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FORWARD THINKING, from page 7
members of our staff across the enterprise, we offered them a chance to overcome the helplessness we all experienced during the shutdown and, instead, feel like a part of the solution. Research has now become part of our DNA and we openly share it on our website as a conscious decision to help our society. TZL: How are you balancing investment in the next generation – which is at an all-time high – with rewards for tenured staff? This has always been a challenge but seems heightened as investments in development have increased. MA: The future of our industry is in the hands of our emerging leaders and some of them have not graduated college yet. We have a robust internship program that has produced many young professionals who we develop and support beyond technical skill training. The company offers numerous career training opportunities and invests heavily in internal and external programs. Our tenured staff provide experience and mentorship that is essential to developing our young talent and future leaders. These experienced tenured staff are key elements of our internal development programs. TZL: Is change management a topic regularly addressed by the leadership at your firm? If so, elaborate. MA: I often say that nothing is as constant as change and nothing is accelerating faster than the rate of change. The landscape is changing so fast that it is incumbent on us to constantly reimagine who we need to be in the future as the future is constantly upon us. Forward thinking management is in our DNA and we believe that is what most distinguishes Bala from our competition. TZL: Ownership transition can be tricky, to say the least. What’s the key to ensuring a smooth passing of the baton? What’s the biggest pitfall to avoid? MA: When you figure it out, please tell me. We started working on this five years ago in anticipation of my own retirement along with a few others right behind me. There are so many moving parts besides the financial aspects. My advice is to start earlier than you think is necessary by identifying your future leaders before they even know they are future leaders and cultivate from within. Most firms we have acquired did not address succession early enough and consequently the owners needed an exit strategy. Start early and share your ideas, your vision, and your finances by bringing in young partners that strongly align with your culture. TZL: They say failure is a great teacher. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve had to learn the hard way? MA: I firmly believe that you learn more from your failures than your successes. My best lessons came the hard way and I would say the biggest lesson learned was failing to address issues that make you feel most uncomfortable. Seek out those areas and spend most of your time in discomfort and eventually you will be comfortable there. You may not enjoy it, but you will become more comfortable facing difficulties and addressing them. This is a part of your job that you cannot delegate.
them, I most enjoy the valuable time with this emerging generation of engineers to help me understand how they think and feel as members of our society. TZL: Your bio also states that you’ve participated in International Service projects in Panama. Can you give me an example or two of projects you’ve worked on and the end result? MA: Bala is not directly involved in this program, but the firm does support my passion for Villanova’s In-Service program. Villanova invited me to accompany a student/ faculty “In-Service” team on a spring break mission to Wacucu, Panama. Once there, we worked with Father Wally Kasuboski, spending a week working on several projects for his Capuchin Mission. Father Wally, as he is affectionately known, has been there for more than 23 years working on several projects to promote health and safety for the residents of the region. His most noteworthy project is the construction, maintenance, and management of a 7,500-square-mile water system which he and his small mission personally envisioned and constructed with the help of his partnership with Villanova and Aqua America. He has also built schools, dams, bridges, and other infrastructure to foster social development of the region. “Most firms we have acquired did not address succession early enough and consequently the owners needed an exit strategy. Start early and share your ideas, your vision, and your finances by bringing in young partners that strongly align with your culture.” On my last visit just before the COVID outbreak, we worked with a team of students, professors, and alumni, trekking through the jungle, and installing air valves on the main pipeline from the Canasus Water Dam. These valves relieved the air in the system and increased the waterflow considerably to help meet the current demand. We also assisted in building foundations for a school expansion project. This was an opportunity to roll up our sleeves and work in the field without any OSHA requirements – a true gut-wrenching experience. TZL: Are you using the R&D tax credit? If so, how is it working for your firm? If not, why not? MA: Yes. We started our IDEATION initiative over a year ago which engages our entire staff in thought leadership and research that we openly share with the community on our website. Initially, our efforts were laser-focused on sustainability, but COVID offered an opportunity to engage our staff in primary research on the virus and its effect on the built environment. This led us to publish numerous whitepapers, addressing all types of building environments from offices and life care to laboratories, research facilities, and educational facilities. By engaging
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THE ZWEIG LETTER JANUARY 18, 2021, ISSUE 1375
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