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TRANSACT IONS ENGINEERING CONSULTING SERVICES ACQUIRES RIVER VALLEY TESTING CORP. Engineering Consulting Services announced the acquisition of River Valley Testing Corp. whose offices will now become the Central Wisconsin Offices of Engineering Consulting Services Midwest, LLC and a member of the Engineering Consulting Services Group of Companies. Founded in 1988, Engineering Consulting Services is a leader in geotechnical engineering, environmental consulting, construction materials testing, and facilities engineering for a wide array of projects and clients with more than 50 offices in the United States. River Valley Testing Corp. specializes in geotechnical engineering; construction materials testing; and environmental engineering; River Valley Testing Corp. has offices in Green Bay and Neenah, Wisconsin. “The resources of Engineering Consulting Services will provide a diverse range of services to our clients. As we evaluated possible firms that could help take us to the next level, Engineering Consulting Services was hands down the best cultural and professional fit. Like River Valley Testing Corp., they’ve grown their business by understanding that your clients,
both internally and externally, come first. This is a tremendous opportunity for River Valley Testing Corp. to expand geographically and for our employees to grow technically and professionally. We are very pleased to join forces with Engineering Consulting Services,” said Alex Barker, P.E., president of River Valley Testing Corp. River Valley Testing Corp. was established in 1990. Under the senior leadership of Alex Barker, P.E., president, and George Barker, P.E., vice president, employees of River Valley Testing Corp. will continue to provide integrated engineering services and technical support for River Valley Testing Corp. clients throughout the development process with their established team. River Valley Testing Corp. will continue to use their drill rigs to deliver both the equipment and the highly- trained personnel needed to complete any given project. With Engineering Consulting Services’ focus on developing client relationships and ability to offer services in new locations, this was the perfect time and opportunity for River Valley Testing Corp. to join Engineering Consulting Services. “We look forward to expanding our unparalleled service and
commitment to our clients throughout the Midwest and providing opportunities for the River Valley Testing Corp. employees to grow within the region and with the rest of the Engineering Consulting Services Group of Companies”, Brett Gitskin, P.E., president, Engineering Consulting Services Midwest, LLC. The acquisition of River Valley Testing Corp. by Engineering Consulting Services became effective in December 2017. River Valley Testing Corp. will operate as part of Engineering Consulting Services Midwest, LLC and a member of the Engineering Consulting Services Group of Companies. Engineering Consulting Services is an employee-owned engineering consulting firm with more than 1,500 employees providing environmental, facilities, geotechnical, and materials services. Engineering Consulting Services has grown to more than 50 locations and six subsidiaries spread across the Mid- Atlantic, Southern, Southwestern, and Midwestern states. The firm is ranked No. 81 in E ngineering News Record ’s Top 500 Design Firms, and No. 168 in ENR ’s Top 200 Environmental Firms.
WILL SCHNIER, from page 3
the leader of the firm, I seek those people out quickly, and oftentimes the result is that they are invited to do those superfluous activities for a competing firm. Don’t get me wrong here, either. We know that it’s critically important for our team members and our firm that we participate in professional organizations in a meaningful and impactful way. In fact, we award a one- time bonus to any team member who fills a leadership role in a professional group. However, a more intentional focus on adding value to both the professional organization and the company is imperative. The equation must be 1+1=3, not 1+1+1+1+1+1+1=0. Lastly, how do you feel about birthday parties? I’m talking about birthday parties for grown adults in your office, not for your children. My team members tell me they’re important. The jury is very much out for me on this one. My superfluous antennae are up. Is it just another excuse to feed the face? The steady stream of free lunches, office happy hours, and well-stocked kitchens with free food seem like enough to me. I recently celebrated the seventh anniversary of my 28th birthday, and I’m pretty sure that the birthday celebration in my honor was superfluous. I don’t know for sure, though, because I was focused on getting the job done. Grandmas are smart people. They’ve learned through experience to recognize when too much is superfluous. I hope we can all do the same as leaders of AEC firms. I’m starting to learn. Feel free to ask me how it’s going. WILL SCHNIER is CEO of BIG RED DOG Engineering & Consulting. He can be reached at will.schnier@bigreddog.com.
gets twisted around to come out of a marketing budget. Let’s be clear here: Corporate golf tournaments are not marketing. It’s superfluous overhead spending that costs our clients and team members money. We’d be better off giving the tournament fees to our team members as bonuses so they can play on their own time and remain at the office to focus on getting results for the client during the workday. “We know that it’s critically important for our team members and our firm that we participate in professional organizations in a meaningful and impactful way. However, a more intentional focus on adding value to both the professional organization and the company is imperative.” What about professional organizations? Do you have folks in your office who participate in every organization that they can find, go to all of the events, but never translate that activity to results, or even better, to revenue? These people tend to stretch themselves so thin that no single professional organization gets their best effort, including the employer. We derisively call that a cruise director inside our shop. They spend the hard-earned money of the firm to accomplish nothing except their personal social agenda. As
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THE ZWEIG LETTER February 5, 2018, ISSUE 1234
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