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  “Say yes as much as you can when you’re young so that you can balance things a little better when you’re older.” Sondra Rotty Sondra Rotty is the newly elected president and COO of...

By Ying Liu | Ownership mindset starts before equity, with the clarity, trust, and responsibility people need to lead like owners.

By Richard McCree Jr. | A century of success is built on daily decisions, disciplined leadership, and an unwavering commitment to doing things the right way

By Kraig Kern | AEC firms excel at solving known problems, but creativity is what reveals the opportunities and risks no one sees.

By Ricardo Jesús Maga Rojas | The middle is where emerging talent either grow into leaders or quietly disengage.

By Daryl Simons Jr. | If your retention strategy relies on appreciation events instead of competitive pay, you are already losing talent.

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

By Matt Cooper | AEC firms face a middle management gap, but technology can empower PMs, boost efficiency, and accelerate talent development.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO and president of Drummond Carpenter, a service-disabled veteran-owned small business specializing in civil, environmental engineering, and applied research.

By Kyle Ahern | Recent survey data reveals a surprising dip in satisfaction among mid-career professionals.

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 Daryl Simons Jr. & Jeremy Clarke | Rather than a liability, these candidates could offer an opportunity to uncover exceptional talent.

By Anastasia Welch | Transforming team dynamics and strategies for improved leadership skills, operations, and project implementation, leading to business success.

By Sam Graves | Effective team management involves setting clear expectations, equipping and empowering members, and fostering engagement and evaluation.

By Mark Zweig | Firm owners should consider adding key employees to ownership for motivation, transition planning, and financial strength – before it’s too late.

By Kevin Brown | Five resume red flags to help AEC firm recruiters identify and set apart the best applicants from the rest.

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

In this episode of the Zweig Letter podcast, host Randy Wilburn welcomes Dave Witsken, CEO of UES, to delve into the secrets behind the company's string of accolades as a "Hot Firm." Dave's insights give...

By Jayna Duke | Reflections from a new principal on unexpected challenges, uncharted opportunities, and what it really takes to earn the title.

By Janki DePalma | Leadership must communicate work meaning and impact in order to foster employee engagement and understanding of individual contributions.

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 Liisa Andreassen | Senior principal and president of 19six Architects (San Luis Obispo, CA), one of the oldest and most established architectural firms in California.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Michael Graves Architecture, an innovative architecture and design company that provide services around the world for clients in multiple industries.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Schaefer (Cincinnati, OH), a firm that provides all aspects of structural engineering across a broad range of projects and industries.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of Verdantas (Dublin, OH), an environmental, engineering, and technical consulting company with global perspective.

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal and chief engineer at Hayduk Engineering, a multidisciplinary consulting engineering firm specializing in civil and wastewater engineering.

By Eric Wilson | With the right set of values and organizational alignment, you may find yourself in a positive feedback loop where shared principles guide you toward collective goals.

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal at JQ (Dallas, TX), a team of professionals providing structural and civil engineering, geospatial, and facility performance services within a diverse group of markets.

By Liisa Andreassen | Senior vice president of AFG Group, Inc., a woman-owned firm with 30 years of experience providing program, project, construction, and relocation management services.

By Liisa Andreassen | Project director at OBMI (Miami, FL), a leading global master planning, architecture, and design firm that has been creating timeless spaces for 85 years.

By Matt Hoying | Open up and embrace full company transparency, not just financial, to enhance your firm’s culture.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of DOWL, LLC, a firm that offers a wide range of engineering services to public and private clients, from the Arctic Ocean to the Rio Grande.

Ken Siebert, CMTA, is the recipient of the 2022 Jerry Allen Courage in Leadership Award, which recognizes outstanding accomplishments through leadership in the AEC industry.

By Liisa Andreassen | Partner at Orcutt | Winslow (Phoenix, AZ), a design firm that aspires to positively disrupt architecture through innovation, experimentation, and invention.

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 Tim Spence | With a clear purpose, empowered professionals, and a drive for ongoing development, design firms can motivate all of their employees to row together.

By Alan Lloyd | With all the discussion about the “great resignation,” why isn’t anyone talking about the employees that aren’t jumping ship?

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

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

By Liisa Andreassen | Principal at VMDO, an architectural planning and design firm that creates community-centered environments that connect people and place through design.

By Liisa Andreassen | Founder of Trahan Architects, a global architecture firm that mobilizes artistry and innovation to develop thoughtful structures that enhance quality of life.

By Mark Zweig | These are some of the most important qualities to look for in a potential business partner.

By Liisa Andreassen | Managing principal of RDLR Architects (Houston, TX), a community-driven architectural firm that is recognized throughout Texas.

By Matt Hoying | Getting new employees in the door is just the start – onboarding and training compel them to stay.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of LaBella Associates (Rochester, NY), a firm with diverse service offerings that can address any aspect of the built or natural environment.

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

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Dewberry (Fairfax, VA), a nationwide planning, design, and construction firm with more than 50 locations and more than 2,000 professionals nationwide.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of Lord Aeck Sargent (Atlanta, GA), an architecture and design firm with a history of creating environments people want to use and preserve.

By Liisa Andreassen | President of KSA (Longview, TX), an industry leader that provides a broad range of engineering, architecture, planning, surveying, and construction management services.

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.

President of Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam (Houston, TX), a civil engineering firm that delivers exceptional quality and measurable value for the nation’s infrastructure.

By Liisa Andreassen | Co-owner of UMA Geotechnical Construction (Colfax, NC), an experienced design-build, geotechnical contractor with a proven record of performance in diverse soil conditions.

By Liisa Andreassen | President at FitzGerald (Chicago, IL), a nationally recognized architecture firm with roots dating back more than 100 years.

President and CEO of Blueline (Kirkland, WA), a firm that’s committed to building relationships, enhancing communities, and improving lives.

By Mark Zweig | Ed Friedrichs, former president and CEO of Gensler, truly understood strategy and how all the pieces of a business fit together into a cohesive whole.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of CallisonRTKL, a global firm that has created some of the world’s most successful environments for developers, retailers, investors, institutions, and public entities.

AUSTIN – (May 3, 2021) — STG Design, an integrated architecture, interiors, and planning firm transforming businesses through design, announced that Sandra M. Parét (AIA, IIDA) has been named Chief Executive Officer for the firm,...

By Liisa Andreassen | President of BranchPattern (Overland Park, KS), a building consultancy dedicated to creating better built environments through its many interwoven specialties.

By Liisa Andreassen | CEO of Hardesty & Hanover (New York, NY), a world-renowned full-service engineering firm with more than 130 years of experience.

By Mark Zweig | An enduring firm will be worth much more – through an internal or external sale – than one where some of these issues are not addressed.

By Jamie Claire Kiser | The decisions firms make today will determine the talent available for the next professional generation.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Fuss & O’Neill (Manchester, CT), a company that – since its founding in 1924 – has grown to include 10 regional offices, one LLC, and more than...

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.

By Liisa Andreassen | President and CEO of Bala Consulting Engineers (King of Prussia, PA), a multi-disciplined design firm with an environment designed for relationships to thrive and careers to flourish.

Positively impact your firm’s retention rates by turning abstract ideas into actionable goals.

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.

Partner at LERA Consulting Structural Engineers (New York, NY), a firm that has created innovative, yet constructible and economical structural designs since 1923.

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 of RJN Group (Wheaton, IL), a firm that is passionate about the environment, committed to community, and devoted to the welfare of its employees.

Owner and managing partner at Batture, LLC (New Orleans, LA), a firm dedicated to delivering outstanding results while creating powerful social and environmental change.

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.

The 2019 winner of the Jerry Allen Courage In Leadership Award is Paul Greenhagen! Paul joined Westwood Professional Services in 1987 on a field survey crew. He is a “man of the people” who worked...

It’s important to revisit your purpose and values statements from time to time to make sure they still hold true for your firm.

Founding principal of Kudela & Weinheimer (Houston, TX), a landscape architecture firm that has produced beautiful, exceptionally built environments for more than 25 years.

Managing principal of Woodblock Architecture (Portland, OR), a firm that sees each new project as an opportunity to create something awesome and build new relationships.

Chairman and CEO of Mabbett & Associates, Inc. (Bedford, MA), a verified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business.

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.

Recent data shows that over 80 percent of AEC firm owners are now over the age of 50. In response to aging workforce and market demands, Zweig Group announces a cross-functional focus on mergers and...

CEO of Sambatek (Minneapolis, MN), a professional services firm with an authentic culture that promotes openness, transparency, and trust.

By Christina Zweig Niehues | A good incentive compensation program needs to be carefully matched with the specific goals of your firm.

CEO of EDiS (Wilmington, DE), a fifth generation family-owned firm that has been thriving in the same region for more than a century.

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.

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

CEO of Caldwell Associates, a firm that’s not afraid to fail, and that’s strong enough to pick up and keep going.

In any business, there are good risks and bad risks. Find out which ones are right for you.

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

Getting a better handle on your data helps you identify what your firm is truly good at, and where the highest profits are.

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

President of JBCI, a small, but venerable, repair and restoration firm based in Philadelphia.

President of JCJ Architecture, a local, national, and global architecture, planning, and interior design firm based in Hartford, Connecticut.

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

If you want to run a successful firm, there are employees you just have to keep. But in other instances, turnover can be a good thing.

Portland office leader for PCS Structural Solutions believes in the legacy of engineering as a community builder.

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.

Chairman, CEO and President of Woolpert (Hot Firm #18 for 2018), an 800-person national architecture, engineering and geospatial (AEG) firm based in Dayton, OH. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “I would say moving through our minority...

“It’s crucial that the individual manager work hard to gain acceptance. Not doing so will almost inevitably lead to getting shot in the back.” While it’s best if you can promote from within, there are...

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...

People have passed down their history and culture through the telling of stories for millennia. Why not do the same for your firm? I have the unique experience of working for KSA – except for...

CEO of Ware Malcomb (Hot Firm # 21 for 2017), a 440-person international design firm based in Irvine, California. By Liisa Andreassen Correspondent “Succession planning has been an important part of our culture for more...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (June 25) – Zweig Group recently deepened its bench with the addition of Bill Fox, who brings a wealth of expertise in small-business administration, financial management, and strategic planning to the firm’s full-service...

Zweig Group offers plenty of opportunities for education and training, but among the crown jewels are The Principals Academy and CEO Roundtable. If you work in the AEC industry, it almost goes without saying that...

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...

If you’re a CEO, you need to take a good look at your team. Their passion projects outside of work could end up being multipliers for your firm. The title printed on my business card...

Will Swearingen Director of Research Zweig Group recently released the 2018 Salary Survey of Engineering Firms. This survey is published as three different regional collections: Northeast and South Atlantic, Central, and Mountain Pacific. Go West,...

President and founder of McCarthy Engineering Inc. (Hot Firm #74 for 2016), a 41-person firm based in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. “Our philosophy is that no one can be perfect on their own, but together as a...

Could it be your final act of leadership? If you are a CEO or partner and do not have it, please consider changing the scenario. The A/E/P and environmental consulting industry has many unique qualities,...

Transparency, training, and feedback are all important, but so is remembering that people don’t live to work, they work to live. In recent TZL articles you’ve heard my thoughts about sharing the company’s financial results...

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...

President and CEO of EAPC Architects Engineers (Marketing Excellence #3 Website and #1 Holiday for 2017), a 140-person firm based in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Editor’s note: EAPC, founded in 1967, is celebrating its 50th...

CEO of BIG RED DOG Engineering & Consulting (Best Firm Multi-discipline #47 and Hot Firm #65 for 2017), a 105-person multi-discipline engineering firm based in Austin, Texas. By Richard Massey Managing Editor “As individuals and...

The transition from boomers to millennials is going to happen anyway, so put in a good-faith effort and make it a positive experience. By 2020, 50 percent of the U.S. workforce will be millennials. In...

1. 2017 is going to be a fantastic year for hair pieces, but pant suit sales will plummet. 2. We are already seeing firms in hot markets forget what the recession was like – people...

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...

Dear Christy, I have a son who is in engineering school. I'd really like to have him join our firm and eventually succeed me in running this business. How do you suggest I make that...

How we approach the decision process is as important as the decision itself. We all make dozens of decisions each day. Some are relatively simple, such as which shirt to wear in the morning. Others...

Rapid hiring during the recovery has changed the complexion of many firms The rapid recovery in the A/E industry has led to unprecedented growth for many firms. Most firms have rebounded, surpassing their pre-recession revenue...

Bill Murphey has joined Zweig Group as the new director of education. This new role will strategically expand Zweig Group’s seminars, webinars, and other forms of education. Additionally, Murphey brings experience that will aid Zweig...

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (Sept. 18, 2015) – Bill Murphey has joined Zweig Group as the new director of education. This new role will strategically expand Zweig Group’s seminars, webinars, and other forms of education. Additionally, Murphey...

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...

Mark Zweig offers remembrance on passing of dear friend and firm leader Joe Lalli. We lost a great leader, design professional, and friend with the passing Joseph J. “Joe” Lalli, FASLA, in Fort Lauderdale on...

Mark Zweig lays out the steps you must take to create a successful organization. Also, be a real leader. One of the most important jobs any leader has is that of building their team. Yet...

By Ed Friedrichs Chairman, ZweigWhite When I was CEO of Gensler I was often asked how I kept track of it all. At the end of my tenure, we had 2,400 people in 25 offices...

Press Release: June 17, 2011 FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (June 17, 2011) – ZweigWhite is proud to announce the addition of Stephen C. Evans, AIA, NCARB, as the firm’s new director, Operations Consulting. Evans is the current...

Summer’s here. Our local swimming hole— “Farm Pond”— in the town I live in (Sherborn, Mass., pop. 4,300) is also a social gathering spot. Late in the afternoon and on weekends you’ll see all of...

A lot of firms are successful right now. But the question they should ask themselves as the new year approaches is, “Are we successful because of what we are doing as management, or in spite...

There’s a good article in the September 9, 1996, edition of The Wall Street Journal, entitled “How to Survive When I Take the Reins.” It’s in the “Manager’s Journal” section and was written by Albert...