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By Kraig Kern | AEC's next competitive advantage isn't expertise; it's how fast you unlock it.

By Matt Cooper | Repeat clients keep AEC firms stable, but winning new work is what determines long-term growth and resilience.

By Scott Butcher | AEC firms use seller-doers, business developers, or both, and the best model depends on buyer preferences and firm capabilities.

By Greg Sepeda | The Marvel universe delivers 10 powerful lessons in leadership, proving that purpose, humility, and teamwork save the day.

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

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

By Tom Godin | Innovation in AEC must create measurable value for owners through smarter, more sustainable solutions.

By Greg Sepeda | By taking lessons from the dugout, we can better handle change – turning challenges into opportunities, and transitions into a winning season.

By Brad Wilson | This event is a catalyst for honest conversation, shared wisdom, and renewed focus on ownership, governance, and the future of the industry.

By Chuck Miller | Selling requires building credibility, showing up consistently, and proving that you’re in it for the long haul.

By Sara Grayum | By collaborating closely, marketing and business development can craft stories that will steer your firm toward success.

By Morgan Stinson | Leading with purpose helps firms navigate uncertainty by reinforcing values, fostering trust, taking ownership, and turning challenges into opportunities.

By Carlo Lebron | Take the time to define your culture, engage your team, and make this a central part of your operational strategy – the rewards are well worth the effort.

By Javier Suarez | Instead of trying to fix “the big problem,” we should handpick issues that we could have a decent chance of addressing successfully.

By Kristin Kautz | AI adoption empowers firms to unleash their human potential to solve problems that matter.

By Brad Thurman | Consistently nurturing long-term client relationships and adding value are essential to maintaining loyalty and avoiding complacency.

By Stuart McLendon | This process improves team coherence and speed in addition to enhancing revenue per man-hour.

By Ying Liu | How do you ensure your firm has both the will and the way to succeed in this increasingly competitive market?

By Chad Coldiron | Takeaways from Zweig Group’s 2024 ElevateAEC Conference & Awards Gala.

By Tom Godin | How the military’s mission command principles can improve leadership and management in AEC firms.

By Jeremy Clarke | Focus your firm’s retention strategy on offering meaningful benefits that are in alignment with core human needs.

By Lindsay Young | It’s never too late for firm leaders to set strategic goals and start investing in their companies.

By Greg Sepeda | If you can clear out the unnecessary underbrush, you will benefit from a staff that finally can breathe, see new paths, and move your firm forward.

By Danielle Eisenstock | Learning takes time and effort – but the end results can be as rewarding as making your favorite meal.

By Steve Hammel | Business developers play a crucial role in maintaining client relationships, resolving issues, and ensuring long-term success – even after contracts are signed.

By Liisa Andreassen | Past president of CMTA (Prospect, KY), a national leader for delivering high performance, sustainable projects.

By Kraig Kern | It is essential for companies to reevaluate their meeting culture and prioritize efficiency and effectiveness for long-term success.

By Mark Zweig | When you work in a crowded field full of many companies that do essentially the same thing, you can either be one of many or you can choose to stand out.

By Somshekhar Kundral | Developing effective problem-framing skills can help your people think outside the box, challenge assumptions, and find innovative solutions.

By Chad Clinehens | Firms that take the time to learn and adapt to AI could gain a competitive advantage over those that are slower to adopt.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of FullStack Modular (Brooklyn, NY), a leader in the design, manufacture, and construction of mid- and high-rise modular buildings in urban environments.

By Sara Parkman | Human resources director at CORE Consultants, Inc., a professional services firm that empowers its people to thrive at home, at work, and in their community.

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.

By Kevin Bertrand | Strong connections lead to strong communications and successful outcomes, so it’s important that we listen, understand, and respond in ways that are supportive.

By Mark Zweig | These three things are important to your firm’s success, but they may require a reallocation of your time and money.

By Liisa Andreassen | President at Baisch Engineering (Kaukauna, WI), a consulting engineering firm that provides full-service integration engineering to industrial clients worldwide.

By Chad Clinehens | At this year’s ElevateAEC Conference, we’ll celebrate and show the world what a successful career in AEC looks like.

By Mark Zweig | Just like any professional sports team, your firm is made or broken based on how effective you are at recruiting talent.

By Henry Liang | Mr. Miyagi was right: Balance is key. So, make sure both sides of your work-life scale are balanced.

By Ted Grace | This is a cost-effective alternative for AEC leaders seeking to manage enterprise risk.

By Blake Calvert | Listen to employees, communicate strategically, embrace a growth mindset, and eliminate drama to help employees let go of negativity and thrive through change.

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 Mark Zweig | You may be an architect or engineer and think you aren’t really motivated by money. But money is a scorecard in the game of business, and ‘winning’ is fun!

By Chad Clinehens | With both a virtual and an in-person conference this year, ElevateAEC has something for everyone.

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

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 Rob Hughes | With the market hardening for AEC professional liability insurance, an accurate and complete application may help keep your firm’s premium as low as possible.

By Lindsay Young | Making mistakes is an essential part of running a successful firm, so stop waiting around and start taking action.

By Sara Parkman | President of Shive-Hattery (Cedar Rapids, IA), a multi-disciplinary architecture and engineering firm that recognizes the power of design in transforming the human experience.

By Mark Zweig | How can we each achieve the lofty and satisfying position of knowing we have made a difference through our work in this business?

CEO and president of SEH (St. Paul, MN), a firm that’s simplifying the world’s complex challenges by designing better places, engineering clean water, and renewing infrastructure.

Contract disclaimers reflect the reality that estimating is an art, not a science – and that design professionals cannot guarantee or warrant the actual costs of construction.

Design firms in the process of renewing their professional liability insurance will find the marketplace generally stable and competitive, even amid uncertainty created by COVID-19.

By Mark Zweig | Best practices may be safe, but they won’t differentiate your firm. Make these changes and your firm will stand out.

Tony Hans, a vice president with CMTA Consulting Engineers, talks about building science leadership, why culture is so important, and about the work that CMTA is doing around the country to create and design energy-efficient...

Chad Surprenant, chief strategy officer and board chairman of ISG, shares his journey from being one of the company's primary shareholders to creating an ESOP and enlarging the ownership of ISG to everyone at the...

CEO of Wendel (Williamsville, NY), an innovative AEC and energy efficiency firm that collaborates with clients for a holistic project approach.

Engineers of the future will solve problems and meet challenges in a different way and through technology that will continue to be dynamic.

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

As market conditions for professional liability insurance evolve, there’s a great deal you can do to position your firm for a more favorable renewal.

In an M&A deal, the seller’s professional liability insurance for legacy projects will likely come into play. Deal with it early on.

“There’s a lot to know about your people. And we have to keep updating this information because your people are constantly changing.”

By Kyle Ahern | Employees at AEC firms say they need ample opportunities to learn and train. My advice is to give them what they’re asking for.

Even if you’re at the lower rungs of the org chart, there are plenty of opportunities for meaningful acts of leadership.

Strong emotional intelligence, empathy, and the ability and capacity to engage the ‘whole person’ move teams and projects forward.

By Will Swearingen | The words ‘difficult’ and ‘uncomfortable’ are synonymous with ownership transition. If you try to execute one on your own, it might come out half-baked.

By Edward Friedrichs | In a time of polarization and crass tribalism, don’t forget the founding norms of respect and civility. It’ll be good for you, your firm, and your clients. 

In the absence of extraordinary situations, the courts will rely on the contract’s terms, not the Impossibility of Performance Doctrine. My wife and I visited St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome a few years ago. A...

Today’s AEC industry is experiencing significant growth, demanding that our leaders evolve and communicate far beyond the check-the-box approach. Have you ever asked yourself, “What the heck is real leadership?” This is the question that...

If you want to empower your millennial team members, you have to offer them choice, provide purpose, and safeguard the organizational trust. Millennials are part of the “prove it” generation, and their trust is made...

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

If you don’t want scope creep and unforeseen expenses to ruin your profit margins, try improving your estimating process. You planned for your project to make 14 percent, but you end up with 8 percent....

Do you want to make 2018 a great year of growth and prosperity? Pay attention to, and act upon, a four-point plan to get the best out of your firm. To prepare for a successful...

In this episode of the podcast, Randy Wilburn speaks with Brenden Sherrer, an M&A consultant with Zweig Group. They covered a number of topics, including Sherrer’s experience after joining Zweig Group and the overall view...

Eroding profitability. Never good. Never fun. The result is less and less money to go around. I’m not going to talk about the obvious things such as labor costs that are too high, overly lavish...

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...

Sound like someone you know? "I wish I had received more business and financial training/education prior to becoming a principal." "My number one problem will be getting a proactive commitment from other principals at the...

If you rely solely on what you thought you once knew to be true, you run the risk of being an obsolete relic of yesteryear. Not too long ago, when my son was a senior...

By Phil Keil | Strategic planning is the roadmap to your firm’s success. Without it, you might get knocked down and never get back up.

Strategic planning is the roadmap to your firm’s success. Without it, you might get knocked down and never get back up. I have a lot on my mind this week, so get ready, buckle up,...

As social media continues to change, so too does the way it affects the A/E industry. Stay in touch with the times or get left behind. Architecture, engineering, planning, and environmental consulting firms appear to...

If at first you don’t succeed, don’t give up. Cast your net again and chances are you’ll catch another fish. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Rob Matthews, president of Matthews Design Group, Inc. (#10 Best Firm...

As a firm grows, new people have to come on board. But if those people threaten to damage your culture and sink the ship, you can always toss them back out to sea. We tell...

The winning percentage in the A/E industry is not that good, so it’s vital that you learn how to take a punch and get back up to fight again! You’ve probably heard the quotes about...

Many of us in the marketing clan ended up in it by accident, but in an industry that once considered us a no-no, we have chosen to stay, and to succeed. In my more than...

The holiday season always motivates us to give back, but a company-wide campaign can provide for charity where and when it’s needed most – locally and all year long. I really like this quote from...

By assessing how they plan to use drones, and by carefully evaluating related risks, A/E firms will benefit from this new capability. As more A/E firms begin integrating drones into their operations, they need to...

New York engineer Paul Grosser wasn’t afraid to make a change in 1990 when he needed one, and after 25-plus years of growth, he’s still hungry for more. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Since founding PWGC...

Zweig Group’s 2016 Financial Performance Survey of Architecture, Engineering, and Environmental Consulting Firms, gives firm leaders a clear view into industry trends and financial metrics that can help firms effectively manage their resources. The best...

Implementing these 8 easy changes can help your firm work smarter, not harder, and reap the monetary rewards. I have always felt that, if A/E and environmental consulting firms spent as much time on getting...

Successful Project Management for A/E/P and Environmental Firms, 2nd edition covers projects from inception to completion and beyond. By Andrea Bennett Managing Editor On April 30, Zweig Group will release the second edition of its...

In an industry with constant news and needs, following a few simple tips can keep your messages efficient and effective. In today’s world, there’s an endless array of marketing that could or should be developed...

Portfolio: Mascot delivers the good news Internal newsletter modeled after internal mascot an award-winning success. By Christina Zweig Contributing editor ECS Carolinas, LLP (Chantilly, VA), placed first in the Internal Marketing Category of Zweig Group’s...

The motherload list of truisms that makes Mark Zweig’s blood boil. One benefit of aging has been a certain calmness that I now have that I didn’t have when I was younger. That makes each...

This article first appeared in The Zweig Letter (ISSN 1068-1310) Issue # 998 Originally published 3/11/2013 Three lessons the design industry can learn from a successful auto dealership. I feel fortunate to be a consultant...

This article first appeared in The Zweig Letter (ISSN 1068-1310) Issue # 995 Originally published 2/18/2013 Sometimes it’s more about gut, patience, clarity and follow-up than just following recipes. You can talk all you want...

Press Release: September 2, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (September 2, 2011) — Kit Miyamoto, a Japanese-born structural engineer of global fame, has built a premier earthquake engineering firm with one simple mission: Make the world a...

By Debbie Frederiksen Today I was sitting by myself on an outdoor patio eating lunch, checking email on my phone, scrolling through tweets, when suddenly this quote from an article resonated, “What is a place...

No movie was better than “Wall Street” at capturing the spirit of the go-go 80s. Michael Douglas played the role of Gordon Gekko, a charismatic “rock star” investment banker who gave a speech on the...

One would think that with the business climate being what it is for A/E and environmental firms (lower volume and less profit), that everyone would be staying on top of their accounts receivable. But, guess...

What you stand for is a little more subjective but not hard to figure out, either. Look at the heritage and culture of the firm. New ventures should be consistent with that. And again, go...

I just got back from ZweigWhite’s 2007 A/E Marketing Now Summit in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was our biggest and best-attended marketing conference ever! My task was to open the show with a short talk...

There’s an interesting article in the latest issue of Inc Magazine on PR firms that get paid only when they get results for their clients— results being a press mention in the local paper, a...

No doubt about it— A/E and environmental firms do waste money on useless research. Finding out, for example, how large the land development market is nationally, when you have a need to create work for...

As most long-time readers of The Zweig Letter know, I can’t stand it when someone quotes the latest pop management book or article. The authors are always a little too smug in the universal applicability...

Thank God for technology! If we didn’t have the technology that we have today, there’s no way most of us who travel could keep up with the demands of work and life. For example, I...

When we remade our Revolutionary Marketing newsletter into The Zweig A/E Marketing Letter, we had a simple idea. Cut the theory and direct the focus of our efforts to implementation. What can firms DO differently...

Let’s face it, the motivation of any A/E or environmental firm’s leaders is, in many ways, more important than the motivation of the staff. Because if the leaders aren’t fired up, how can anyone else...

When you look at architects, management consultants, bridge engineers, computer programmers, artists, or any other “professional” in the classic sense, there is always someone or some people who stand out as the thought leaders. They...

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...

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...

I just got back from the Design Build Institute of America (DBIA) (Washington, DC) national convention in San Diego (held October 4-6). What a turnout! Their estimates were that they had somewhere between 1,400 and...

I just heard a story the other day about one of our clients from another clients (both large A/E firms). Evidently, the first firm had been called by a big client for help on a...

We’ve talked about it for decades, but the labor shortage in the A/E/P and environmental industries is finally here. Our clients are telling us that it’s hard to hire just about anyone. Every job takes...

Say “strategy” to an architect, engineer, planner, or scientist and you are bound to get a negative reaction. These folks have been through all of the strategic planning meetings conducted by the management consultant of...

Here are some quick thoughts on a few issues: Pay or don’t buy. There have been a number of articles in the business press recently dealing with ethics issues. One that I read involved a...

t seems to me the only way to really be successful is to be different from everyone else. Whether it’s your career or your firm we are talking about, it’s all the same. Yet many...

This week, you get three topics for the price of one. What makes for value? An article in the February 21 edition of The Boston Globe under the headline “Internet ad company stock gains 57%...

Although I sometimes wish I were more clever or entertaining than I am, writing about what makes A/E/P or environmental firms more successful is what you pay me to do. Occasionally I think I sound...

A common theme is emerging in our business right now, especially with large firms— but certainly not limited to them. Firms need to improve their profits. Volume is up, optimism is up, backlog is growing,...

I have said before that I think most project management training is ineffective. But that doesn’t help the majority of our readers— owners and managers of firms who depend on having good enough project management...

I have long advocated the use of questionnaires as a marketing technique for A/E and environmental firms when they want to establish themselves as experts serving a particular client group. There really is something to...

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...

One of the most important milestones in the development of an A/E/P or environmental firm is the first time the company turns down work. Knowing what work to take on and what work to refuse...

It’s the time of year when you can’t reach anyone on the telephone, when important decisions seem to be postponed, and when, as one CFO who participates in our ZWEIG 100 index remarked recently, firm-wide...

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...