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ON THE MOVE BURNS & MCDONNELL HIRES INDUSTRY LEADER TO EXPAND ARCHITECTURE SERVICES IN TEXAS Bryan Floth joins Burns & McDonnell in Texas to help grow the firm’s architecture capabilities and lead integrated design-build projects. Throughout his nearly three-decade career, Floth has partnered with clients to design and implement complex higher education, commercial, industrial, institutional, and mission-critical facilities across the U.S. “Bryan never backs down from a challenge and relentlessly pursues excellence and innovation,” says Scott Clark, vice president

and general manager for the firm’s offices in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, and Raleigh, North Carolina. “His strong background in architectural design and programmanagement further bolsters our ability to provide full- service, efficient solutions to our clients.” Floth has broad experience in master planning, consulting, program management, construction administration, and architectural design. He specializes in planning and managing large, complex, multimillion-dollar renovation, and ground-up projects.

“Throughout my career, I’ve been fortunate to work in various capacities on complex projects, giving me a deep understanding of how to make a project efficient, seamless, and flexible,” Floth says. “I’m looking forward to ingraining myself in the design-build process and working with a diverse group of professionals at Burns & McDonnell to tackle our clients’ biggest challenges.” Burns & McDonnell is a family of companies made up of more than 6,000 professionals with offices across the country and throughout the world.

AMY SQUITIERI, from page 5

process. Our “innovation form” requires only a short descrip- tion of the idea, purpose statement, identification of uses, and desired outcome. Employees can receive 80 hours of time and up to $10,000 of equipment and materials to test an idea. The Innovation Team, comprised of a volunteer, cross-disci- plinary team of coworkers, approves the request. ❚ ❚ Budget for R&D. Set aside dollars in the company’s annual budget to fuel innovation, above and beyond typical develop- ments. At Mead & Hunt, our Innovation Team asks for and receives about $200,000 per year. This is a modest investment for a significant long-term impact. ❚ ❚ Attract new and more varied talent. Most millennials seek diversity and inclusiveness when deciding to join a company. Research has found that companies that encourage reten- tion and promotion across the race, sexual orientation, and gender spectrum are more innovative. The more viewpoints and backgrounds considering a problem, the more varied and creative the solutions. Diversity is essential to overcoming the complex business challenges that AEC leaders face. ❚ ❚ Set a clear vision. Mead & Hunt will continually strive to increase our competitive advantage. This will be driven by in- novation. We will proactively adapt to market demands and technological advances. We must adapt to emerging technolo- gies and external forces with innovative operational initia- tives that improve current functions and project delivery. ❚ ❚ Share information broadly. An important tool for commu- nication at Mead & Hunt is the Innovation Lab on our in- tranet. The Innovation Team collaborates with corporate com- munication staff to deliver regular messaging about company advances in innovation through various media. Our annual training conferences highlight news and updates about com- pany innovation. The Project Managers’ Conference focuses on operational innovation and grant opportunities; the Tech Expo focuses on emerging technologies and case studies. The challenges we face require us to think, struggle, act, and sometimes fail. Founded in 1900, Mead & Hunt remains strong today because we live the principle that we are never satisfied and must continuously improve. Innovation is vital to the survival of not only our firms, but our communities as well. We will continue to strive for new and better ways to achieve our goals and meet the needs of our clients and communities. AMY SQUITIERI is vice president and group leader for Environment and Infrastructure. As an elected member of Mead & Hunt’s board of directors, she provides strategic and policy guidance to help our century-old consulting practice grow and thrive. She can be reached at amy.squitieri@meadhunt.com.

our success. However, implementation is widely recognized as the most difficult step in innovation. Companies can utilize various processes – such as agile, design thinking, LEAN – to help mitigate this challenge. The driving force behind implementing innovation at Mead & Hunt is our “Innovation Project” program, which is led by a diverse and multidisciplinary team. Through this program, employees have received funding and time through grant support for innovative projects. They include UAS/UAV (drones), 3D imaging and modeling, better ways to locate utilities, advanced camera technologies, and climate change adaptation. From our newest hires to our most seasoned professionals, Mead & Hunt employees are creating and innovating in ways that help our clients and sustain our future. “Our strategic plan recognizes that the implementation of innovative ideas is the key to our success. However, implementation is widely recognized as the most difficult step in innovation.” We face numerous hurdles to remain innovative. Market pressures and time constraints can push innovation to the back burner. It can be difficult to get individuals within a large firm to speak up and share ideas. So, how can we circumvent these challenges? There are implementable actions we can take that help create and maintain an innovative corporate environment: ❚ ❚ Make it safe. Establish a culture in which all employees feel free to contribute ideas. Mead & Hunt’s strategic plan states: “Company-wide communication and technological improve- ments will have transparency, and every individual with an idea or passion for improvement has the opportunity to con- tribute.” ❚ ❚ Find a way to win. Early, publicized success will yield posi- tive attention for innovation. Mead & Hunt’s effort was launched with pilot programs that advanced new techno- logical initiatives within an 80-hour budget. The successful completion of these projects demonstrated the benefit and validated future projects. ❚ ❚ Make it simple. Remove barriers that stem from a complex

THE ZWEIG LETTER October 15, 2018, ISSUE 1268

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