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Set the vision: Eric Baltzell CEO of Garmann Miller (Minster, OH), a multi-discipline design firm that impacts communities through dedicated service and smart design.
By LIISA ANDREASSEN Correspondent
G armann Miller is one of the largest architectural and engineering firms in Ohio. Baltzell started with the company nearly 20 years ago as an electrical engineer, and mainly attributes its growth and success to company culture. “I, along with our board of directors, need to set the vision and the example,” Baltzell says. “I have to follow through on our why, which is to impact communities through dedicated service and smart design. My goal is to motivate our people to join me in that journey. I try to be that steady voice, reminding them who we are, why we do what
engineer hired. A month later, I was able to get our now COO, Chris Monnin, to join me at Garmann Miller. I was electrical and Chris was mechanical, and we led our departments, working hand in hand with its founders, Brad Garmann and Bruce Miller. A succession discussion took place for the long-term, and I was voted CEO, and Chris, COO. We began our roles in early 2017. When it comes to challenges, you can’t compare anything to what we’ve experienced in 2020. We’ve had to be flexible and try our best to adapt to the changes, which we are still doing on a daily basis. My approach is to provide clarity to our team and effectively communicate the plan and procedures we put in place. TZL: How has COVID-19 impacted your firm’s policy on telecommuting/working remotely? EB: We already had a process in place prior to COVID-19 for working remotely, which included converting our team from desktops to laptops. Having three offices now, we needed to have that remote aspect for our team, and we invested in technology to make that possible. It wasn’t
we do, and where we’re going.” A CONVERSATION WITH ERIC BALTZELL.
The Zweig Letter: Tell me a little about your path to being CEO. When did you become CEO? Since being CEO, what’s been your greatest challenge and how was it solved? Eric Baltzell: I started with the firm in 2001 as its first
THE ZWEIG LETTER MAR
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