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ON THE MOVE AARON NELSON JOINS DEWBERRY IN DENVER, COLORADO Dewberry , a privately held professional services firm, announced Aaron Nelson, PE, has joined the firm as a business unit manager and the West water market segment leader in its Denver, Colorado, office. With more than 25 years of experience, Nelson has worked as vice president, regional area leader, and senior director of design operations for a national engineering firm. His areas of expertise include utilities performance, program management, asset and utility management, regulatory compliance, and trenchless rehab design. In his new role, Nelson will oversee a team of nearly 30 staff who provide water and wastewater services for clients in the commercial, state/local, and federal markets. “Aaron’s national experience for both federal and state and local clients makes him an ideal hire for this role as business unit manager,” says Dewberry Senior Vice President Rachel Vandenberg, PE. “Our Denver office is growing and our clients and staff require an experienced leader to drive development and support innovative thinking.” Nelson earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Old Dominion University and is an active member of the Chesapeake Water Environment Association, Virginia Water Environment Association, and the Water Environment Federation. Dewberry is a leading, market-facing firm with a proven history of providing professional services to a wide variety of public- and
private-sector clients. Recognized for combining unsurpassed commitment to client service with deep subject matter expertise, Dewberry is dedicated to solving clients’ most complex challenges and transforming their communities. Established in 1956, Dewberry is headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia, with more than 50 locations and more than 2,000professionals nationwide. WINSTANLEY ARCHITECTS & PLANNERS APPOINTS LISA MCCABE HOBBS, AIA LEED AP, TO PRINCIPAL Winstanley Architects & Planners announced that Lisa McCabe Hobbs, AIA LEED AP, has been appointed to principal of the firm. In her role as principal, she will direct and oversee the design studio’s projects and manage the day-to-day operations of the firms’ two design workshops. She is a licensed architect with more than 20 years of experience in a vast array of building types, including commercial architecture, academic institutions, residential projects, hospitality, interiors, embassy, and laboratory projects. Throughout her career, McCabe Hobbs has worked on large national and international projects, and her portfolio includes both significant adaptive reuse buildings, major existing building renovations, and new construction projects. She has been using the LEED rating system since its infancy, and is passionate about promoting principles of sound environmental design in all of her projects. She has lead several LEED certification assignments. McCabe Hobbs thrives on challenging projects
and enjoys simplifying them in the process. Her ability to undertake projects that require careful and detailed planning is notable, which makes her a great leader in the firm’s design workshop. McCabe Hobbs works with team leaders to coordinate staffing, technical resources, mentorship, and peer reviews. McCabe Hobbs was one of Winstanley Architects & Planners first employees shortly after its founding and later took a sabbatical to open her own practice before returning to the firm in 2016. Some of the projects she has worked on include the St. Elizabeths East Whitman Walker Health Medical Office building, Alpha Corporation, St. Agnes Parish in Arlington, Virginia, and many more. McCabe Hobbs will be focused on expanding the firm’s academic portfolio, which has been an area of focus and interest of hers since her early days of practice. The Winstanley team cannot be more excited that Lisa will provide much needed value in her new role as principal in the company. Winstanley Architects & Planners is an award- winning architectural and planning design studio specializing in projects of distinction from a design, cultural, environmental, and political perspective. With design workshops in Washington, D.C., and Miami, the firm is renowned for its ability to seamlessly integrate planning, architecture and interior design in projects across the academic, civic, commercial, hospitality, mixed-use, renovation/ historic preservation, and residential sectors in North America and the Caribbean.
much good. (People only retain about 5 percent of lecture training, but retain 70 percent when they practice by doing.) Sounds like practice by doing is the way to retain those dollars spent on training! Practicing and proper training could mean millions of dollars of work coming in the door just by investing a small amount of time and profit on training employees on presentation skills. Ask your technical professionals what they prefer, how often they want training, and what would make them feel most comfortable. I bet they are willing to put in the time if you make the opportunity available to them. Invest in your employees, because they will be the best return on your investment. LINDSAY YOUNG is president and founder of nu marketing. She can be reached at lindsay@numarketingllc.com. “Ask your technical professionals what they prefer, how often they want training, and what would make them feel most comfortable. I bet they are willing to put in the time if you make the opportunity available to them.”
LINDSAY YOUNG , from page 3
Investing in monthly training for technical professionals is highly recommended. At a minimum, it should take place at least quarterly. Host mock interviews in your office and have any employee who would participate in an interview be part of this training. Depending on the size of the firm, you could even split up into groups of 10-12 and practice throughout the month. You could rotate the people, so everyone has a chance to work with different people and personalities. This also promotes teamwork and builds morale within your firm. Practice makes everyone feel more comfortable. It’s also beneficial to actually hear yourself talk. Sometimes when the ideas are stuck in your head and then they come out of your mouth, it’s not necessarily what you wanted it to sound like. This is why actually presenting just like you would in an interview makes it much easier for employees to deliver. They should be comfortable and prepared. So are you wondering why I mentioned my husband at the beginning? His company doesn’t invest much in educating and training technical professionals. I hate to say it, but this lack of ongoing training is pretty common in most firms. They may hire an outside speaking consultant to come in every three or four years, but that doesn’t do
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THE ZWEIG LETTER AUGUST 16, 2021, ISSUE 1404
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