TZL 1297

T R E N D L I N E S W W W . T H E Z W E I G L E T T E R . C O M M a y 2 0 , 2 0 1 9 , I s s u e 1 2 9 7

Revenue factor

Know who your people are and what they can do

I n an email to me this week, one of the more astute readers of The Zweig Letter pointed out an issue that exists in the solid majority of AEC firms: We don’t know what all the skills and interests are of those in our employ. And that’s a shame. As many of you know, I teach at the University of Arkansas. Higher education institutions may do some wacky things but not everything they do is wrong. One of the things each of us on the academic side of the house has a responsibility to do throughout the year is update a database that includes everything we have done that year. Every class taught, research study published, talk given, article where we are quoted – every award we have received, class taken, voluntary assignment performed – everything goes in that database. AEC firms need to do the same thing. It starts when people first join the firm. We have to inventory everything about them. It is so much more than registrations, education, and projects worked on. What about other skills? Foreign languages spoken? Software programs proficient in? Special areas of interest? Experience as a missionary in a foreign country? Oil painting? Poetry writing? Knowledge of how to fix bicycles? Teach yoga? Speed reading? Little league coaching? You get the idea. There’s a lot to know about your people. And we have to keep updating this information because your people are constantly changing. You don’t know when this info will come in

“There’s a lot to know about your people. And we have to keep updating this information because your

Revenue factor was calculated and analyzed among participants in Zweig Group’s 2019 Financial Performance Survey of AEC Firms . By analyzing both net multiplier and chargeability, this dual-threat statistic is a labor- related barometer of a firm’s overall performance. The overall median revenue factor of the survey sample was 1.86, a three-year high for the AEC industry. Very high profit firms greatly outpaced the field with a median revenue factor of 2.14. Participate in a survey and save $320 on any Zweig Group research publication. Visit bit.ly/TZLsp to learn more. F I R M I N D E X Ampirical.................................................6 Blackstone Environmental.......................8 BSA LifeStructures..................................4 CHA Consulting, Inc..............................10 Geosyntec Consultants.........................12 Goetssch Partners..................................4 Huitt-Zollars, Inc......................................2 Lead8. ....................................................4 William Hezmalhalch Architects, Inc.. ....12

Mark Zweig

people are constantly changing.”

MORE COLUMNS xz KEVIN TOKEN: The empowerment advantage Page 3 xz LEO MACLEOD: Waiting on the bus Page 9 xz PAM WOOD: Graphic design, by design Page 11

T H E V O I C E O F R E A S O N F O R A E C F I R M S & M A N A G E M E N T C O N S U L TA N T S Chief enthusiasm officer: Matthew Saacks See MARK ZWEIG, page 2 Page 6

IN MEMORIAM HUITT-ZOLLARS ANNOUNCES PASSING OF CO- FOUNDER ROBERT “BOB” ZOLLARS, PE, RPLS Co-founder and chairman of Dallas-based engineering and architecture firm, Robert “Bob” Zollars, P.E., RPLS, passed away in Dallas. He was 72 years old. Zollars was a tremendous leader in the firm and throughout the engineering community, and he will be dearly missed. Zollars along with partner Larry Huitt founded Huitt-Zollars, Inc. in Dallas in 1975. They grew the firm from two employees in Dallas to a nationally ranked firm of with more than 550 employees, and 20 offices across the United States. Zollars was actively involved in the day- to-day management of the firm. Zollars’ career spanned nearly five decades, most recently serving as chairman and CEO. He was also principal-in-charge and project manager for a number of the firm’s major, award- winning civil engineering projects. Zollars was personally responsible for leading engineering design and/or construction management for many significant projects that helped shape and cultivate not only the landscape of Dallas and cities across Texas and the United States, but also the engineering industry as a whole. Significant projects of Zollars’ included the Fort Bliss Expansion Program in Fort Bliss, Texas, one of the largest U.S. public works programs in the last 15 years; Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s light rail starter system; East Airfield and Apron Expansion Projects for Terminal 2E and 3E at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport; the McKinney Avenue Trolley systems in Dallas, Texas; and Stonebridge Ranch Planned Community in McKinney, Texas, the standard for master planned communities today. Zollars was passionate about helping young professionals develop their talents, flourish, and grow while embracing new challenges in engineering. Within the firm, he developed the Huitt-Zollars Leadership Class, a program aimed at mentoring young professionals. This passion for supporting young professionals was also seen in his fervent commitment to and support of education. Zollars encouraged the development of talent among young students by supporting STEM education programs at local schools. As an alumnus of SMU, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, Zollars proudly served on the Bobby B. Lyle School of Engineering Executive Board, where

he advocated for continued sustainable growth of the Lyle School, especially in the areas of endowments and research. He personally established scholarship endowments at SMU and at other universities across the country. Motivated by his love of engineering, Zollars was very active in many professional and technical societies. He was a member of and held various leadership positions for the American Council of Engineering Companies; American Society of Civil Engineers; Design Professionals Coalition; Society of American Military Engineers; Texas Society of Professional Engineers; Texas Engineering Foundation, and the City of Dallas Urban Design Advisory Committee. He also served on the Parkland Hospital Technical Advisory Committee, where he provided engineering oversight of the design and construction of the new Parkland Hospital complex in Dallas. Zollars’ involvement, leadership, and accomplishments to the engineering profession earned him numerous accolades. He was named Engineer of the Year by the American Society of Civil Engineers, Dallas Branch; Distinguished Speaker by Society of American Military Engineers, Arkansas Post; Southern Methodist University’s Distinguished Alumni; Distinguished Engineer by the Texas Engineering Foundation; and a Fellow of the Texas Engineering Foundation. Zollars’ philosophy of giving back also extended far beyond the engineering profession, and he supported and contributed to a number of organizations. He served as a Board Member of the Greater Dallas American Diabetes Association and Co-Chair of the “Stars of Texas,” an event to raise money for diabetes research. Throughout his life, he excelled in sports. Zollars kept that passion alive in his later years by supporting and attending SMU Mustangs and Dallas Mavericks basketball games. As an accomplished owner of thoroughbred race horses, he enjoyed watching several of his horses qualify and run in the Kentucky Derby and other major races across the country. He was born on June 21, 1946, in Repton, Alabama, to Marguerite and Leland Zollars. He graduated from Wray High School in Wray, Colorado, and received a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from SMU in Dallas.

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Email: info@zweiggroup.com Online: thezweigletter.com Twitter: twitter.com/zweigletter Facebook: facebook.com/thezweigletter Published continuously since 1992 by Zweig Group, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA. ISSN 1068-1310. Issued weekly (48 issues/year) $250 for one-year print subscription; free electronic subscription at thezweigletter.com/subscribe © Copyright 2019, Zweig Group. All rights reserved.

MARK ZWEIG, from page 1

handy. It may help you sell a project. It may help you do a project. It may improve your ability to successfully promote from within. It may improve your ability to help your people self-actualize and, as a result, stay with your firm longer than they would otherwise. So how does your firm stack up? Are you doing what you should to know what your people can do and what they are interested in? If not, maybe it’s time to do so! MARK ZWEIG is Zweig Group’s chairman and founder. Contact him at mzweig@zweiggroup.com.

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

O P I N I O N

The empowerment advantage

A culture of employee empowerment will define innovative, leading organizations in the years to come.

E very Ritz-Carlton employee is empowered to improve a guest’s experience. Employees can spend up to $2,000 of hotel funds to please a guest. This approach has a powerful impact on the Ritz-Carlton reputation with guests. As one Ritz-Carlton employee put it, “Sometimes the most delightful ‘wow’ moments happen in the blink of an eye. If employees are not empowered and need to cross layers of approval, these moments could be lost forever.” Our industry can learn from the Ritz and reap benefits by embracing an empowerment environment.

Kevin Token

work. People who feel responsible for their work put in extra effort. A sense of responsibility eliminates any “That’s not my job” or “She told me to send it out, so I sent it out” mentality. It spurs people to sound the alarm if they see trouble looming. ❚ ❚ Empowered employees are happier and col- laborate. Employees want responsibility, although they might not call it empowerment. Recently I had a conversation with a young architect who said, “I want to be given an objective and then given the responsibility to figure it out. I’m young and don’t know everything, but I want to collaborate to create

These are the elements of an empowerment culture: ❚ ❚ Empowerment improves the service provided to clients. Empower the person closest to the deci- sion point. If a designer in the field is asked a ques- tion, the answer to that question may impact time, money, and quality. If that designer has the author- ity and the training to answer the question without consulting others, the project can keep moving. No wonder a Gallup study found “organizations that empower employees experience 50 percent higher customer loyalty.” ❚ ❚ Empowerment improves the quality of your

See KEVIN TOKEN, page 3

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

BUSINESS NEWS LEAD8’S QIANHAI GUANZE

MIXED-USE

China, Qianhai Guanze is a 420,000 square- meter mixed-use development overlooking the Shenzhen River waterfront, integrating two Class A office towers, a five-star hotel, 50,000 square-meters of retail mall, and two serviced apartment buildings. Lead8 helmed the project masterplanning, retail architecture, interior design, and serviced apartments’ facade, in collaboration with developer Horoy Holdings. Goetssch Partners , is directing the architectural design for the two office towers and the hotel. The holistic design is the creation of a dynamic, highly visible landmark for the city. The project vision is to create a new urban destination with alternative outdoor experiences, retail, and commercial activities for the community. Embracing the city’s commitment to green design, Qianhai Guanze mixed-use development is driven by the concept of “Town-within-a-Garden,” and manifests in the form of a public urban park that helps to reconnect people with nature, while functioning as a green community asset. Green roofs and walkways, garden spaces, and landscaped plazas connect pedestrians with the outdoor environment and to the public transportation system, as well as to adjacent sites and neighbouring developments. The

five-level retail podium, connecting the office and residential towers, acts to anchor the development. “Qianhai Guanze mixed-use development creates a forward-looking identity for this new financial district,” said David Buffonge, co- founder and executive director of Lead8. “Its prominent location along Qianhai’s green belt makes the development an inspiring urban environment for living, entertaining and work in Shenzhen. We are pleased to play a part in creating this unique development that will encourage interaction between people across different spaces.” Qianhai Guanze mixed-use development is designed with an emphasis on the outdoor environment and connected living, and is due for completion in 2020. Lead8 is an international architecture and design practice driven by creativity, integrity, and excellence in design. Lead8 creates new horizons in design thinking, delivering bespoke masterplanning, architecture, interiors, and graphic design services to create world-class, cutting-edge design solutions tailored to the needs of clients and the communities projects impact.

DEVELOPMENT WINS BEST CONCEPTUAL DESIGN CATEGORY AT S.ARCH INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE AWARDS Lead8 , the award- winning international firm of architects, masterplanners, interior and graphic designers, has been awarded The S.ARCH International Architecture Award for the Best Conceptual Design Category Urban Project for its design of the Qianhai Guanze mixed-use development in Shenzhen, China. The S.ARCH International Architecture Awards recognise excellence in architecture and urbanism, architectural diversity, and exemplary sustainable architecture implementations of projects and structures around the world. Particular attention is given to building/design schemes that use local resources and innovative design solutions. “This award is such an honour for us, especially given the focus is on sustainable architecture. This is something very close to our hearts and our design philosophy at Lead8. Accepting this award for a project in Shenzhen, China, here in the heart of beautiful Havana, is also gratifying,” said Co-Founder and Executive Director Claude Touikan. Located in a new financial district in Shenzhen,

KEVIN TOKEN, from page 3

team and more quickly. The team, empowered to do whatever necessary, replaced the three-phase approach with a stream- lined process pulling necessary information from the client more efficiently. The result was a great design completed in a quarter of the anticipated time. In today’s market, things change quickly. All of us must react to market forces, current trends, and changing customer needs. In the middle of a recent project, our client changed their strategy. We went from designing a medical office build- ing to designing an entirely new hospital for the same site. We needed to respond nimbly, without the restrictions of command-and-control management. Our trusted designer couldn’t sit around waiting for a principal to make decisions. We gave the designer the authority to adapt to the changing project environment, and he came through with an innova- tive solution good for the client and the speed of the project. ❚ ❚ Empowerment results in strategic thinking. A leader who spends all his or her time “doing” isn’t spending time strat- egizing. Leaders who use a command-and-control manage- ment style end up managing details, identifying what needs to be done and how it should be done, instructing employees on what to do and how to do it, then checking to make sure it was done in the identified way. On the other hand, leaders who provide goals, guidelines, and training to do the work, find themselves with time to spend on big-picture thinking. An empowerment culture is a culture of innovation, collaboration, and success. It is not a culture that can be created overnight; it requires intention. It is the kind of culture that will allow for an enhanced client experience which may be the hallmark of the coming decade. KEVIN TOKEN is chairman and CEO at BSA LifeStructures. He can be reached at ktoken@bsalifestructures.com.

solutions. I don’t want to be told specifically what to do and how to do it.” She didn’t say the word “empowerment,” but that’s what she described. The desire to collaborate is evident in a culture of empower- ment. People approach the edge of their comfort zones then seek input from others to validate their ideas or to discover improved solutions. Consequently, an empowered staff gets results from collaboration that may be superior to solutions produced by one high-functioning brain. In addition, relation- ships and trust are built within the organization creating a positive environment. ❚ ❚ Empowerment boosts innovation and speeds up the pro- cess. When someone is given a goal and guidelines, but not told how to accomplish the task, new ideas happen. People try new things, and this can lead to a better result. As an indus- try, we are hamstrung by the phases of schematic design, de- sign development, and construction documents. In our firm, we were challenged to meet a client’s needs with a smaller “Empower the person closest to the decision point. If a designer in the field is asked a question, the answer to that question may impact time, money, and quality. If that designer has the authority and the training to answer the question without consulting others, the project can keep moving.”

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

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THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

P R O F I L E

Chief enthusiasm officer: Matthew Saacks President of Ampirical (Best Firm Multi-discipline #21 for 2018), a 200-person firm on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain.

By LIISA ANDREASSEN Correspondent

“W e learned several years ago that just adding people to the existing organization isn’t the way to grow,” says Saacks. “Instead, we had to devise and implement the processes and systems that allow a company to scale.” A CONVERSATATION WITH MATTHEW SAACKS. The Zweig Letter: There is no substitute for experience, but there is pressure to give responsibility to younger staff. What are you doing to address the risk while pursu- ing the opportunity to develop your team? Matthew Saacks: We learned several years ago that just adding people to the existing organization isn’t the way to grow. Instead, we had to devise and implement the process- es and systems that allow a company to scale. We began re- tooling our organization a couple of years ago as we expe- rienced the pains of growth, and we’re continuing to tran- sition to a team-of-teams model. Ideally, young staff that demonstrate their proficiency to technical tasks will become team leads. In this new position, they accept accountability for the output of a five- to seven-person team and report to

a manager with more than 10 years of experience. Because that manager oversees a group of teams, we can grow by further developing leads and multiplying teams – a process similar to cell division. “Employees want to feel valued, want to know that their work is important to the success of the firm, and that there is a purpose to why we do what we do. Finding ways to achieve that ideal and communicating it continually is really my primary responsibility.” TZL: Engineers love being engineers, but what are you doing to instill a business culture in your firm? MS: At the same time we implemented systems and process- es, we purchased a modular 10-portion program to increase

THE ZWEIG LETTER Ma

MS: As routine engineering becomes com- moditized, we find ourselves researching ways for technology to bring higher val- ue to our clients. We pioneered the use of 3D modeling for high voltage substations in our industry, and we have since devel- oped other tools such as a real-time proj- ect status tool for transmission line proj- ects, a cloud-based system for managing both cyber and physical assets within the same platform, and similar applications that improve the speed and quality of util- ity design work. The challenge is to dem- onstrate the tangible value these tools can bring, whether that results from faster de- sign times, reduced construction rework, eliminating trips to the field, or automat- ed portions of the design process. TZL: If the worker shortage continues, do you see wages increasing to encour- age more talent to enter the AEC space, or will technology be used to counter the reduced work force? MS: I believe supply and demand will con- tinue to cause upward pressure on wages, and this may continue to encourage more talent to enter our industry. Some of the technology we’ve developed can reduce the typical number of hours required to complete and/or manage a project and fur- ther automation could improve upon this effort. However, I also believe that our in- dustry’s talent will begin shifting toward roles such as programming, artificial intel- ligence, machine learning and the inter- pretation and management of data-inten- sive platforms as the smart grid evolves. The traditional engineering disciplines will continue to be necessary, but perhaps as a smaller percentage relative to these newer fields. TZL: The seller-doer model is very suc- cessful, but with growth you need to adapt to new models. What is your pro- gram? MS: We’re pretty well removed from the seller-doer model, having recognized more than 10 years ago that we needed profes- sional sales staff to continue our rapid growth. Our recent efforts have focused on becoming intentional about sales, so we brought in some outside expertise to develop a sales strategy, provide person- al coaching for sales staff, and even train leadership in the firm to promote a sales culture. Our aim is for everyone, whether they are a manager, an engineer, a drafter, or even biller, to recognize that the qual- ity of their work and their commitment to schedules are really our brand, and that is See CHIEF ENTHUSIASM OFFICER, page 8

the business knowledge of our technical personnel. Every employee in the compa- ny undertook the online training, covering topics from understanding financial state- ments to recognizing the drivers of prof- it fade on projects. Our goal was to have a common business vernacular that employ- ees would use to increase and maintain awareness of the non-technical aspects of the company. We also implemented enter- prise wide software that integrates nearly all of our data, from procurement and re- source planning to project management and invoicing and more, allowing us to do our best to knock down the silos that inev- itably grow along with revenue. “As the firm continues to expand, new positions open up, and having a track record of promoting from within gives employees the confidence that career growth is possible for everyone.” TZL: How do you promote young and new leaders as the firm grows? MS: One of the pleasant by-products of our firm’s growth was the frequent emergence of new opportunities and positions, and it has been satisfying to promote young pro- fessionals who have shown an aptitude for leadership into these roles. Typically, hav- ing demonstrated excellence and depend- ability in engineering roles, these em- ployees were given incremental oversight on projects, including budget and sched- ule accountability. Proficiency with those tasks led to full management responsibili- ties such as interviewing and hiring, con- ducting performance reviews, and client management. TZL: In one word or phrase, what do you describe as your number one job respon- sibility as president? MS: “Chief cheerleader” or “chief enthu- siasm officer.” Employees want to feel val- ued, want to know that their work is im- portant to the success of the firm, and that there is a purpose to why we do what we do. Finding ways to achieve that ideal and communicating it continually is really my primary responsibility. TZL: With technology reducing the time it takes to complete design work, how do you get the AEC industry to start pricing on value instead of hours?

YEAR FOUNDED: 2006 HEADQUARTERS: Mandeville, LA OFFICE LOCATIONS: 3, Mandeville, and two in California NO. OF EMPLOYEES: 198 MATT SAACKS: Saacks has more than 25 years of experience in the electric utility industry and, over the years, has practiced company management activities such as: ❚ ❚ Strategic planning ❚ ❚ Risk management ❚ ❚ Staffing analysis ❚ ❚ Cash flow management ❚ ❚ Contract review and negotiation

❚ ❚ Business development ❚ ❚ Acquisition valuation ❚ ❚ And more

THEIR EXPERIENCE: The Ampirical team possesses experience in the design of transmission projects throughout nearly the entire voltage spectrum, allowing them to position Ampirical’s services among all utilities nationwide. This experience is also complete with regard to the various design functions within a complete system, such as: ❚ ❚ Substation design ❚ ❚ Line design ❚ ❚ Relaying and SCADA design ❚ ❚ Structural design ❚ ❚ Cybersecurity

ay 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

ELEVATE / CELEBRATE BLACKSTONE ENVIRONMENTAL SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER HONORED WITH SERVICE AWARD FOR 2ND TIME Blackstone Environmental Senior Project Manager Anne Melia, CHMM, was honored with the 2018 Distinguished Service Recognition Award from the Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers, Heartland Chapter, which covers the Kansas City area. She is the first chapter member to receive the award twice – she was also a recipient in 2015. Melia has served the ACHMM Heartland

Chapter as secretary for the last four years, is an active board member and is a key contributor in the chapter’s communication, events, promotion, and recruitment. At Blackstone, Melia manages and supports projects for public, private and industrial sector clients. Her expertise includes environmental compliance and monitoring, site assessments, risk-based corrective action, permitting, solid waste planning, and hazardous waste determination and more. Blackstone Environmental is a consulting

firm comprised of engineers, geologists, hydrogeologists, and scientists specializing in many environmental and engineering fields including solid waste and landfill services, environmental assessment and design, civil engineering, energy sector, natural resources planning and permitting, and regulatory compliance. Blackstone Environmental delivers value for all services provided to its clients. Inherent in value is the integration of innovation to provide technically proficient and cost effective solutions to meet client’s needs.

CHIEF ENTHUSIASM OFFICER, from page 7

MS: Because we compete for similar talent against much larger companies, often publicly traded, we know our bene- fits must be comparable. We routinely use benchmarks and surveys to ascertain how we stack up, and accordingly, our benefit offerings have grown along with our size. We offer stipends for smartphones and health club memberships, the ability to purchase supplemental and additional life in- surance, tuition reimbursement for select education, and even access to pet insurance. More often, the result isn’t necessarily a new benefit, but perhaps an improvement to existing offerings, such as choices among types of medical plans, or immediate vesting and increased investment op- tions in the 401(k) plan. “For us, diversity is not a particular compliance threshold to achieve and then check the box, but rather it’s an ingredient of our culture to seek input from a variety of experiences, backgrounds, geography, training, and more that collectively make our company better.” TZL: How are the tariffs impacting your business and that of your clients? MS: The tariffs haven’t yet had a dramatic, direct impact on our business, but they are clearly a topic of discussion with clients. Obviously, the greater risk is to our EPC projects, and we try to have frequent and proactive discussions with our clients to keep them current with what we are hearing in the marketplace. We also maintain constant communi- cation with material suppliers and lean on the information received from their raw material vendors that forecast steel pricing indices out into the near future. TZL: Are you currently pursuing the R&D tax credit? MS: For several years now we’ve taken advantage of the R&D tax credit, and it has significantly helped us with our rapid growth. Each new hire requires a computer and furni- ture, plus significant software costs, and is paid for at least a month, all up front before we receive the first payment for those services. The tax credit allows us to recoup some of our initial investment and provides some compensation for the return on investment lag inherent in new hires.

all part of sales and marketing. We’re a service business, es- sentially selling the people that work for us, and anything we can do to take away the pain a customer experiences is our path to continued sales growth. TZL: Diversity and inclusion is lacking. What steps are you taking to address the issue? MS: For us, diversity is not a particular compliance thresh- old to achieve and then check the box, but rather it’s an in- gredient of our culture to seek input from a variety of ex- periences, backgrounds, geography, training, and more that collectively make our company better. We value diversity resulting from an engineer’s past experience with a differ- ent client or even a different industry. Some of our tech- nological advances are due primarily because we frequently recruit and hire individuals from outside of our familiar ge- ography, customer base, and market. That’s only the initial step, however; our aim is to provide an environment where all employees feel valued and confident to express opinions and ideas. As part of the retooling of our organization, we adopted a structured meeting rhythm across the company, from daily team huddles to weekly departmental meetings, to provide a thread for this input to disseminate quickly throughout all levels of the firm. TZL: A firm’s longevity is valuable. What are you doing to encourage your staff to stick around? MS: Our recruitment efforts, since day one, have stressed that we offer careers, not jobs. We want employees that tru- ly desire to be part of the future we’re trying to create, and our ownership feels a responsibility toward the families rep- resented by every employee. Therefore, our ongoing imper- ative is to continue growing to provide a long-term, bright future filled with opportunities. Certainly compensation is part of the relationship, but we also believe that flexibility in personal work schedules, options for continual training and development, professional growth through a spectrum of project responsibilities, and access to management at any level within the firm all contribute to employees remaining here. In addition, as the firm continues to expand, new posi- tions open up, and having a track record of promoting from within gives employees the confidence that career growth is possible for everyone. TZL: Benefits are evolving. Are you offering any new ones due to the changing demographic?

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

O P I N I O N

Waiting on the bus

Being cautious and reasonable about your growth plans is a smarter move than filling seats just for the sake of beefing up the org chart.

I was talking to a colleague of mine who was complaining about not having the right people in place to take the company where it wants to go. Sounds like he’s been reading Jim Collins, in Good to Great : Start by getting the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats. Hmm, great strategy. Makes a lot of sense. The problem is finding anyone half way decent these days to be on the bus.

Leo MacLeod

Good mid-level people seem to have gone into witness protection. They tend to stay where they are and get paid well. The job market is so tight few of them will be banging your door down. Even the best young people lack the knowledge and experience to tackle the big projects. Consequently, much of the work falls on the senior people to work more – a recipe for burnout and even more attrition. Firms seem paralyzed with fear that the next bust is right around the corner. They are in a mad rush to store up their nuts before the freeze. Who has time to worry about putting people in the right seats or getting rid of the dead wood? What can firms do to keep the bus moving down the road

to greatness if they’re more concerned with the wheels coming off? ❚ ❚ Keep looking. Don’t make recruiting the sole job of the HR manager and your recruiters. You have a bet- ter Rolodex. You have the relationships. You know who you want to work with. The best 15 minutes of your day can be reaching out to your network, comb- ing through LinkedIn and picking up the phone to let people know you’re looking for key people. If ev- ery person in your organization owned the urgency of recruiting, you’d make real headway. And don’t limit yourself to calling your contacts just once and then giving up. Schedule to check in every three months. You don’t need to badger them but sales is very much about timing. Everyone is looking for

See LEO MACLEOD, page 10

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

TRANSACT IONS CHA CONSULTING, INC. ACQUIRES DAEDALUS PROJECTS, INC. OF BOSTON CHA Consulting, Inc. announced that it acquired Daedalus Projects, Inc. , a project and construction management firm based in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. “Daedalus brings CHA experienced project and construction management resources that will accelerate growth in our PM/CM business and propel us further into the metro Boston market,” said Michael Carroll, CHA’s president and CEO. “This partnership is extremely positive for both companies. Our values and vision are well aligned, and I am confident that the addition of Daedalus to the CHA team will further enhance our ability to serve our clients more fully with a broader set of services and capabilities.” “The Daedalus team is very excited about the future with CHA,” said Daedalus’ President,

Richard Marks. “The partnership with CHA will provide our team with tremendous opportunities to provide our services to a greater breadth of clients. Our common commitment to excellence, quality, and client satisfaction make CHA the perfect partner for Daedalus.” CHA and Daedalus will work closely together to ensure a seamless transition for Daedalus’ clients. The two firms will also work to maximize the expertise, best practices, and experience of both firms. Daedalus joins the CHA family of companies, which include CHA Consulting, CHA Tech Services, CHA Canada, Novara GeoSolutions, American Fire, and PDT Architects. CHA Consulting, Inc. is a highly diversified, full-service engineering consulting firm which, along with its subsidiaries, provides a wide

range of technology-enhanced planning and design services to public, private and institutional clients. CHA was ranked the 33rd largest design firm in the United States in 2018 by Engineering News Record and has annual revenue of $278 million. With technical personnel and offices throughout the United States and Canada, CHA offers engineering, architectural, survey, construction, and other services necessary to complete projects on time and within budget. Daedalus Projects, Inc. is celebrating 30 years of providing superior owner’s project management and cost estimating services. Combining exceptional personal service with technical expertise, Daedalus has a strong track record of successfully delivering superior- quality professional services for clients across the country, in both the public and private sectors.

LEO MACLEODL, from page 9

❚ ❚ Bite the bullet. Let’s get real. All firms have some of the wrong people on the bus. Before you kick them off, ask your- self this simple question: Was I 100 percent clear in my expec- tations of what was needed? It’s okay to kick them off if you were clear and gave them support to make the cut. But it’s not okay if you weren’t absolutely clear with what the job required or didn’t try to give them a good shot at success. Even when there is a ton of work to do and a company doesn’t believe it can let anyone go, trust me – your staff will find a way of get- ting the work done with the energy boost from not having to deal with that toxic laggard. There’s more than one way to get a job done. I’m amazed at how resilient firms can be when faced with a hole in leadership. “Who has time to worry about putting people in the right seats or getting rid of the dead wood? What can firms do to keep the bus moving down the road to greatness if they’re more concerned with the wheels coming off?” ❚ ❚ Wait for it. The hard truth is that you can network exten- sively, build and promote a great culture, and invest in your people and still come up short on finding the right people for the bus. Avoid cutting corners. Ignore your impulse to hire the wrong people. Not only have you lost your investment in recruiting costs by hiring badly, you’ve also lost productivity getting the wrong person out and back to spending money and time to find another candidate. Companies seem to be hell-bent on riding these boon times no matter what it costs them. Consider scaling down your expectations until the market corrects itself and those good people are easier to find. It may mean turning down work, but if you substitute logic with emotion, you’ll see that being cautious and reasonable about your growth plans is a smarter move than filling the seats. LEO MACLEOD is a leadership coach in Portland, Oregon. He can be reached at leo@leomacleod.com.

good people and you need to be top of mind to hit that spot when someone hears of someone looking. ❚ ❚ Sell culture. People, especially millennials, consider work- place culture the deciding factor on where they choose to work. Peter Drucker quipped that culture eats strategy for breakfast. If your culture celebrates people and respects the individual, you have a competitive advantage over firms that are just using people as coal for the engine. If people are leaving your firm, what do they say in their exit interviews? Do they feel appreciated or valued or just overworked and neglected? If you have a strong culture already, let candidates know through marketing – website, social media, and office parties where you invite the outside guests. One of my clients is an asphalt paving contractor. They do all that gnarly, dan- gerous work on the freeways. But if you spend five minutes with any of the key employees, you’ll want to grab a rake and help them behind a truck – they are that much fun to work with. They realized that it’s the culture that defines their company – not the work or the pay. To tell their story, they created a culture video to show good people they should work there. ❚ ❚ Build leaders. Even if you find a good person to hire, it takes time to make them productive. The real cost of losing an em- ployee is the replacement costs of bringing a new person up to speed: up to three times the key person’s salary. The presi- dent of an architectural firm who lost his market sector leader decided to put a hold on expensive recruitment and instead is testing two promising young people to fill the void. It wasn’t an intuitive move, but his theory is solid: Why not invest in the current team to make them better? They may not seem qualified, but what’s at risk by training, coaching and mentor- ing them to see if they can rise to the challenge? So what if they don’t make the grade? They will improve their effective- ness and performance in any regard. And they will most likely stick around because you believed in them. Maybe they are not the right people in the right seats. But give it a shot. You might be surprised. Identify what skills they lack: Time man- agement, delegation, managing teams, selling. Give them a try but be realistic. Maybe your intuition that they aren’t the right people in the right seats was correct after all. It’s still cheaper than making a mistake in hiring the wrong person.

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

O P I N I O N

Graphic design, by design

In 20 years as an in-house graphic designer, the lessons learned are simple: Serve the customer, protect the brand, meet the deadlines, and communicate with the client.

M ore than 20 years ago, I applied to a newspaper ad for an environmental consulting firm that was looking for an in-house graphic designer. Fresh out of school, I had very little knowledge about what it meant to be an in-house designer and I certainly hadn’t the faintest idea what environmental consulting was. Assuming it must have something to do with the environment, I thought, how difficult could it be to find photos of nature and use those to create beautiful graphics. Boy were my eyes opened!

Pam Wood

ware keeps crashing, it’s not your client’s fault. Every person that reaches out for graphics support should receive the same high level of customer service, and attention to detail; this keeps customers happy and coming back. ❚ ❚ No one knows your brand better. Early on in my “Each of these lessons are pivotal in creating and maintaining a top-notch design department that can support our firm’s graphics needs.”

Flash forward to today and I have certainly come a long way as a designer and manager. The lessons learned after having spent these years working as part of an in-house design team in the consulting industry are invaluable. Each of these lessons are pivotal in creating and maintaining a top-notch design department that can support our firm’s graphics needs. ❚ ❚ Excellent customer service goes a long way. One of the most flattering comments I hear is from peo- ple telling us how much they enjoy working with the graphics department because no matter what project we’re collaborating on, or problem we’re helping solve, we always do it enthusiastically and with a smile. Whether you’re having a bad day or your soft-

See PAM WOOD, page 12

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

BUSINESS NEWS BLOKABLE SELECTS WHA INC. AS ARCHITECTURE PARTNER, STREAMLINING COMPLIANCE WITH TOUGHEST BUILDING CODES IN THE U.S. Blokable, the developer that builds high- quality, low-cost, and connected housing, has selected William Hezmalhalch Architects, Inc. , the comprehensive land planning and architectural design firm, as its architecture partner to oversee code compliant design and architecture of projects Blokable is developing. WHA will work with Blokable’s design process to comply with various jurisdictional codes and regulations. WHA will also create plans and contextual features appropriate for the communities in which Blokable is developing projects. By streamlining design and code review for the most stringent jurisdictions in the U.S., WHA enables Blokable to further drive costs out of development, expedite the approval process for both market rate and not-for-profit projects, and quickly and cost- effectively build beautiful, energy efficient, comfortable, and modern housing where it’s needed most. Blokable’s project partners include land owners, investors, and nonprofit housing service providers who are looking for less costly and more efficient alternatives to traditional market rate development or who want to broaden access to affordable and work-force housing in their communities. Blokable has reinvented the development process with a global first-a vertical platform

that integrates planning, permitting, siting, design, manufacturing, delivery, and ongoing support into one transparent and easily managed service. By offering the entire real estate development stack, Blokable can drastically cut overall project time and slash project costs as well as reduce long-term operating and maintenance costs. “In the construction industry, time is money. WHA combines deep architectural expertise with a thorough understanding of how our product works, bringing us the additional flexibility to operate in the most expensive and housing-stressed areas of the country,” said Blokable Co-CEO Nelson del Rio. The proprietary Blokable Building System, implemented in the company’s factory in Vancouver, Washington, unlocks previously unavailable efficiencies through just-in-time manufacturing of standardized, prefab housing components called Bloks, which can be easily combined and stacked into a variety of custom configurations-including high-density, multi- story residential. “A common pitfall of other prefab and modular construction technologies is that they must adapt to local building codes, which vary across states and municipalities,” continued del Rio. “Too often the result is custom projects that further drive up the cost of development. Working with WHA means we can deliver a standardized and repeatable product anywhere, completely vetted and

code compliant, without compromising cost, build quality, or livability.” “WHA is pleased to provide our architectural expertise to help Blokable scale up its innovative housing development platform,” said Ron Nestor, senior principal at WHA. “A key advantage of the Blokable Building System is its transparency-providing the cost and performance profile upfront and eliminating the need to adjust the bill of materials to meet cost and site requirements. This lets WHA focus on applying the Blokable system to deliver the best architectural plan and design for the site.” “We need to reduce the cost and complexity of housing creation,” added Blokable Co- CEO Aaron Holm. “We’re working with WHA to ensure our total compliance with state and local codes so that we can focus on our goal of expanding prosperity and equity through housing. It’s exciting to see how quickly WHA can create a fully compliant and costed site plan using the Blokable Building System.” WHA is a comprehensive land planning and architectural design firm that specializes in the shaping of new communities and reshaping of urban and existing in-town neighborhoods. For more than 37 years, WHA has been the go-to firm for creating projects rich in diversity, creativity, and forward-thinking solutions. With offices located in Orange County, Los Angeles and Bay Area, California, WHA has served numerous agencies, builders, and developers.

PAM WOOD, from page 11

runs smoothly. The key is to ask the right questions, under- stand the project, and discuss the parameters with the client in order to manage their expectations. ❚ ❚ Keeping the lines of communication open. With technol- ogy on the forefront and our day-to-day communication circling mostly around emails and instant messaging – which are great tools – we tend to neglect the power of talking to clients. In order to consistently maintain a strong level of communication, you must learn how to harness the power these tools provide to keep conversations alive throughout the duration of your project. The minute there is a breakdown in communication, problems start to happen, and deadlines are in jeopardy. Looking back on the years I’ve spent building a design department, I reflect on the challenges faced, and the mistakes made along the way. Every hurdle encountered should be taken as a challenge to find the best solution. It may sound cliché, but you must learn from these successes or failures. I take the opportunity to continually share these lessons with our design team, and new designers, to help them build their careers as part of this in-house team. Our department’s mantra is to maintain consistency in our work products and customer service, which strengthens our reputation and builds confidences with our internal clients. PAM WOOD is the graphic design manager at Geosyntec Consultants. She can be reached at pwood@geosyntec.com.

career I never fully understood the benefit of having an in- house design department, now I can’t imagine a company without one. When you work surrounded and married to your company’s brand, no one knows the brand, and its as- sets, better than your design department. We understand the value in which the assets are being used, how to implement them in the most viable manor, and how to make changes and updates that will benefit the firm. “Looking back on the years I’ve spent building a design department, I reflect on the challenges faced, and the mistakes made along the way. Every hurdle encountered should be taken as a challenge to find the best solution. It may sound cliché, but you must learn from these successes or failures.” ❚ ❚ Delivering exceptional graphics, on time and on budget. In order to maintain a high-quality and cost-effective work- flow, you must train your designers to understand the im- portance of adhering to deadlines and embracing the client’s expectations. As a graphics manager, it is your responsibility to make sure all details are being followed and the process

THE ZWEIG LETTER May 20, 2019, ISSUE 1297

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