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client’s expectations, and at the same time providing ser- vices that improve the Dallas-Fort Worth area, has kept us ahead of the competition. We are very fortunate that North Texas has a lot of opportunities that other areas do not have. Many people are moving to the area, creating a high- er demand for housing, office space, and much more. It’s a great market for engineering and construction. “We began the leadership transition planning a few years ago to ensure we were prepared for the firm’s future course of leadership. It was during the leadership transition planning that we realized there needed to be a shift in our culture to address the changing workforce.” TZL: It looks like your firm has had a lot of success work- ing with educational and healthcare institutions. How did you find, develop, and maintain that niche? SM: The educational and healthcare institutions we work with are a result of developing relationships. We have done work with many of them over the course of decades. We look at those projects as though we are a stakeholder in the project, and by being a part of the team, and part of the campus, and a part of the institution’s goals and desires, we help them get to where they want to go. We are able to pro- vide forward thinking, as well as protect their assets on ex- isting facilities. TZL: Have you ever closed an under-performing office? If so, tell us about it. SM: No, we haven’t closed any offices. We are headquar- tered in Dallas, but we have satellite offices in Fort Worth and Peoria, Illinois. We make a concerted effort to monitor the performances of our satellite offices to ensure they are performing well. There may be times that the satellite of- fices are not meeting goals and expectations, but we made a commitment to our staff and marketplace when we chose to open the office. We will do everything we can to honor our commitment to our satellite offices, by aiming to improve performance through corporate support. TZL: How many years of experience – or large enough book of business – is enough to become a principal in your firm? Are you naming principals in their 20s or 30s? SM: We look at our project managers and those that are able to develop a practice within the firm by developing clients, developing project teams, and overseeing employees, and we bring them on as an associate. As their business grows and as their skills in business management grow, they can transition into a corporate leadership role. TZL: When did you have the most fun running your firm, and what were the hallmarks of that time in your profes- sional life? SM: The most fun would be now as the CEO and president of the firm. We began the leadership transition planning a few years ago to ensure we were prepared for the firm’s
future course of leadership. It was during the leadership transition planning that we realized there needed to be a shift in our culture to address the changing workforce. Leading the charge to readjust our corporate culture and providing the energy that is needed for today’s workforce has been exciting. TZL: How do you promote young and new leaders as the firm grows? SM: It starts with developing project engineers into project manager positions. From there we assist our project man- agers by helping them develop a practice within the firm. You’ve got to outline your expectations. You’ve got to pro- vide them with the ability to be able to do the work and to make mistakes. By the safeguards and quality assurance protocols we have in place we can catch potential mistakes early and use them as an opportunity for our younger staff members to learn and improve upon. TZL: In one word or phrase, what do you describe as your number one job responsibility as CEO? SM: My number one job responsibility as CEO is to main- tain our history and the culture that the firm has developed over the past 65 years, while promoting the changes needed for today’s workforce and economic climate. TZL: What happens to the firm if you leave tomorrow? SM: Over the last three years we’ve gone through the plans for our leadership transition. We are now in our third gener- ation of leadership, and we’ve developed a plan to set up our future leaders. Those people are currently in the manage- ment roles to grow within the company and take my place. TZL: 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 pursuing the oppor- tunity to develop your team? SM: As a young staff grows within the company, it is essen- tial that they are given the ability to make decisions. There is risk associated with doing this, but with proper supervi- sion and leadership, we have developed quality assurance methods to reduce issues, issues that can be identified and rectified, resulting in a learning opportunity to prevent fu- ture problems. We want to provide our staff with the oppor- tunity to make decisions, but the responsibility for those decisions is still held by upper management. “Employee retention is extremely important to our firm. Replacing employees is very expensive and is time-intensive. We are committed to creating enriching careers for our employees. We want our employees to be passionate about the work they do ... We take pride in being named as a Best Firm To Work for by Zweig Group.”
See TRUSTED STAKEHOLDER, page 8
© Copyright 2019. Zweig Group. All rights reserved.
pril 8, 2019, ISSUE 1291
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