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BUSINESS NEWS BALFOUR BEATTY COMMUNITIES TAKES HOME TOP HONORS AT 2015 PHMA AWARDS Balfour Beatty Communities , a leading provider of property management, development, and related real estate services, announced that it was hon- ored with six Professional Housing Manage- ment Association Awards for 2015. The annual awards program recognizes the outstanding achievements of those who support the hous- ing needs of military members of the Armed Services. Balfour Beatty Communities was recognized with both team and individual awards in the Military Service category for 2015, including:

Balfour Beatty Communities President, Chris Williams, said, “It is one thing to talk about the importance of creating partnerships with our military clients and providing quality housing. Our employees live by these words and I am continually impressed with their diligence in working together to create and maintain the best possible living environments for our military members and their families. To see our teams, both at an installation and individual level, be recognized by the industry is deeply rewarding and we congratulate all individuals recognized on this esteemed industry honor.”

❚ ❚ Outstanding Housing Team – Privatized Location, Air Force: Luke Air Force Base ❚ ❚ Outstanding Housing Team – Privatized Location, Army: United States Military Academy - West Point ❚ ❚ Outstanding Housing Team – Privatized Location, Navy: NAS Jacksonville ❚ ❚ Deke Giles Award – Terri Edelman, EVP Balfour Beatty Communities ❚ ❚ Outstanding Mid-level Manager – Gary Frederickson, NAS Meridian ❚ ❚ Outstanding Housing/Billeting Employee – Jessica Ennis, NS Mayport

HARGROVE, from page 3

bellwether for the industry, also cut 10,000 jobs in the fourth quarter of 2015, reported Bloomberg Business . Hargrove, of course, is no stranger to uncertain times. Dur- ing the Great Recession, the firm rallied with the implemen- tation of an across-the-board cut in compensation and ben- efits. The result, Hargrove says, is that the firm, particularly the veterans, stayed together. No mass layoffs. No mass hire when times improved. What was lost in the recession has been replaced, and in many cases, surpassed. One thing that never changed and never went away, however, was the culture of commitment. “We never quit business development, recruiting, and train- ing,” Hargrove says. “We are constantly doing those things.” The firm started out in Hargrove’s attic with about 10 other people. By 2012, the firm landed at No. 175 on Engineering News Record’s list. In 2013, the firm appeared at No. 135. The ranking improved to 115 in 2014, and then the break- through, cracking the top 100 in 2015. “Unquestionably, Hargrove’s expansion has resulted from our team being comprised of the best talent with expansive capabilities. We are always ready to compete and looking over the horizon to see what’s coming next.” In an interview last year with Business Alabama magazine, Hargrove, 58, talked about his firm’s rise to the top spot in his home state. In 2014, the firm checked in with $133 mil- lion in design fees, and by the middle of 2015, was on pace to shatter the previous year. From the comments he made to Business Alabama , Hargrove looks to have another such year in 2016. “Unquestionably, Hargrove’s expansion has resulted from our team being comprised of the best talent with expansive capabilities,” he told the magazine. “We are always ready to compete and looking over the horizon to see what’s coming next.”

Proof is in the width and depth of what the firm can do. Hargrove provides technical support, engineering, and proj- ect management services in industries including pulp, pa- per and consumer products, chemicals, petroleum refining, power generation, life sciences, and heavy manufacturing. “We never quit business development, recruiting, and training. We are constantly doing those things.” The firm started off doing the dirty work at plants that other firms weren’t doing – and in many instances, that’s still the case. But right now, Hargrove is also working on a $200-million substation revamp at a major Gulf Coast re- finery, and several $50- to $100-million chemical plant up- grades, among other projects. To keep its edge, Hargrove is constantly looking for, and hir- ing, new talent across an array of platforms. “If they’re good, we’ll find a way to get them on the bus,” Hargrove says. The firm is at the point in its development that most of the recruiting is done through referrals from clients, or, in some cases, the clients themselves are hired. New hires, if they make the cut, have to fulfill the company’s culture of relent- less, and timely, dedication to project success. “We’re not a sweatshop, but we move quickly,” Hargrove says. Due to its diversity of staff and services, Hargrove, while a large firm, is still nimble and responsive. And for a compa- ny whose sweet spot is industrial revamps, much of it in the slumping oil and gas industry, these are tricky times. According to the Houston Business Journal , Southwestern Energy Co., based in Houston, slashed more than 1,000 jobs. And according to the Journal , two Houston oil com- panies, Paragon Offshore PLLC, and Goodrich Petroleum, have recently been delisted from the New York Stock Ex- change. Oil field services giant Schlumberger Ltd., a

THE ZWEIG LETTER February 15, 2016, ISSUE 1139

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