With the Republican-led tax bill headed to the President’s desk, The Wall Street Journal takes a closer look at how the overhaul affects homeowners, families, retirees, and business professionals. Here are the highlights for the Architecture and Engineering industry: Pass-Through Entities Although owners of S corporations, partnerships, and other pass-through businesses are set to receive […]
read more »It is the leaders who establish the cultures within Architectural, Engineering, Planning, and Environmental Consulting firms. Even in small design groups, it is the group leaders who establish the customs within their sections of their organizations. Cultures can be healthy, toxic, or someplace in between. When a company has high turnover, fixing the problem often […]
read more »Michael Baker International (ENR # 32), a leader in engineering, planning and consulting services, has hired Peter Darby, AIA, LEED, AP. My Darby will lead a team of architects to deliver all aspects of building design for clients across the state. It is not surprising that Michael Baker is bulking up its key staff in Texas. Texas […]
read more »Jacobs (ENR #2) completes the acquisition of CH2M (ENR #3). This marks another mega M&A deal in the AE industry in 2017. In the first nine months of 2017, 10 deals involved a seller on Engineering News-Record’s (ENR) Top 500 Design Firms list. Other notable deals included Wood Group (ENR #28) acquiring Amec Foster Wheeler (ENR #7), New Mountain Partners […]
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Ever work for a problem supervisor? Toxic managers create cultures of misery, low morale, and high turnover. The sad part, in many cases, is that many of these supervisors are often unaware that they are a problem, until it’s often too late to do anything about it. It’s as if they have bad breath. Everyone […]
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“In 2010, Construction industry unemployment was at 20%. Today, it’s closer to current overall U.S. unemployment of 4.2.%.” – Source: AIA And let’s face it, even in 2010, the best engineers, architects, and environmental professionals managed to keep working. These people don’t go unemployed for extended periods, in good times, or bad. Using in-house recruiters or online […]
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Deal-making in the A/E industry continues apace in the latter half 2017. While the number of completed transactions in the U.S. thus far in 2017 makes it unlikely we will reach the record-setting levels of 2014 (231 deals) and 2015 (241 deals), indications are that the number of transactions closed this year will very nearly […]
read more »The U.S. economy grew faster than initially thought in the second quarter, notching its quickest pace in more than two years, and there are signs that the momentum was sustained at the start of the third quarter. Source – Reuters Given that, the economy is humming along, combined with current U.S. unemployment rates, hovering around […]
read more »As an recruiter, I have spoken with hundreds of AE professionals. I talk to a lot engineers and architects who are happy, but also quite a few who aren’t. Ever talk to someone who hates their job? Personally, I feel for them. Who wants to go to a job they hate? Often, it’s the company culture that has […]
read more »Acquisitions in the design industry happen all the time. They are great tools to use for firms interested in growing revenues by moving into new markets, or adding additional services. When done effectively, acquiring firms get backlogs of work, client lists, and talented people who possess the knowledge and skills needed to profitably manage and […]
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