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O P I N I O N
Strong financial outlook
Survey data from Zweig Group’s 2019 Financial Performance Survey of AEC Firms indicates strong financial performance industry-wide.
Z weig Group’s annual Financial Performance Survey of AEC Firms , released in April, identified a strong positive trend in multiple key financial indicators, including profit, revenue, staff growth, and backlog.
The survey gathered data on financial metrics and methodologies from AEC industry firms of varying sizes, types, and markets across the United States. With many leaders in the industry reporting difficulties in recruiting, average staff growth was 2.5 percent industry-wide. Firms on the West Coast and in the Mountain region reported averages of more than 5.5 percent and fast growth firms reported an average of 10.3 percent. Staff turnover (voluntary and involuntary) was an average of 13.6 percent industry-wide, with higher numbers reported in architecture firms, firms of all types in the Mountain and South Central regions, firms with stable or declining growth, and, no surprise, firms experiencing low profit or losses. Median pre-tax, pre-bonus profit on net service
revenue was almost 14 percent this year, well above pre-recession levels, and an increase from 12.7 percent last year. The profit metrics have remained on a generally overall upward trajectory since 2013. “With many leaders in the industry reporting difficulties in recruiting, average staff growth was 2.5 percent industry wide.” Net service revenue per full-time employee also continues to rally. AEC industry firms are now generating a median of almost $150,000 per full- time employee – an all-time high. Profit generated
Christina Zweig Niehues
See CHRISTINA ZWEIG NIEHUES, page 4
THE ZWEIG LETTER May 27, 2019, ISSUE 1298
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