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ON THE MOVE COMMITTED TO GROWTH: CR ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN UNVEILS EXECUTIVE-LEVEL CHANGES CR architecture + design announced that, effective immediately, Bill Dandy has assumed the role of president as David Arends, President and CEO, transitions into the role of chairman of the board and CEO. “Executing this next step in our long-range strategic plan allows me to continue to evolve my role to focus on setting our vision and strategy as we aggressively build and grow CR. I will continue to be very personally involved in our key client relationships, while further dedicating myself to refining our business model and culture,” said Arends. “Bill brings an unusual blend of senior-level leadership experience, having been on both the client and service-provider side in key roles for major companies,” Arends continued. “He has a great deal of expertise in building client- centric companies with outstanding operating disciplines.”
Transitioning from his previous role as chief operating officer, Dandy will continue to advance the development and execution of company initiatives focused on building the infrastructure to deliver optimal customer experiences. “As we move into the next chapter of our company’s growth, I look forward to the opportunity to continue building a high- performing team here at CR,” said Dandy. “I am confident that our team will continue to bring exceptional value, delivery, and thought leadership to the markets and geographies that we serve.” Additionally, CR architecture + design announced that P.J. Hannan, most recently at Hixson Architecture, Engineering and Interiors , has joined the company as the vice president of operations. Hannan’s experience in operationalizing project management disciplines and client relationships will be leveraged, as CR architecture + design continues to optimize the centralized
management of its delivery systems to accommodate the needs of its client base through its core director teams. Over the last seven months, CR architecture + design has positioned its leadership team to provide support for its directors to better serve their client base, while strategically building an infrastructure to drive accelerated growth. This includes the recent additions of Bruce Quisno, a veteran architect from Macy’s, as vice president of the retail discipline, Jason Reverman, formerly of local design firm FRCH , as controller and several key director hires in the growing education, hospitality, and government market sectors. For 36 years, CR architecture + design has stayed rooted in its approach to quality design and innovation. The firm has developed a national portfolio of projects in the retail, hospitality, government, higher education, K-12, commercial, housing, and senior living markets.
KERI KOCUR, from page 3
4)Become conscious of unconscious biases. We all have bi- ases, and it’s important to acknowledge them and understand how much they factor into decision-making. This can be un- comfortable. Just the other day I was reviewing marketing collateral with our team. Someone recommended to change a picture because the man pictured didn’t look “polished enough.” Our team considered this feedback carefully and realized there may have been an unconscious bias behind the comment. The picture stayed. Unconscious biases come in all shapes and sizes. That’s why our next step is to roll out un- conscious bias training to help make employees more aware of biases so they can make better decisions. 5)Shake up your HR department. We created a new People and Culture Department which is not just another name for human resources. The People and Culture Department focuses on the entire employee experience, from recruiting to hiring to retention and professional development. It truly is about creating an environment for each employee to real- ize their full potential in all our 30 locations along the East Coast. So far, we are receiving very positive feedback about this new department. 6)Create an Employee Resource Group. The purpose of this employee-led group is to generate ideas and practices for edu- cating and engaging our people while serving as a “lens” into how VHB is doing in its diversity and inclusion initiatives. For example, group members made our communications team aware of a lack of diversity on our social media platforms which led us to include more inclusive representations of em- ployees in subsequent posts. Benjamin Franklin said it best: “When you’re finished changing, you’re finished.” Let’s continue to focus on making diversity and inclusion work in our organizations and share best practices, lessons learned, and success stories. Together, we can make real progress moving the needle in the AEC industry – our success depends on it. KERI KOCUR is the chief people officer of Watertown, Massachusetts- based VHB. She can be reached at kkocur@vhb.com.
but must work together. Diversity speaks to the makeup of an organization’s people – gender, race, ethnicity, education, sexual orientation, socio-economic backgrounds, thinking style, and personality type – while inclusion reflects how the organization engages them. In a diverse and inclusive work environment, people with very different life experiences are valued equally. They’re encouraged to have their voices heard, and opinions are considered – even when expressing an unpopular idea. The organization is focused on meeting the needs of the individual and not so much an HR-centered initiative. “Unconscious biases come in all shapes and sizes. That’s why our next step is to roll out unconscious bias training to help make employees more aware of biases so they can make better decisions.” 2)Take an inventory and set baseline measurements. Every organization’s diversity and inclusion initiative will look dif- ferent based on its strengths, weaknesses, and culture. Taking an inventory of your organization’s policies and practices – such as talent development, compensation, training, and rec- ognition and rewards, will identify opportunities for improve- ment and help set a baseline to measure progress. It may be overwhelming to learn how far you need to go, but doing so is necessary to ensure future decisions are more objective in- stead of subjective. 3)Include diversity and inclusion in strategic planning. Incorporating diversity and inclusion into the strategic plan demonstrates to employees how important they are to the organization’s growth and success. It also promotes a sense of shared responsibility among employees – because making diversity and inclusion work won’t happen if only the leader- ship or HR teams are held accountable.
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THE ZWEIG LETTER February 25, 2019, ISSUE 1285
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