DEI is not something that we as an industry can make substantive progress on with ad hoc volunteer programs that don’t have monetary and strategic investment. So where can a firm of fewer than 70 people suddenly find $25,000 or more to invest in a long-view DEI program? Where can a large firm discover more resources to invest in their existing programs? Where could we identify, for firms of any scale, some “low hanging fruit” to capture more funds, and maybe identify some pitfalls that contribute to burnout? This is the question that launched our journey. We spoke with AEC consultants, legal counsel, accountants, CFOs, COOs, project managers, and HR professionals, and what we heard consistently was: “We don’t value ourselves enough. We don’t charge fees that reflect the value we create for society and our clients. We consistently create unnecessary strain on ourselves by bidding too low, working with clients who don’t pay, doing free work, burning out our top talent, and not enforcing our contracts. Our people want flexible work arrangements, competitive pay and benefits, DEI and culture programs, and investment in their professional development We’re torn between needing to do more, evolve and invest in people and technology, while simultaneously self-enforcing downward fee pressures because we think it is what must be done to win work. It doesn’t need to be like this.” Many of the concepts we outline in the following pages require conviction and reinforcement from the top. Firm leaders are like gears: they must work together to shift the culture of the industry.
16
Made with FlippingBook Annual report