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ON THE MOVE MORRISON-MAIERLE NAMES NEW PRESIDENT/CEO AND COO Morrison- Maierle has named Arian Bloomfield and Ryan Jones as Morrison-Maierle’s new president/chief executive officer and chief operating officer. They succeed Scott Murphy and Carl Anderson, who stepped down from their respective positions on May 1, 2025.
As a 100 percent employee-owned firm, Morrison-Maierle is committed to fostering professional development from within. In its 80th year of business, Morrison-Maierle strives to provide stable and continuous professional environments for its employee-owners, clients, and communities throughout the Intermountain West.
Morrison-Maierle is an engineering firm that provides civil, mechanical, electrical, and structural engineering and surveying, planning, and environmental science services. It has 12 offices throughout the West: Great Falls, Kalispell, Helena, Missoula, Bozeman, and Billings, Montana; Casper, Cody, Sheridan, and Gillette, Wyoming; Bend, Oregon; and Spokane, Washington.
Advanced degree researchers or scientists align well, in addition to those with real-world technical and business innovations. ESTABLISHING STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) authorizes work authorization (TN visa) for Mexican and Canadian nationals in professional occupations including engineering, architecture, mathematics, and other scientific careers. With no limit on the number of visas authorized or a maximum number of years held, this option provides significant flexibility. Strengthening relationships with universities in Mexico and/ or Canada who have robust engineering, architecture, and other STEM programs may help create recruiting pipelines leveraging TN visas. Similar treaties also allow specific work authorized visa classifications for foreign nationals from Australia (E-3), as well as Chile and Singapore (H-1B1). LEVERAGING AN INTERNATIONAL FOOTPRINT. Companies with overseas entities can transfer talented employees to the U.S. with the L-1 visa. The L-1 allows current employees with at least one year’s experience with the company to transfer from the overseas entity to the U.S. based firm. This relationship can be created through acquisition or even the establishment of a new U.S. entity by a foreign parent company. THE BOTTOM LINE. Hiring international talent is not just a solution to workforce gaps, but a strategic investment. A thoughtful immigration strategy aligns workforce planning with business objectives, aimed at identifying highly skilled professionals with niche expertise while driving organization growth. For proactive planners seeking organizational agility, immigration isn’t just an HR function, it’s a competitive advantage. Businesses that critically consider how best to leverage this tool today are better positioned to win the projects of tomorrow. Nam Douglass, Esq., is a N.C. Board Certified Immigration Law Specialist and partner at Garfinkel Immigration Law Firm. Contact her at nam.douglass@garfinkelimmigration.com.
NAM DOUGLASS, from page 7
International Education. Almost 25 percent of those students were majoring in math and computer science, and nearly 19 percent were studying engineering. Further, more than 19 percent of the current STEM workforce in the U.S. and more than 50 percent of doctoral-level computer and mathematical scientists and engineers were foreign born, according to the most recent research from the National Science Foundation. Firms that strategically leverage immigration options to address labor shortfalls open global hiring channels to attract professionals who are highly qualified and skilled in their fields. WHAT OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE? ■ Recruiting talent from U.S. universities: Optional practical training (OPT) allows recent international student graduates to work for up to 12 months. Those with STEM degrees can receive an additional 24 months of OPT, meaning they are authorized to work in the United States for your firm for up to three years. During those three years, your company can consider a skilled visa option like the H-1B as well as long-term green card sponsorship to retain this new talent. ■ Skilled visas: H-1B visas are available for specialty occupations, which require a minimum of a bachelor’s degree. With a congressionally mandated limit of H-1B visas issued each fiscal year, known as the “cap,” when the demand for these visas exceeds the supply a random, computer-based lottery is required. While 20,000 slots are reserved for foreign nationals with an advanced degree from a U.S. college or university, this process is still uncertain. Additionally, if your firm works with government research organizations, nonprofit research organizations, or institutions of higher education through formal MOUs, there may be an opportunity to leverage these relationships and not be subject to the H-1B visa cap. ■ Extraordinary ability: The O-1 visa is an option for foreign nationals who possess extraordinary ability or a high level of acclaim that can be achieved through research, patent contributions, adoption of new processes or technologies, business acumen and other documented awards.
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THE ZWEIG LETTER JULY 7, 2025, ISSUE 1592
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