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will have a truncated learning and training experience. Their counterparts will get more experience, learn more, and build stronger relationships, and be at an advantage over them. We believe that any firms that embrace remote working on a large scale for long-term solutions will not be as well positioned, with experienced staff, to serve their clients. We have not changed any policies for that beyond the COVID needs. TZL: When did you become president? What was your role prior to that and when did you start with the company? KE: It became official in January 1992, but it was decided a couple of years earlier as a part of our transition planning. That gave me lots of time to learn the role. I started with FEH Design in September 2011 by starting a branch office in my home. We built the office one staff member at a time as we grew our client base. Within six months we landed a $30 million project. I have managed this office since then. TZL: How much time do you spend working “in the business” rather than “on the business?” KE: Even though I serve as president, I spend most of my time serving our clients or getting new clients. Our leadership culture at FEH Design has always been that way. We are all architects, and we love the work. TZL: Trust is essential. How do you earn the trust of your clients? KE: Honest communication is the base of any relationship. Some grey hair is one way, but real experience and friendship is better. Friendship is built on trust. If you make a sale for a project, you can make some money, but if you make a friend, you can earn a fortune in every way. TZL: What’s your overall, number one priority for the firm right now? KE: Like most other firms, staffing is critical. We lost a few staff due to retirements and transition to other firms recently, so we are building an elite team across our four locations. The integration of key staff at appropriate office locations keeps us all focused on a single entity/one company mindset. That is a key to sustaining our 125-year-old firm. TZL: Diversity and inclusion are lacking. What steps are you taking to address the issue? KE: Diversity is all relative. Things are a lot different than they were 40 years ago. When I graduated from college, there were no female architecture students in my class. They had
either dropped out, went to another school, or changed majors. There were, however, many nationalities represented. Twenty years ago, I served on an advisory council for a college of architecture. We recognized that we could not hire for diversity as a profession unless a diverse population was graduating from colleges. At the university advisory council, it became clear that we could not recruit a diverse population of students unless those high school students saw role models and they were encouraged by practicing architects to pursue our field. We currently engage high school students through a BSA Scouts Career Exploring program and we sponsor an Explorer Post in our office to teach about architecture and engineering. In the past we have even taught architecture classes to elementary school students. There is gender equity in the firm and the ownership is balancing as well. “Architects have a habit of putting in lots of time every week. There are many factors driving that, from passion about the art of creation, to serving our clients at the highest level, to keeping our bottom line strong. Balancing that with personal time to recharge and enjoy family is critical.” TZL: What’s one of the greatest challenges you see ahead for the industry as a whole? How is your company working to meet that challenge? KE: I think an important one is creating work- life balance. Architects have a habit of putting in lots of time every week. There are many factors driving that, from passion about the art of creation, to serving our clients at the highest level, to keeping our bottom line strong. Balancing that with personal time to recharge and enjoy family is critical, especially considering all the demographic balancing in the profession. TZL: What benefits does your firm offer that your people get most excited about? KE: At the start of the year, we talked about benefits with each staff member. We wanted to be sure we were providing what people need and want. We looked at everything.
HEADQUARTERS: FEH
Design doesn’t have a
headquarters. It has four
physical locations with
owners in each.
NUMBER OF
EMPLOYEES: 47+
YEAR FOUNDED: 1898
OFFICE LOCATIONS:
■ ■ Sioux City, IA
■ ■ Des Moines, IA
■ ■ Dubuque, IA
■ ■ Oconomowoc, WI
MARKETS: All
SERVICES:
■ ■ Architecture
■ ■ Interior design
■ ■ Structural
See STEWARD OF THE FIRM, page 8
engineering
© Copyright 2022. Zweig Group. All rights reserved.
UNE 6, 2022, ISSUE 1444
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