Search results

By Ezequiel Tovar | The firms that deliver the best client experiences are often the ones that invest most intentionally in employee experience.

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

By Kristi Weierbach | Discretionary versus non-discretionary bonuses can quietly impact compliance, overtime costs, and overhead rates more than many AEC leaders realize.

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

By Daryl Simons Jr. | Rethinking first impressions creates fairer decisions, stronger relationships, and lasting benefits for candidates and firms.

By Steven Rushmore | As technology advances, AEC firms must embrace digital adoption to secure long-term success.

By Kyle Ahern | The latest recruitment and retention data reveals shifting expectations, transparency, and tools reshaping AEC firms’ talent strategies.

By Jennifer Nelson | New tax law creates major planning opportunities – R&D, bonus depreciation, and corporate rates shift, with key deadlines looming.

By Jared Maxwell | Despite recent success, AEC firms may need to navigate headwinds to mitigate risk and sustain growth and profitability.

By Scott D. Butcher | To succeed in disruption, AEC firms must refine client focus, target markets, and go/no-go processes.

By Mark Zweig | AEC firms today still struggle with the same old organizational issues that undermine clarity, accountability, and leadership.

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 Janki DePalma | Small actions today can reduce stress, improve efficiency, and make life easier for your future self.

By Lauren Martin | Design firms need to be vigilant about clauses and language that have the potential to significantly expand their risk while undermining their insurance protection.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Southern Steel Engineers (Lexington, SC), a firm that provides state of the art engineering and analysis for structural steel projects.

By Dan Houf | Building strong, long-term client relationships is essential, but navigating transitions requires trust, adaptability, and exceptional service.

By Earl Mott | Thoughts from both sides of this mutually beneficial relationship over the course of a career.

By Victoria Verlezza | By implementing these strategies, you can lead virtual meetings that are more inclusive, engaging, and conducive to collaboration among participants.

By Mark Zweig | We live in turbulent times, and you can never fully eliminate uncertainty – but there are several approaches you can employ to combat it.

By Jared Maxwell & Cady Sinks | AEC firms see growth opportunities amid gradual U.S. economic rebound clouded by insurer concerns over inflation, claim costs, higher risks.

By Mark Zweig | Employees who decide to disengage and shift out completely do so at their own peril.

By David Hostetter | Mentoring the next generation of professionals requires care and dedication – and it will have a profound impact on your people and firm.

By Will Swearingen | Explore the latest data on compensation, perks, and key challenges shaping the industry’s ownership landscape.

Zweig Group announces the release of its 2024 Principals, Partners & Owners Report of AEC Firms. This comprehensive report contains information on the ownership agreements, responsibilities, compensation, billing rates, chargeability, work habits, and challenges of AEC firm...

By Will Swearingen | By being proactive and creating spaces to learn and grow, firms can benefit from this evolving workplace landscape.

By Mark Zweig | These four components all work in concert to make buying the business more affordable and easier to fund.

By Laura Nick | Four steps for building a strategic plan that supports a people-centric, talent-attracting culture.

By Jesse Fortune | Technology evolves quickly and it is imperative that AEC firms make smart decisions when selecting the software that powers project files, data storage, and financials.

By Luke Carothers | Our industry must look to places like Cairo as an example of how ambition can shape the built environment.

By Mark Zweig | Parenting is a lot like leadership in a business in that your behavior affects everyone and your actions determine how harshly you will be judged.

By Lindsay Young | Awards present a great opportunity to market to your clients, prospects, community, and future employees.

By Mark Zweig | These are the most important qualities that decide who gets to move up as firm leaders, managers, and future owners.

By Julia DeFrances | Professional associations offer a lot of benefits to the firms that support them, and for most firms are well worth the price of a membership.

By Jared Maxwell & Cady Sinks | AEC firms are navigating more complex risks and an evolving market for professional liability insurance.

By Adrian De la Garza | Insights and considerations that can help you decide if you’re ready to buy another firm.

By Liisa Andreassen | Executive principal and chief strategy officer at AG&E (Dallas, TX), a full service firm that provides sustainable structural engineering design for all types of projects.

By Liisa Andreassen | Founder of Indigo River (Nyack, NY), a certified Women-Owned Business Enterprise committed to helping our society evolve together with our environment.

By Robert Speed | If you can make your culture about the employees, you and your firm will reap the rewards over the course of your career.

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

By Liisa Andreassen | Design principal and CEO at Hanbury, a firm that is a global resource for its clients that specializes in higher education, civic, and commercial environments.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of Waggoner (Jackson, MS), a civil engineering firm of planners, designers, and engineers with a passion for helping communities realize their potential.

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 Liisa Andreassen | President of Prairie Engineers, P.C. (Columbia, IL), a firm made up of engineers, surveyors, and scientists focused on solving problems for public and private clients.

By Ezequiel Tovar | These continuing education opportunities offers valuable insight into what makes successful AEC firms stand out from the rest.

By Janki DePalma | Pay attention to who apologizes and when, and work to create an environment of psychological safety within your firm.

By Liisa Andreassen | Vice president of strategy at Westwood (Minneapolis, MN), an awarding-winning firm that provides multi-disciplined surveying and engineering services.

By Keyan Zandy | The disruptions we’re facing today are forcing us to get creative and evolve the ways we think and work. New opportunities are in reach if we stretch for them together.

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

By Liisa Andreassen | Partner at Method Architecture (Houston, TX), a full-service architecture firm that is uniquely ego-free in its commitment to a systematic, client-focused creative process.

By Liisa Andreassen | They are the CEO and president of RDG, a firm made up of architects, artists, engineers, landscape architects, and planners with a passion for design.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of JMC², a civil and structural engineering firm that offers solutions for land development and building projects of various scopes and sizes.

By Mark Zweig | The payoff is a more valuable company that is healthier and provides more opportunities for its employees.

By Lauren Rhodes Martin | More owners (or their lawyers) have tried to insert these clauses into design contracts, and this should be a red flag for AEC firms.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of GAI Consultants, an employee-owned planning, engineering, and environmental consulting firm that provides local expertise to worldwide clients.

By Jason Cunningham | There are several proactive actions that can be implemented to mitigate IT security risks and keep your firm prepared.

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

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal at Brenner Design (Indianapolis, IN), an award-winning, woman owned architectural firm that designs and constructs innovative buildings and interior spaces.

By Andy Chavez | What characteristics are highly desirable to buyers in the AEC industry right now?

By Jim Toby | Taking the time to get it right the first time will lead to faster approvals, better plans, and overall project quality.

By Tangram Interiors | CEO of Tangram Interiors (Santa Fe Springs, CO), encourages leaders to be intentional about striking the right balance between remote and physical workspaces.

By Mark Zweig | What really makes people take responsibility for something and give it their all – to truly be accountable?

By Liisa Andreassen | President at ELEMENT (Tampa, FL), an award-winning, certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise and Minority Business Enterprise, consulting firm.

By Mark Zweig | If you really know your business, you can make money in any market – even one as crazy as this.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Universal Engineering Sciences (Orlando, FL), a firm that has provided essential engineering services throughout the United States for nearly six decades.

By Lindsay Young | With a little effort, you can put a plan in place that will empower your firm to work with the types of clients you want on the types of projects you...

By Liisa Andreassen | Owner and managing principal of Arrive Architecture Group (Bedford, TX), a firm that specializes in multi-housing residences for individuals, families, and seniors.

By Rob Hughes | Having a clear understanding of some key insurance concepts can help your firm navigate heightened requirements and hard insurance market conditions more effectively.

By Sara Parkman | They are the senior principal and president of Genesis (Blue Bell, PA), a full service firm that delivers facilities for life-saving therapies.

By Corey Fenwick & Andrew Chakmakjian | Networking is a key part of any business – no matter the industry – because it can lead to a new job, experience, or business for your firm.

By Joan DeLorey & Jared Maxwell | All indications point to 2021 being a year when more buyers see higher rates for their professional liability insurance.

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 | There are many ways to show courage, and Jerry Allen showed real courage in his willingness to confront every single obstacle in his life.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and founder of PaleoWest, a heritage consulting firm that guides clients’ projects through regulatory challenges posed by prehistoric, historic, and paleontological resources.

President and CEO of Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. (Northbrook, IL), a global firm that’s committed to helping clients solve, repair, and avoid problems in the built world.

President and CEO of Payette (Boston, MA), a firm that values the close relationships it builds with its collaborators on the journey from design to reality.

Chairman and CEO of Nabholz (Conway, AR), a 1,200 person multi-discipline, employee-owned firms whose name has been synonymous with integrity since its founding in 1949.

President and senior principal of ICON Architecture (Boston, MA), a women-owned, SOMBDA certified firm that’s staffed over 50 percent by women.

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

By giving employees the opportunity to own company stock, you can develop a culture in which employees have a greater stake in the company and more opportunities to reap the rewards of capital ownership. 

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

President and CEO of CORE Consultants, Inc. (Littleton, CO), a professional services firm with a unique culture that empowers its people to thrive at home, at work, and in their community.

By Jamie Claire Kiser | Despite the challenging environment, there are tremendous opportunities to be had.

Co-founder and principal at CWE (Fullerton, CA), a  civil engineering, water resources, and environmental engineering firm whose experts pledge to create a better tomorrow, today.

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.

Founder of edg (New York, NY), a technology-driven firm that leverages the power of software and equipment to deliver higher quality projects in less time.

President of Shield Environmental Associates (Lexington, KY), a full-service engineering and environmental consulting firm that seeks solutions of distinct value.

In these uncharted times, we run the risk of only thinking about the immediate and not about where we are going to be three months, six months, or a year from now.

Learning to learn, praising the process, and reflecting on your progress all point your mind toward the common goal of persistent development.

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

Many firms still cling to old-school attitudes and business practices that chase away top performing employees looking for a more future-friendly place to grow their careers.

President and founder of C.A.P. Government, Inc. (Coral Gables, FL), a privately held, minority-owned consulting firm.

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

Successful leaders have to be able to deliver tough messages. Use these six strategies to navigate difficult conversations.

Founders of HILGARTWILSON (Phoenix, AZ), an exemplary multidisciplinary firm that was formed in the middle of the Great Recession.

Trust your judgement, speak up, and keep learning. Your efforts will pay dividends down the road.

President of Baldridge & Associates Structural Engineering, a full-service structural engineering and forensic consulting firm based in Honolulu, Hawaii.

President of DY Consultants, a nationally-recognized aviation consulting firm based in New York City.

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

President of FSC, Inc., a surveying firm servicing oil and gas clients and private developers headquartered in Columbus, Texas.

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

By Phil Keil | Have a purpose and commit to mastery and excellence and you will find happiness both personally and professionally.

Most AEC leaders are aware of the common causes of scope creep, but there are also some subtler internal causes to consider.

President of Ampirical (Best Firm Multi-discipline #21 for 2018), a 200-person firm on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain.

President and CEO of LACO (Best Firm Multi-discipline #46 for 2018), a California firm with a famously branded shirt.

In today’s competitive market conditions, being able to spot red flags may prove helpful in knowing when to pull out of a discussion or for negotiating a more equitable transaction.

President and CEO of Kleinschmidt (Best Firm #34 Multi-Discipline for 2018), a 140-person environmental consulting firm.

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

Founder and CEO of Wright Engineers (Best Firm #1 Structural for 2018), a Vegas-headquartered firm where perfection is the goal but excellence is tolerated.

Breaking into new markets isn’t easy, but it can be done if you have a long-term, coordinated plan of attack. Following 30 years as an Army Engineer officer, I went to work as a market...

Director of Global Diversity at Perkins + Will, a 2,500-person architecture firm with offices across the world. By Richard Massey Managing Editor The Bronx, New York native Gabrielle Bullock has been the Director of Global...

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...

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...

Mergers and acquisitions, among other events, can wreak havoc on firms. Keep in mind that when faced with upheaval, different people adjust in different ways. I checked Wikipedia at the start of this article, and...

As the outlook for AEC firms remains bright and professional liability insurance rates stay competitive, the time is right to make sure your firm has adequate protection. Things are looking up for design firms. They...

President and CEO of SEPI Engineering & Construction, Inc. (Hot Firm #74 for 2017), a 350-person firm based in Raleigh, North Carolina. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “People need to feel like their work life is...

Be careful. While a design firm can retain its copyrights by contract, the firm can just as easily give those rights away – by written contract. Design professionals are, traditionally, reluctant to give up ownership...

Founder and president of Gunda Corporation (#32 Hot Firm for 2017), a 60-person engineering consulting firm based in Houston. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “I’m not a big fan of utilization rates,” Gunda says. “I believe...

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

Review and understand any new or enhanced supplemental coverages available under your policy and note those most timely and valuable to your firm. Design firms may want to double-check their professional liability insurance policies for...

There are a few ways to transition out of your firm. The internal transition is popular because it has great value and keeps the firm going. At some point in every A/E firm owner’s business...

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...

Autonomous vehicles are on the way, and when they arrive, parking decks will increasingly become obsolete, and will need to be repurposed. Cars that can drive themselves, using radar, LIDAR, and other imaging devices will...

CEO of The Thrasher Group (Hot Firm #77 for 2016), a 350-person architecture, engineering, and survey consulting firm based in Bridgeport, West Virginia. “By definition, a good project manager is someone who delivers. Period,” says...

President and CEO of Wade Trim (Hot Firm #76 for 2017), a 500-person multidisciplinary engineering and consulting firm based in Detroit. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Organic growth is going to become more difficult as recruiting...

Branding, education, a low barrier to entry, and the creation of fans are all part of it, so what are you waiting for? I rejoined Zweig Group more than three years ago after an almost...

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

President of Wakefield Beasley & Associates (Hot Firm #14 for 2016), a 165-person architectural design firm based in Alpharetta, Georgia. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “We are a fast-paced, high-performance company, and underperformers are detrimental to...

Success in recruiting is relational, not transactional, so keep those contacts warm and be prepared to wait for that all-star to join your team. Last year I had the privilege of watching the courting of...

What does your contract say about the ability to recover legal fees or staff time incurred to recover unpaid fees? Good question, huh? Two recent cases show that architects with good contracts can recover not...

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...

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

One of the best things we can do as leaders is create more leaders, but to be effective, the effort must be deliberate. It’s a rare organization that succeeds without a solid succession plan identifying...

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...

President and CEO of Hargrove Engineers + Constructors, a Mobile, Alabama-based company with 1,200-teammates in 11 states. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent For Hargrove, success starts with company culture. In fact, he says, culture to a...

Chairman and CEO of Maser Consulting P.A. (#12 Best Firm Multidiscipline and #16 Hot Firm for 2016), a 650-person firm with 22 offices across eight states. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “The most important formula for...

Open book management is a big card to play, but it puts everyone on your team at the table, and that’s where you want them to be. One of the trendier ideas in management consulting...

So you’re thinking about acquiring an A/E firm? You’ve got a lot of questions to ask yourself, and you need to have honest answers. In a recent article, I wrote about how important it was...

HELIX CEO Michael Schwerin headed into the New Year with double-digit profits and a strong book-to-bill ratio. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent In 2001, Michael Schwerin started as an assistant environmental planning group manager with HELIX...

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...

2016 was quite a year for the AEC industry and for Zweig Group as well. Merger and acquisition activity, and interest in the subject, has never been higher than it is right now. Our firm...

If improperly worded, they not only can shift significant risks, but do so in ways that leave design professionals exposed to potentially large claims. A critical component of effective risk management for design firms involves...

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...

Building a relocation program to recruit and retain talent in the design industry should be a primary focus of any sound HR program. You’ve been there before. You’ve spent time sourcing, researching, and recruiting the...

By Mark Zweig | Those who are called “principal” should be cognizant of several important aspects of their roles. Here are a few of them.

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...

Florida multidiscipline firm Kisinger Campo and Associates, with four decades under its belt, knows how to treat clients and employees. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent Kisinger Campo and Associates (Tampa, FL), a multidisciplinary engineering firm of...

If the recent case of NBA superstar Kevin Durant can teach us anything, it’s that the recruitment of rare talent takes an equally rare effort. The NBA free agency period that recently unfolded was quite...

Complex redevelopment of a blighted area prompts team to be creative across the board – design, personnel, technology, and funding. While having a glass of wine with colleagues from New York, we reflected on the...

Did your interns live the dream? If so, great, but if not, it might be time to retool your program by taking these six simple steps. As a communications major with an interest in broadcast...

The subject never gets old and you can't talk about it enough. Collecting money. Architects and engineers are horrible at it! There are several reasons for this problem, including: ‎Poor self-image. If you don't think...

Creating a hybrid seller-doer team comprised of business development people and technical experts is a good way to win new work. As few as 25 years ago, our industry relied almost exclusively on relationships as...

Even minor changes in contract language can create major liability and insurance issues for design firms, so be aware of what’s out there and act accordingly. Today’s contracts involving design firms and owners, project managers...

In a recent article, I wrote about how important it was to prepare your firm for sale even if you are not thinking about an external ownership transition. You can read that article here. This...

If a firm wants to succeed at a high level, it must keep a keen eye on the documents, and have an ear for what the client needs. It’s my experience that too many firms...

New Recruitment and Retention Survey sheds light on key issues in finding, hiring, and keeping the best talent in the design industry. One thing I enjoy about working here at Zweig Group is that we...

The inaugural Cell Phone & Mobile Devices Spotlight Survey of A/E/P & Environmental Consulting Firms was released April 6 by Zweig Group, the architecture, engineering, planning and environmental consulting industry’s go-to resource for management research,...

‘Job Descriptions & Organizational Charts’ Offers Two AEC Resources for Price of One Fayetteville, AR – March 23, 2016 — Zweig Group’s newest managerial resource, Job Descriptions and Organizational Charts for A/E/P & Environmental Consulting...

M&A really isn’t all about the valuation and the payout terms. For sellers, there is usually a strong emotional attachment to the company that they’ve devoted years, resources, and their career to growing. A concern...

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...

Several organizations have found that bringing financial management staff onto the project management team results in heaven-sent synergies. In Zweig Group’s consulting practice, we see many firms grapple with the interface between project managers and...

Diverse firms can implement rules-of-thumb to establish priorities and see results for years to come. By Andrea Bennett Managing Editor A/E/P and environmental firms have several items on their to-do lists at any given time:...

Five things that differentiate entrepreneurs from the rest of the people in the world. I was watching a show on Netflix the other night with my eight-year-old daughter. It was all about humans with superhuman...

Being treated as a second class employee, independent of rank, is very demoralizing, Mark Zweig writes. The other day I stopped to talk with ZweigWhite’s CPA, who was meeting with our in-house accountant – a...

Costs add up, sometimes alarmingly, so be sure to discuss reimbursements. Everyone says they don’t want to nickel and dime their client and yet getting paid for doing work and providing service is the reality...

Mark Zweig lists seven concerns, so it’s time to act. With the construction economy roaring back, it’s interesting to me to see some A/E and environmental firms cashing in on it and others that still...

By W. Hobson Hogan Principal, ZweigWhite Consulting In today’s environment, many firms believe that they must become more diversified and larger to compete. In most cases, firms turn to mergers and acquisitions as a way...

This article first appeared in The Zweig Letter (ISSN 1068-1310) Issue # 991 Originally published 1/28/2013 When the sky is a different color on the other side, the likelihood of coming to an agreement is...

By Christine Brack Principal, Business Planning Consulting Many firms are glad to be leaving 2011 behind and are casting a warmer, more positive outlook to the New Year. Other firms claim they enjoyed moderate success...

Press Release: October 28, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (October 28, 2011) – To recognize philanthropic efforts and acknowledge those in the A/E industry who are making a difference for the greater good, ZweigWhite and Deltek, Inc....

Press Release: October 18, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (October 18 , 2011) – The fastest growing firms in the design industry are relying on traditional methods to achieve marketing results. According to the ZweigWhite’s 2011-12 Successful...

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...

By Tracey D. Jeffers Cash and accrual methods each have their pluses and minuses. Editor’s note: This is the second of a two-part series. In her first article (The Zweig Letter, Feb. 21, issue 899)...

Press Release: December 30, 2010 The down economy presents many real estate options for the small business owner; but the tight A/E/P and banking climate might prove too difficult for many businesses to grasp the...

A “gloom and doom” economic outlook is still seen by many in the A/E and environmental business, even after the recent pronouncement that the recession officially ended in June 2009. This offers opportunities— as well...

When business starts hurting, employee morale suffers immediately. Employees who are laid off can become disgruntled, and the ones remaining start wondering if they’re next out the door, which often degenerates into an awful work...

As I begin to write this article I am sitting at “The Tournament of Kings” show at The Excalibur in Las Vegas with my two oldest daughters. Earlier today we finished off the 10th annual...

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...

The other day, I was standing in the front yard of a house I am redoing in Fayetteville. A woman from down the street came walking up to me, saying, “Mark, Mark— I have a...

Just about anything you read nowadays for our business mentions the top concern of firm owners everywhere is finding and keeping good people. Finding good people is never easy. Nor is it the topic of...

After 26 years of immersion in A/E/P and environmental firms, it has come to my attention that one thing probably holds more firms back from achieving their potential more than anything else: the owners’ fear....

The year is barely underway, and I am already hearing complaints from A/E/P and environmental firm owners: It’s time to be more profitable! This will sound like a bold claim. But the truth is, I’ve...

I just got another of the many announcements that come through the ZweigWhite e-mail system today— one of our clients just bought/merged with/sold to another firm. We see so much of this that I barely...

As the economy inches its way toward improvement, we are seeing A/E/P and environmental firms rekindling their interest in merger and acquisition activities. In fact, it’s almost a mini-boom of activity that’s occurring right now....

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....

Remember the story about the emperor who had no clothes? Everyone was afraid to tell him, though, so he paraded around in the buff and made a complete fool of himself. I see the same...

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...

The idea came to me at 3:50 p.m. on Sunday, January 2, 2000. It was a balmy afternoon here in the Boston area— temperatures in the 60s, sunny and bright. I took out my wife’s...

I just got back from a College of Business Advisory Board meeting at my alma mater, Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. Thanks to the State of Illinois, I got my BS and MBA degrees...

If you ask me, a good deal of success in work (and in life) comes from doing what you need to do every day. If you can’t get done what should have been done today,...

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,...

We just got back from the 15th Annual Inc. 500 Conference and Award Ceremony held in Philadelphia. Zweig White & Associates made it onto Inc. magazine’s list of 500 fastest-growing privately held firms for the...

We hear it a lot these days: “We can’t compete with the five-man firm across town— they’ll do the job for half what we charge,” or, “How can a big firm like ZH43C do that...

Mention “human resources management,” and too many principals and managers working in A/E/P and environmental firms will turn their noses up. They immediately associate it with benefits administration or eight-page performance appraisal forms, instead of...

One of the great things about the A/E/P and environmental consulting business is that it always provides you with a challenge. Right now, many firms are feeling particularly stressed— with a higher than normal workload,...

A/E/P and environmental consulting firms have a huge problem when it comes to retaining their best and brightest people. It’s not unusual for us to get a consulting project with a new client, and to...

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...

Let me tell you a little story about two managers. Both head divisions for the same large, international engineering and environmental company. By most any standard, one of the two, who we’ll call “Jed,” is...

Deciding how to reward principals is a perennial problem. Spread out the rewards equally, and one principal is bound to feel cheated while another principal gets more than he deserves. Vary the compensation of principals,...

From time to time, architects and other design professionals all come under fire from the business types for not being sufficiently “business-minded.” And, the standard line of defense from those under attack is “I didn’t...

No small company— particularly an architecture, consulting engineering, or environmental consulting firm— can afford to ignore cash flow. Consider that a firm billing $5 million a year in fees can raise $137,000 in operating capital...

Everyone knows the old adage: “You have to spend money to make money.” But who follows it? Take the example of two of my wife’s friends. Both are smart, educated, and come from good families...

Several recent experiences with consulting engineering firms lead me to believe that it’s time all of us looked at our compensation schemes and put some incentive back into the business— especially for principals. The desire...