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OPINION
Bridging the gap
The future of the AEC industry depends on our willingness to meet young professionals where they are – not where we wish they were.
I t’s no secret: the AEC industry has been grappling with a talent crisis for years – and there’s little sign of that tide turning anytime soon.
The “great resignation” didn’t just spark a wave of early retirements among baby boomers during the COVID-19 pandemic – it also ushered in a new era of employee expectations. Flexibility, especially around remote work, isn’t a perk anymore. It’s the baseline. As boomers exit the workforce at an accelerating pace, Gen X – being a smaller generation – simply doesn’t have the numbers to fill the gap. That burden has increasingly fallen on millennials, many of whom are stepping into leadership roles earlier than anticipated, often without the support or experience they’d ideally have. This shift has left a noticeable gap in mid-level experience across many firms. And just as we’re trying to stabilize, the pipeline narrows even more: civil engineering program enrollment has declined significantly nationwide. The future talent pool is shrinking, and the pressure is mounting.
Enter our young professionals – late millennials and Gen Z – joining the workforce in the middle of economic uncertainty, labor shortages, and reduced mentorship opportunities. Every time generational dynamics come up in industry panels or roundtables, I brace myself. You’ve probably heard it too: “Gen Z doesn’t want to come into the office.” “They don’t have the same drive.” “All they care about is salary.” And I’ll admit, there have been moments I’ve thought the same. But then I remember what it felt like when my own generation – millennials – were painted with the same broad strokes: lazy, entitled, disloyal. The truth is, every generation has faced criticism from those before them. And yet here we are – millennials now in leadership, shaping the industry we were once said to be ruining.
Shelby Harvey
See SHELBY HARVEY, page 8
THE ZWEIG LETTER MAY 12, 2025, ISSUE 1585
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