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ON THE MOVE THOMAS & HUTTON NAMES NEW SHAREHOLDERS Thomas & Hutton has announced the addition of two new company shareholders: Cecilia Arango, CPSM and Brian Riley. Chief operating officer and senior vice president Ben Jones states, “For 77 years, Thomas & Hutton continues to focus on growth and sustainability, and ownership transition is an integral part of our plan. We are excited to welcome Cecilia and Brian as shareholders at Thomas & Hutton. With both having over 20 years of experience at the firm, their outstanding performance and steadfast loyalty continue to propel Thomas & Hutton forward.” Arango is a Certified Professional Services Marketer and oversees the marketing, communications, and community relations for Thomas & Hutton’s 10 regions in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee. She earned her B.A. in English Communications and received this year’s 2023 Georgia Southern University Alumni Association’s George & Lucy Armstrong Award. Cecilia began her career at Thomas & Hutton as an intern in 2001 and upon graduation, transitioned full-time to the marketing department. Today, she leads company- wide marketing strategy and operations as the marketing manager.
As a past Georgia Trend’s 40 Under 40, Cecilia is an alumnus of Leadership Georgia, Leadership Southeast Georgia, and Leadership Savannah. She is passionate about service to the community and currently serves on various boards and committees including United Way of the Coastal Empire Campaign Cabinet and Marketing Committee, Savannah Sports Council, TEDxSavannah, Society of Marketing Professional Services, Leadership Southeast Georgia, and the Georgia Economic Developers Association. She enjoys being on the stage as an actress, singer, and performer and names the historic Hyundai Community Celebration a career highlight serving as its Mistress of Ceremonies. An avid runner, Cecilia is over halfway done on her quest to run a marathon in each state and is the founder of a running book club: Read, Run & Rant. Brian Riley is a Civil Group Leader and Senior Project Manager in our Charleston region. He attended the University of South Carolina and began his career with Thomas & Hutton in 1998 as a land surveyor before transitioning into a construction administration role followed by civil designer and became a project manager in 2005. In 2006, Brian relocated to Wilmington, North Carolina, to establish Thomas & Hutton’s
presence in the North Carolina market before returning to Charleston in 2012. Over the course of his 25-year career, Brian has played an integral role in the success of numerous projects in South and North Carolina, notably Daniel Island, Carnes Crossroads, Brunswick County Parks, and Holden Beach Middle School. He currently oversees a group of project managers and designers that work on a vast array of projects including residential, commercial, and industrial developments. An alumnus of Leadership Charleston 2014 class, Brian is a current member of the Charleston Chamber and active committee participant influencing new policies related to development regulations. He enjoys an active lifestyle that includes fitness training, golf, fishing, and hunting. Brian is also active in the men’s fellowship community at Kings Cross Church. Thomas & Hutton celebrates 77 years of creating transformative communities. Founded in 1946, Thomas & Hutton is a privately held professional services company providing consulting, planning, and engineering design services related to land and infrastructure. Thomas & Hutton is located in ten regions throughout Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee.
This is how everyone can and should play a part in business development. It’s not knocking on doors that gets work every time; it’s educating and empowering your team to be part of the business development process. It’s making them aware of what your marketing and business development audience is and how they can play a small role in getting more work in the door. Lindsay Young, MBA, FSMPS, CPSM is a marketing services advisor with Zweig Group and president and founder of nu marketing. She can be reached at lyoung@zweiggroup.com. “Everyone in the company needs to be aware of the business development plan, like who the firm is targeting or in what markets they want additional work. This gives everyone the ability to be on the lookout for those clients and plant the seeds for those relationships.”
LINDSAY YOUNG, from page 7
Many times, companies send a group of employees to a golf tournament, gala, fundraising event, etc. These people are typically technical and don’t necessarily have a business development role – or they don’t think they do. As a project manager, project engineer, or superintendent, you talk to clients and prospects at these events. Make sure to listen for valuable nuggets of information about future projects or challenges they are facing in their business or industry (in other words, things that your design or construction firm could assist with!). Recently, I chatted with a superintendent of a construction company who had played in a golf tournament with some of his coworkers. After the tournament, they were having lunch and started talking to a couple other golfers at their table. During the conversation, a few questions revealed that these individuals worked at a school district this construction company was trying to get work with. Because one of the superintendents had prior knowledge of the business development plan (management had informed the team about their prospect list), he was better prepared to ask some additional questions and then pass the information along to the business development person for follow-up purposes.
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THE ZWEIG LETTER DECEMBER 11, 2023, ISSUE 1516
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