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ardMaser

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rate? Are you content with your marketing efforts, or do you think you should increase/decrease marketing? RM: Our marketing department is comprised of experts in the AEC industry who constantly attend conferences, net- work, and take training to keep abreast of industry trends and how to steer our services. The department has two dis- tinct areas – the proposal preparation side and the public relations side, both of which are essential elements to com- pany success. Proposals and qualifications are part of an on- going process you have to constantly stay ahead of – search- ing for opportunities and making sure that all our submis- sion materials are up to date and submitted on time. The public relations side of marketing brands our 22 offices as one solid entity and our employees as experts through ar- ticles, speaking presentations, and social media. They get the word out about who we are and what our capabilities are nationwide and ensure our name is recognized whether opening an office in a new region or introducing a new ser- vice. On top of that, our social media presence is strong and drives our brand to a worldwide market. Both sides of our marketing department work closely together to ensure our branding is effective in keeping our name at the industry forefront. The department will grow appropriately to keep in stride with our growth. “Our marketing department is comprised of experts in the AEC industry who constantly attend conferences, network, and take training to keep abreast of industry trends and how to steer our services. The department has two distinct areas – the proposal preparation side and the public relations side.” TZL: What has your firm done recently to upgrade its IT system? RM: We’re constantly upgrading IT systems. At the begin- ning of each year, we look at what needs to be done over the next 12 months, prioritize, and then phase it in. The most recent significant effort was upgrading our financial/ project management software with BST 10. We also recent- ly installed a video-conferencing system and phones with a video screen to better connect people throughout our office network as we grow nationally. This helps us to maintain a friendly internal culture and greatly improves communica- tion between offices. TZL: What’s the best way to recruit and retain top talent in a tight labor market? RM: In addition to outside recruiters, we currently employ See CONFERENCE CALL, page 8

each of our eight core disciplines. Having open communi- cation between disciplines helps to ensure our board mem- bers are aware of trends, problems, and solutions within ev- ery department and better enables them to make effective decisions companywide. In addition, we have two respected outside advisors who bring a different perspective and ex- pertise to the group. “Unless you have good profitability to allow funds to go to ownership transition, it will not be effective. It’s also crucial not to wait until the last minute to model a strategic plan.” TZL: Is there a secret to effective ownership transition? RM: The most important formula for ownership transition is to be profitable. Unless you have good profitability to al- low funds to go to ownership transition, it will not be ef- fective. It’s also crucial not to wait until the last minute to model a strategic plan. The plan should encompass a five- year or longer period to predict where you will end up. In this process, key players are identified to stay honed in on the economic climate so we can alter and adjust our plans as we go. TZL: How do you go about winning work? RM: The majority of winning work is built on being respon- sive to our clients and giving them creative solutions that create client satisfaction and long lasting relationships. Because we are a full-service engineering firm, having cli- ents use our other services in-house is more economical for them. We rely on quality-based submissions and are not looking to be the low bidder. TZL: What’s the greatest problem to overcome in the pro- posal process? RM: We are very selective about what we go after; coordina- tion is the most complicated element in the proposal pro- cess. A lot of the projects we pursue are multi-disciplinary, so there are several groups that have to provide input from both a scope and fee perspective. TZL: Once you’ve won a contract, what are the “marching orders” for your PMs? RM: After we win a proposal, our first priority is to make sure all the contract items and phases are set up correct- ly for billing purposes and cost tracking through their rela- tionship with their billing administrator. The project man- agers are instructed to ensure they discuss how the client wants to be communicated with and who within the client’s organization the communication should go to. TZL: How does marketing contribute to your success

May 1, 2017, ISSUE 1198

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