces unique hurdles; success hinges on adopting tailored solutions combined with tried-and-true principles.

By Laura Poteat | Effective cultural integration during a firm acquisition lays the foundation for a thriving, resilient organization.

This comprehensive report contains information on the ownership agreements, responsibilities, compensation, billing rates, chargeability, work habits, and challenges of AEC firm principals, partners, and owners.

By Mailena Urso | The path toward success is shaped by your courage, curiosity, and resilience.

By Kyle Ahern | The latest data reveals rising firm values, stable key metrics, and the impact of market forces on AEC valuations.

By Michael Makris | Early to mid-career professionals can overcome burnout and imposter syndrome with support from leadership, mentorship, and proactive career engagement.

By Ying Liu | Employee experience plays a crucial role in maximizing strategic outcomes.

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

By Guy Geier | These conversations challenge conventional thinking, inspire innovation, and foster collaboration.

By Mark Zweig | Embracing curiosity, open-mindedness, and positive thinking leads to personal growth, stronger connections, and greater success in life and business.

By Steve McAdams | A seasoned financial executive plays a pivotal role in enhancing profitability, growth, and market value.

By Brandon Pinkerton | Integrity in leadership is sacrosanct and you must fight the urge to dilute your brand with cheap substitutes and compromised values.

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

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 Kyle Ahern | Managers who build trust empower employees to be more receptive to feedback and more motivated to improve.

By Brandon Pinkerton | When the time comes, the best thing you can do for yourself, your legacy, and your organization is to end the journey well.

By Lynn Bruns | Strategic investment in leadership development is crucial for accelerating business goals, increasing profitability, and improving recruitment and retention.

By Emily Gaines | As data proliferates at an exponential rate, firms are increasingly recognizing the importance of leveraging data to enhance decision-making and creative processes.

Zweig Group is proud to announce Tim Schroeder of Neumann Monson Architects as the recipient of the 2024 Jerry Allen Courage in Leadership Award, which recognizes outstanding leadership and exceptional achievements within the AEC industry. 

"The two most valuable things people have a design firm has is its people, number one. Right. That's obviously always going to be the case, but number two is really its history and its institutional...

By Alec Russell | The AEC industry is experiencing a resurgence in M&A activity, driven by strategic partnerships, technological integration, and geographic expansion.

By David Doxtad & Andy Brandel | As your firm grows, this person ensures you will maintain your core competencies, values, and environment with your newly added team members.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of OWN, Inc. (Springfield, MO), an engineering firm that unleashes the power of true, 100 percent employee ownership.

By Leisbel Lam | Having a service recovery mindset in your projects is essential in order to keep your organization’s sustained competitive advantage.

By Luke Carothers | Zweig Group experts share their insights on the unique challenges and opportunities faced by small, entrepreneurial AEC firms.

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

By Safa Kamangar | By applying these principles, a manager can become a source of inspiration, guidance, and stability for their team members.

By Travis White | You must attach the right structure, systems, and incentives in order to shift employee mindset.

By Stuart McLendon | Facing a talent shortage exacerbated by baby boomers’ exodus from the workforce, AEC firms must innovate to succeed.

By David Keith | Legacy programs reinforce a firm’s commitment to nurturing talent, fostering innovation, and preserving a dynamic, forward-thinking design culture.

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

By Mallory Lindgren | Improve your ability to solve complex problems and better support your colleagues and clients.

By Eduardo Smith | For any COO to be successful in the AEC industry today, they must embrace the soft side of leadership, focusing on the people and culture as much as the numbers.

By Annie Rezac | Organizations can drive positive change and contribute to a culture that values diversity as a strategic asset by setting clear goals and consistently sharing progress.

By Rachel Wilde | By engaging working mothers in the workplace effectively, we can help retain top talent in our industry and create a better tomorrow for our daughters.

By David Keith | Prioritizing diversity, evolving leadership structures, nurturing emerging leaders, and fostering a sense of ownership drives innovation and collaboration.

By Ying Liu | Insight into the unique challenges and opportunities often faced by CSOs in the AEC industry.

By Leslie Jenkins | Instead of trying to impress potential clients, focus on emotional intelligence, really listening, and creating relationships built on common goals and trust.

By Tyler Suomala | Understand why and how decisions are made so you can leverage the power of the human brain to increase your value and improve your clients’ experience.

By Mark Zweig | Take these steps to reduce resistance and increase the likelihood of success for any change initiative.

Breaking Boundaries: How Collaboration Transcends Competition for Design Professionals - Carey Balogh and Lauren Genest   "In this day and age, storytelling is a powerful tool for design professionals to amplify their brand and foster...

By Conrey Guy | Your mission, vision, and values make up the backbone of your firms’ identity.

By Mark Zweig | These are some of the characteristics of people who bring out the best in us and steer us to the “right path” for business and personal success.

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 Javier Suarez | Participating in more tradeshows is not necessarily the best course of action, and you probably aren’t getting the best bang for your buck if this is your strategy.

By Karne Newburn | Office space allows you to establish your presence with clients and staff by physically being there for them and by providing the tools necessary to stay connected in a virtual environment.

Zweig Group’s 2023 Best Firms To Work For Award winners share how they’re leading the charge in setting new standards for employee experience.

By Travis White | The benefits that come with being a growth-focused firm far outweigh the risks.

By Joseph Losaria | A happy team is more productive and engaged, so make sure happiness isn’t just a personal goal but a business goal, as well.

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 Lillian Minix | When prompting AI like ChatGPT to generate content, you are responsible for applying the program conscientiously.

David Bolt, president of GMB, discusses his extraordinary design career journey and creating a collaborative environment that fosters growth and embraces change.

By Ying Liu | Use this tool to uncover the macro external factors that influence your company and understand how those factors could create opportunities or threats.

By John Shaw | Communication and relationships are the greatest driving forces in success or failure during a change journey.

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

By Shirley Che | Participants of Zweig Group’s ElevateHER® movement are putting in the work to move the needle on the recruitment and retention crisis our industry faces.

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 Christina Zweig Niehues | This group will require more flexibility, autonomy, and learning opportunities in order to stay engaged and motivated. 

By Chad Coldiron | How does a brand create a long-lasting legacy well beyond any individual contributor or even just its founders?

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

By Kollan Spradlin | A broader view of client objectives allows us to add value and, in some cases, recategorize isolated projects into stepping stones that line the path to the client’s ultimate goal.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Cushing Terrell, a multidisciplinary firm that empowers creative designers to discover imaginative, responsible first-of-their-kind environments.

By Linda Schulte | When your team views you as a leader and not just a manager, they will work much harder and be willing to go the extra mile when necessary.

By Sara Parkman | This year’s cohort has picked up where previous groups left off – taking on creative ideas to solve both historic and emerging challenges.

By Christina Zweig Niehues | The words you use have the power to influence your audience: choose them carefully.

By Mark Zweig | Marketing for AEC firms has come a long way in the last few decades, but we still have a number of problems that could be easily solved.

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 Jared Maxwell & Cady Sinks | Despite slowing infection rates, AEC firms and their insurers may still endure the effects of the pandemic for many months to come.

By Liisa Andreassen | Founder, design principal, and CEO at Snow Kreilich Architects (Minneapolis, MN), a nationally recognized, award winning architectural studio.

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

By Jerry Holder | Three lessons learned from stories of leaders’ successes and failures – and their ramifications.

By Brian King | Firms with a strongly integrated multigenerational workforce will experience tremendous power and opportunity for success over the next number of years.

By Brittney Odom & Eduardo Smith | In today’s fast-paced and mostly remote work environments, the processes described on paper often don’t resemble the way work is actually conducted.

By Kevin Johns | Despite the uncertainty and impact caused by potential tax law changes, inflation, and the pandemic, forecasts are strong overall for the AEC industry for 2022.

By Julia DeFrances | Committees give employees a chance to lead, contribute, effect change, and make an impact beyond revenue.

By Joseph Losaria | To succeed in building a new business line, you need to set your ego aside, believe in yourself, and trust your team with your vision.

By Phil Keil | There is a bridge to opportunity that can lead us to a landscape where the change we seek is possible.

By PeteR Atherton | Most of us have been taught to believe in projects and profits, but do we also believe in people and purpose?

By Christina Zweig Niehues | This year’s Hot Firms achieved incredible success at a time of great change and uncertainty.

By Phil Keil | Think of strategy as a revolutionary process requiring continual iteration and agility.

By Stephanie Warino | The principles of Organizational Project Management can guide a firm through the steps of scaling an organization.

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

By Montgomery Spillane & Dillon Reio | If you’re willing to go the extra mile to help young professionals grow, they will also go that extra mile for you.

By Liisa Andreassen | Partner at //3877, a boutique design firm that’s committed to providing innovative and creative designs that enhance and enrich the lives of its clients, partners, and communities.

By Jon Parrish | Getting everyone to think and act like an owner will result in more of your people making day-to-day decisions with the best interest of the company in mind.

By Mark Zweig | An experienced and competent financial manager could make a huge difference in your company’s and your personal financial well-being.

By Mark Zweig | Don’t underestimate the importance of getting everyone involved in the business planning process and then sharing that plan with all.

By Chase Miller | Managing through a virtual work environment certainly has its challenges, but it’s more important than ever to persevere and lead.

By Stephanie Warino | Be selective with the actions you’re recognizing and the behaviors you’re amplifying, because we’re all driving the culture bus.

By Mitchell Shope | Leveraging reinforcement theory will connect the action to the reward and bolster your firm’s morale and cultural identity.

By Tammi Nagucki | Reconsider some of this advice, and you may find some insight to guide you through our current world of disruption and stress.

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.

By Jamie Claire Kiser | Companies are adopting fluid work from home policies and people have begun migrating away from dense cities.

If your firm has the following characteristics, the more likely an ESOP is a good and viable option for your firm.

Leaders from Zweig Group’s top five Hot Firms talk about what they attribute their success to.

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

President and CEO Ulteig (Fargo, ND), an employee-owned engineering consulting firm with locations in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Colorado, Montana, and Iowa.

Educating yourself about these biases as well as potential strategies for mitigation can help you avoid prejudice in your decision-making.

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

Staff training fuels a culture of continuous education, enabling your firm to stay competitive, relevant, and profitable for the long run.

By Mark Zweig | None of these is a panacea. All of these things do, however, have the potential to bring you new clients, opportunities, and projects.

By Jamie Claire Kiser | Addressing questions about the impact of COVID-19 through the lens of the Great Recession.

All of us in the AEC industry are being challenged by the disruption this virus is causing, but we got this. Solving problems is what we do.

For firm leadership, marketing may not always be top of mind. For your marketing staff, it is. Make sure they have a seat at the table.

To keep up with the “smart revolution,” AEC firms must embrace emerging technological solutions, innovate, and lead clients into the future.

By Phil Keil | Understanding this is essential in your ability to grow your firm and successfully execute your strategy.

“You would be surprised how quickly your employees get in the bandwagon when they can be part of the solution.”

Implement these tips to decrease tension and drastically increase the utility of your feedback.

Phil Keil, Zweig Group’s director of strategic services, knows how to put the pieces together to craft unique strategies and implementation plans for AEC firms.

Examine your processes to determine why they’re in place and whether or not they’re worth your valuable time. If they’re not, they may need to be changed or abandoned.

“Top management is largely responsible for HR’s ineffectiveness on many levels in the typical A/E firm.”

Implementing a formal, systematic safety program will benefit you, your employees, your clients, and your greater community.

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

By Will Swearingen | As owners enter the final years of their careers and ponder ownership transition, they have to make some concessions.

CEO of ISG (Mankato, MN), a multi-disciplinary design and engineering firm that has growth in its DNA.

It’s important to understand your business model and the various outside factors that can affect the execution of an ESOP transaction.

To maximize outputs and outcomes, leaders need to become great managers of managers and together create “great jobs.”

Why is work today so unfulfilling and how can we change that? Let’s set our sights on having an impact and figure out a way to get there.

A successful sustainability plan should formalize your approach for continuous improvement and help you build on what you are already doing in three key areas.

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

The industry is in desperate need of future leaders who know how to talk with, and understand, their people.

The World Health Organization just redefined burnout and classified it as an “Occupational Phenomenon.” So, what’s next?

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

In terms of feedback, there’s a big difference between what millennials want and what you’ve been told they want.

Ownership transition is a complex and ever-changing problem for the majority of AEC firms. No two firms are alike – so no universal formula or methodology will work in every situation. Creators of internal ownership...

Giving gifts to your clients is a great show of appreciation, but make sure you know the differences between public and private entities. In the AEC business, the holiday season can be 45 very pleasant...

“Right now, at the start of the new year, is a great time to be selling. Organizations of all types, public and private, have new plans and new budgets to go along with them.” Right...

Ditch the ego, the fancy title, and the unnecessary rules. Instead, be the spark that inspires your team members to follow their passions. If you are a manager, you have people following your orders. If...

Diversity and inclusion are good for your bottom line. To get the right people, you have to cast your net in the right places, and jettison the bias. It’s alarming. According to 100 percent of...

Leading through accountability takes a willingness to do a better job at recognizing challenges and accepting feedback toward positive change. Have you ever worked with someone who can’t perform their basic job functions? Have you...

Approximately 10,000 baby boomers will retire every day over the next decade. By 2030, millennials will comprise three-quarters of the U.S. workforce. A common blood sport at leadership team meetings these days begins with, “WHAT...

“Clients, co-workers, partners – they aren’t always completely forthright in their communications. Despite this fact, your success ultimately depends on understanding them.” If you work in an AEC firm as a leader or manager, it’s...

CEO and founder of Sam Schwartz Consulting, LLC (Hot Firm #67 and Best Firm #49 Multidiscipline for 2018), a 130-person transportation planning firm based in New York City. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Ownership transitions, especially...

Statics, dynamics, and mechanics of materials are essential, but for long-term success, you need to educate yourself outside, and after, the curriculum.

Texas-based Atlas Technical Consultants acquires Piedmont Geotechnical of Atlanta Atlas Technical Consultants recently picked a peach when it acquired Atlanta-based Piedmont Geotechnical Consultants, a move that continues Atlas’ expansion into infrastructure engineering, program management, and...

If you don’t identify and address your firm’s problems, you could increase the measure of risk while decreasing value. There is a four-letter word floating around out there that’s probably the first that comes to...

Employee stock ownership plans are rewarding for your staff, allow for continuity, and can enhance a firm’s culture and legacy. Editor’s note: Wintrust Commercial Banking is a sponsor of the 2018 Hot Firm + A/E...

By Phil Keil | The development of high moral and ethical standards is the most important thing you can do as a leader, and it will transform your team for the good.

They are everywhere, but they don’t have to win. Identify their behavior and rectify it, or risk losing your staff. Regrettably, we have all been there, regardless of the profession. Whether it’s real estate, marketing,...

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...

The more you ask, the more you learn, and that knowledge can be driven back into your firm for the benefit of clients and employees. Maintaining a leading position in the AEC industry requires that...

Understanding what fans their flames and what douses their embers will foster a more productive and fulfilling environment for everyone. Editor’s note: This top eight list was borrowed from Tony Morgan, chief strategic officer and...

So you got the position you wanted, but that’s just the first step. You have to (help) create something bigger than yourself. Last month I wrote about my good fortune of meeting Art Gensler and...

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...

Some say that Project Management is a science. We're not sure about that but here are some simple things you can do to be the best Project Manager you can be! Find out what the...

There’s a strong case for including marketing staff post-proposal, especially if things didn’t go so well with the client. I have long told my clients that requesting a debriefing after a selection has been made...

No generation owns the work ethic, but when it comes to motivation and anxiety, there’s a big difference between millennials and boomers. I recently read a report from Project: Time Off called, “The Work Martyr’s...

President and CEO of VHB, (Best Firm Civil #23 and Hot Firm #46 for 2017), a 1,400-person firm based in Boston, Massachusetts. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Listening, of course, is incredibly important,” Carragher says. A...

When you run an A/E or environmental firm, you want your people to feel good. Besides the fact that they won’t do their best work if they don’t feel good, seeing your employees happy is...

Ditch the lecture-and-listen style of training and replace it with something much more effective – the do-it-to-learn-it style. In the ultra-competitive AEC job market, professional growth is becoming the new perk. Employees and candidates –...

Your next generation of business builders has arrived. Have you shown them the way forward with a comprehensive set of goals and expectations? What are the career paths in your firm? The next generation wants...

Digital is critical, but don’t fixate on having an army of followers. Instead, use social channels to build your brand equity. What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?...

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...

While the lure of them is understandable, there are probably better, more human ways of evaluating candidates before you hire them. Some people are enamored with personality tests. But despite their popularity in certain circles,...

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...

How you dress and how you work send a powerful statement to everyone around you – just make sure it’s the right one. A company has a brand, and so do you. It’s called your...

Generational ownership and leadership transitions pose unique challenges. Anyone you promote to the highest level must be cut from the right cloth. The statistics bear repeating: Most professional services firms are aging at the top....

Regardless of what else the future holds for B2B marketing, one thing is certain: Content marketing is here to stay. Marketing communications. Social media. Graphic design. Media relations. Proposals. Internal communications. Event engagement. Brand management....

When your marketing people are not empowered to make big decisions, their great concepts often get parked in committees, where they die. Marketing is where the creativity is, right? Not always. Too many marketing departments...

A/E firms with sound risk management may benefit most from a competitive professional liability market, and should take the opportunity to increase coverage. Design firms that practice sound risk management, have good loss experience, and...

Handle the difficult conversations by knowing who you are, learning about other people, and knowing what’s needed to win. This time he went too far. Milo, your senior engineer, will not budge on his code...

Valuation formulas are subject to many influences, so it helps to periodically test them out to make sure they yield accurate results. Many firms in the A/E industry are attracted to using a “valuation formula”...

Getting people to do what you want them to do. This is what leadership is really all about. And it is never easy. Especially today in the A/E industry, where finding a job is not...

The talent war is here. Building a bigger pipeline of leaders and doing it much earlier in their careers is critical if you want to win. We sometimes have too much tradition and are slow...

In this episode of the podcast, Randy Wilburn has a roundtable discussion with Zweig Group’s executive search consultant, Chad Coldiron, and interns Sanjay Jenkins and Jordan Barrett. They discuss the millennial generation and the value...

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...

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...

New Jersey firm has a nice book of business thanks to a willingness to both study and influence the industry it serves. By Richard Massey Managing Editor DMR Architects of New Jersey has been retained...

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...

Hiring good people isn’t easy, and hanging onto them is just as difficult. When you find the right person, offer an excellent benefits package. By Gale Associates Inc. Best Firm #4 Multidiscipline for 2016 Recruitment...

Move forward in 2017 with Zweig Group seminars across a range of essentials – business development, project management, marketing, and more. For a short while during my undergraduate years, I majored in management. After a...

Bond issues, Trump spending could spell good year for AEC By Richard Massey Managing Editor While a three-person panel hosted by Engineering News-Record did not offer an outright prediction that construction would boom next year,...

It seems like we have more of them ever to contend with. I’m talking about brain drains. The things that literally suck the life force out of you. When you get to be my age...

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...

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...

What did I learn about running an A/E/P firm from a 62-year old former British equestrian Olympian? Quite a lot, as it turns out. I recently had the opportunity to ride in a two-day clinic...

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...

A Q&A might be just what the doctor ordered if you want to shed new light on your career and the choices you’ve made along the way. A start-up company I’m mentoring here in Reno...

Everyone wants better project management. That's why principals of AEC companies spend more time and money on PM training than any other type of business training. But I'm not here to talk about training. I...

Change is a powerful force, so embrace it, learn from it, and by all means, take account of its effects and be reasonable in dealing with it. Life would be more comfortable if clichés helped....

A professional firm should have professional collateral, but all too often, bad photos, poor design, and sloppy writing dilute the brand. Of course you’re not an amateur. You are a professional. You work for a...

In work and in life, our past experiences, relationships, and the information we consume contribute to our outcomes. You know – in life, or in business – things pretty much happen as you expect them...

Although Zweig Group's M&A Survey offers a variety of responses to the question "why are you considering an acquisition", there are, essentially, only two reasons that firms pursue inorganic growth. These reasons are to either...

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...

Inspiration is necessary for technical/design professionals and those who manage projects to be successful. I watched an outstanding documentary recently on the life of Henry Ford. I learned a lot about him – and heard...

Sometimes negative thoughts can creep in; here’s why leaders should always try to maintain a positive outlook. Being positive – surrounding yourself with other positive people and believing you CAN do something – is essential...

Don’t let the current market surge allow you to become too busy or lazy to effect needed changes, and don’t underestimate the time and resources this will require. ​Have you ever been at the controls...

Strategic cooperation among competitors can result in big gains for each firm and better projects for clients. I hadn’t heard of “coopetition” – a contraction of cooperation and competition – for a while, but it...

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...

Glassdoor comments provide opportunity for reflection on leaders’ role in fostering positive employee attitudes. One of my clients was both frustrated and concerned about citations on his firm that he found on the glassdoor website...

Which units are performing and which are not? Do a little research; allocate your investment appropriately. I'm all for holistic thinking – always have been. I’ve seen a lot of silly (make that stupid) stuff...

Find out what you should be really pursuing and go for it. Mark Zweig predicts success. Some years ago, Toyota’s Lexus brand promoted itself through the slogan, “Lexus: The relentless pursuit of perfection.” That decision...

Mark Zweig lists some things he has learned about the A/E/P and environmental business over three decades. The end of August marked 34 full years working in the A/E/P and environmental consulting business. I have...

Make your company stronger by involving marketing folks in the sales process. I recently attended a SMPS “Spring Training” one day seminar in Oklahoma. The first speaker, Carolyn Ferguson, asked several probing questions about developing...

Mark Zweig tackles the misconceptions with four examples. I started out in business at a young age, buying and selling bicycles, then motorcycles and then cars, on my Mom and Dad’s street corner. Then I...

Listen to your staff, have an appealing culture, hire selectively and keep your employees for the long-term. I’m hearing more and more about the market firming up and people being in demand. So, I think...

This article first appeared in The Zweig Letter (ISSN 1068-1310) Issue # 996 Originally published 2/25/2013 Mark Zweig offers six suggestions on how to pick the right people and nurture them. But act with care....

This article first appeared in The Zweig Letter (ISSN 1068-1310) Issue # 991 Originally published 1/21/2013 Get going on the five items Mark Zweig shares below. Marketing in the A/E/P and environmental consulting world –...

Press Release: July 18, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (July 18, 2011) – The A/E industry has seen some of the most challenging times ever on record for the post-WWII generation. One A/E revenue bright spot continues...

Press Release: June 22, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (June 22, 2011) – The other side of the world really isn’t that far away anymore. As work dried up in the U.S. during the recession, many firms...

By Christine Brack Principal, Business Planning Consulting Design firms don’t sell an actual product, even if drawings and written deliverables are part of the final package. They make their living selling units of professional time....

I’m often asked two questions about leadership: 1. Are leaders born or made? 2. How did you become a leader? I believe everyone has the potential become a leader. Despite endless debate on the subject...

Press Release: May 10, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, AR (May 10, 2011) — Up one day, down the next. The volatile economy means many firms are no longer able to rely on a static budget. Almost 37%...

By Tracey D. Jeffers There is a four letter word floating around out there in the atmosphere that is likely the first formed in the mind of an investor when determining whether or not an...

By Ed Friedrichs In a fascinating recent book, Fred Reichheld asks The Ultimate Question (also the title of the book), “On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely are you to refer __________ (fill...

I was recently interviewed for a magazine article about the residential redevelopment projects we do here in Fayetteville. In addition to figuring out why my houses sell either before we start working on them or...

Project management training tends to emphasize the legal and liability aspects of what we do, along with scheduling and budgeting techniques. But, there is so much more to it beyond the science of project management....

While I have probably written about business planning in the pages of The Zweig Letter a dozen or more times over the years, it seems necessary to do so again. As you read this, A/E/P...

Everyone thinks they know why clients hire their A/E/P or environmental firm. Sometimes you DO know— but sometimes people make bad assumptions. Those bad assumptions will HURT your future selling efforts because you will be...

There’s a popular book out right now in the education field entitled The Global Achievement Gap written by a fellow named Tony Wagner, the co-director of the Change Leadership Group at Harvard University. I picked...

Stereotypes exist for a reason. Sometimes there’s a lot of truth in them. Good examples of this can be found in how bosses are portrayed in pop culture. The problem is if any of these...

More and more design and environmental firms are adding outsiders to their Boards of Directors. There are many reasons for doing so but that’s not the point of this article. Instead, what I want to...

When it comes to A/E/P and environmental consulting firms, the difference in profitability and growth vs. marginal performance and no growth is very little. But that “little” difference may just be how your people feel...

I was in a board meeting recently with a quality, old-line engineering/architecture/consulting firm where one of the primary topics was business development. We spent several hours talking about it and how they are changing their...

Much has been written on how to be a more effective seller— lots aimed at design professionals and much more written for other industries/professions. The problem with most of this stuff is the credibility of...

I have been in business long enough to know that there’s one rule everyone should follow if they’re smart— “you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.” It always drives me mad when certain people...

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...

For whatever reason— and I have seen it countless times— sometimes the work environment just goes bad. Like fruit that sits in the bowl too long, it rots, it molds, and it becomes intolerable. Just...

I know structural engineers who make over $1 million a year. I know landscape architects in larger firms who achieve a 4.22 raw labor multiplier on all the work they do. I know architects who...

The older I get the more convinced I am that being a successful leader in a design firm is every bit as much an art as it is a science. You just can’t teach someone...

Irving “Tuck” Schlockmeir walked into the Schlockmeir Associates board meeting in a bad mood. Tuck was frequently in a bad mood, and if he wasn’t, the fear that he might go into one scared everyone...

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...

“Process marketing” is a term you’ll see a lot of in The Zweig Letter. Heck, we even have a supplemental, stand-alone Process Marketing Advisor devoted entirely to the subject! The reason is that process marketing...

In my travels around the country working with A/E/P and environmental firms large and small I have come to the awareness of just how important it is to have a positive employee culture. It may...

Most A/E/P and environmental firms send their people to conferences. Whether it’s the annual event of a “peer” organization such as the AIA, ACEC, or NSPE, or a “client” organization such as the Building Owners...

Talk to some architects and engineers and their real feelings will come out: They believe there’s something bad, something sick, something wrong, something immoral about business. Their attitude is that design or technical work is...

Anyone who studies human behavior in business organizations can tell you that confidence is a critical quality for leaders to have. This certainly applies to A/E/P and environmental consulting firms. When the leader is confident,...

Most of us heard it from our parents at some point in our childhood: “You can grow up to be anything you want, but be the best at it you can be.” It’s a good...

You’re all aware of it. The “circular theory,” otherwise known as “what goes around comes around.” It’s one of nature’s laws that seems to hold true as much as the laws of physics. If you’re...

Until the 69,000 firms who make up the A/E/P and environmental consulting industry wake up and start doing something different marketing-wise, we’re destined to remain a fragmented group of small firms owned by people who...

It is almost heresy in this day and age of “customer service” to say it, but in the A/E/P and environmental consulting business, the customer is not always right. In fact, many times the customer...

If you talked with as many people in A/E/P and environmental consulting firms as I have over the years, you would soon discover that “office politics” is a dirty term in our industry. Engineers, architects,...

Because marketing really is “where it’s at” for firms in this business, it’s hard for me to keep from writing about it. You see, an A/E/P or environmental consulting firm can solve just about any...

Every firm in this industry must do four things to survive— sell work, do work, bill for work, and get paid for work. That’s it. If you ask me, architects, engineers, and environmental consultants (along...

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...

A solid majority of firms who use direct mail are less than thrilled with the results. In fact, according to our newly published Marketing Survey For A/E/P and Environmental Consulting Firms, 12.5% consider this the...

We constantly get asked by principals in A/E and environmental consulting firms about what or where the next “hot markets” will be. It seems that these people have read about market life cycles in the...

The ability of an A/E or environmental consulting firm to quickly hire qualified people for any opening affects virtually every aspect of its management. I call it “supply-side human resources management.” If you think about...

Ask anyone who has risen to the top of a consulting engineering, A/E, or environmental consulting firm where are the greatest weaknesses in their staff, and they will almost always say it’s in their “soft”...

Too many people are unhappy— unhappy with the way we’re running our country and unhappy with the way we’re running our firms. The presidential elections to be held on November 3rd and the issues facing...

Earlier this month, I was in Scottsdale for the Professional Services Management Association (PSMA) national convention— a worthwhile event that I encourage everyone to attend next year in New Orleans. I saw many old friends,...