In looking ahead to address challenges and opportunities facing the industry, the 2020 –2021 ACEC Executive Committee (ExCom) is looking back at its strategic plan.
From embodying diversity and inclusion to providing essential value to society, ACEC’s strategic plan provides an increasingly relevant path forward—even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The plan was thoughtfully crafted to include goals that are equal in value to ACEC,” says ExCom Chair Charles Gozdziewski, chairman emeritus of Hardesty & Hanover.
ExCom members anticipate soon seeing results from ACEC’s new strategic plan, which was unveiled at the 2019 Fall Conference. They are also eager to address challenges of a business environment that is coping with the economic repercussions of the worldwide health crisis.
When ExCom developed its strategic plan, it called all members of the profession to advocate more urgently for investments in the built environment, notes Senior Vice Chair Keith London, president and CEO of Kennedy Jenks Consultants.
“Now, in the midst of a global pandemic, it is more critical than ever that engineers advance solutions and create a future where communities can thrive,” London says. “We must foster innovation and new technological design solutions more urgently, recruit more broadly to create diverse teams that can collaborate without barriers, and fully embrace the roles of science and technology.”
“We recognize that our purpose is to advance a business environment for our Member Firms,” Gozdziewski says. “But we must do so while we embody inclusion, diversity, and equality. We will continue to communicate our essential value to society and engage a broader representation of Member Firms and more individual participation in ACEC.”
Indeed, one of the key facets of the strategic plan is embodying inclusion and diversity, and several ExCom members cited this as a highlight.
“When I was interviewed to serve as chair, there was discussion about how diversity at ACEC needed to include acknowledgment and inclusion of the diversity of Member Firm demographics,” says ExCom Chair-elect Robin Greenleaf, CEO of Architectural Engineers, Inc. “Diversity has been an issue of mine for many years. I plan to devote a significant effort to forwarding this aspect of the plan.”
“Our industry is at a crossroads with respect to diversity, as is our nation,” says ExCom Vice Chair Michael Cooper, president and managing principal of HED. A strong focus on inclusion and diversity will support all other ACEC strategic objectives, he notes.
“The significance of inclusiveness as a pillar for ACEC is huge because it encompasses so many aspects of who we are and, more importantly, who we want to become,” says ExCom Chair Emeritus Mitchel Simpler, managing partner of Jaros, Baum & Bolles.
The strategic plan is a major step forward for ACEC.
“I believe for the first time the plan is truly strategic, and I look forward to ACEC becoming the industry’s thought leader and the prime voice of engineering,” says National Association of Engineering Council Executives (NAECE) President James Smith, executive director of ACEC/NC. “Engineering is the driver of infrastructure and society in general.”
Another strategic plan highlight is the call to provide essential value to society.
“Because of the nature of our work, infrastructure, most of the time if we do our job correctly society never knows what we did or have done,” says ExCom Treasurer and Vice Chair Matt P. Hirst, president and CEO of CRS Engineers, Inc.
“As long as the traffic is manageable, the water is flowing from our faucets, and our toilets flush, society is happy with infrastructure,” Hirst says. “As we elevate our position with policymakers, decision-makers, and other influencers, I hope to help them remember that we are human capital, not a faucet-like resource that can be activated based on demand only.”
ACEC was due for a new strategic plan, and the process and execution were well done, notes Vice Chair Ed Alizadeh, president and CEO of Geotechnology, Inc.
“Interestingly, the plan holds up despite the massive and unforeseen changes in our world,” Alizadeh says. “The vision to be the thought leader driving the delivery of valued engineering and other professional services for a better world is spot on.”
Meanwhile, Vice Chair Kenneth Smith, CEO of T. Baker Smith, is most optimistic about the development of the ACEC Research Institute. “It is a new and different type of tool in the ‘ACEC toolbox’ that will drive the accomplishment of several aspects of the plan,” Smith says. “It will separate us as a true thought leader in the built world, which will enhance the essential value that our profession offers to society.”
Although many businesses are still trying to figure out how to operate in an environment where communities are coming out of lockdown, ExCom members look forward to emerging industry opportunities in a post-COVID-19 business world.
“I believe the work-from-home phenomenon will transform the way that many of our firms do business,” Greenleaf says. “We have discovered that we can work very successfully outside of the office environment. The perfect storm of available technology, COVID-19, and a workforce which can manage work-from-home demands is going to push transportation, commercial office use, residential design, K–12, and higher education design in new directions.”
Additionally, the data center market will be active, Cooper predicts, as the dependence on data and intelligence continues to increase.
“The manufacturing industry will be active, as we strive to shore up our nation’s supply chains and modernize to effectively compete in the global marketplace,” Cooper says. “The warehouse and distribution industry also will be active as the demand for more immediate purchase and delivery continues to grow.”
The built environment will change in response to new societal norms, Alizadeh adds. “One obvious growth area is e-commerce, and there are great opportunities for Member Firms to be involved in the entire package distribution system, which relies on typical infrastructure as well as many new and converted warehouses including more refrigerated spaces,” he says.
Post-COVID-19, upcoming engineers will shoulder the responsibility to re-engineer society to make life easier, according to Vice Chair Dr. Gary W. Raba, president of Raba Kistner, Inc. “For this to occur, our engineering colleges and educators must address more cross-functional discipline programs,” he says.
For instance, Member Firms will need to provide innovative solutions to workplace space guidelines.
“For owners and developers, it may be innovative building access entrances and queuing; building lobbies transformed; screening and health checks; building systems to address fundamentally dynamic ways to filter new and recirculated air; and occupant movements regarding elevators, fire wells, and cleaning,” Raba says.
The same holds true for airports and hospitals, adds Vice Chair John Carrato, president and CEO of Alfred Benesch & Co. “Improvements to air handling systems will play a major role in safety as well,” he says. “There could very well be a push to do more manufacturing in the United States that may bolster private sector work. Resiliency in our Member Firms and the built world will be of paramount importance.”
Events such as the pandemic are often transformational, according to London. “Recovering from COVID-19 can help us reinvent or accelerate trends, and the next few years should see a real surge in innovation,” he says. “Just look at the innovation that is occurring relative to the development of a vaccine or treatment for COVID-19. The world is accelerating, and engineers are accelerating with it.”
“There is a new mindset on how we think and act in society, and it will affect our industry,” Gozdziewski says. “There will be more reliance on technology and telecommuting. All types of commercial and institutional properties will require redesign. Mass transit will have challenges. All these changes will require Member Firms to become the thought leaders in developing solutions. Wherever there is change there will be opportunities for engineers.”
Reflecting on changes that lie ahead, ACEC President and CEO Linda Bauer Darr pointed to the accomplished perspectives of the 2020-2021 ACEC ExCom as illustrative of the Council’s ability to help navigate challenges and opportunities presented by the new business normal.
“While issues that threaten to stymie growth or success for our industry will be challenging, the multi-talented Executive Committee will be a tremendous asset in achieving our advocacy, education, and thought-leadership goals,” she says.
Bob Violino is a business and technology writer based in Massapequa Park, N.Y.
“Being a practicing professional engineer is very rewarding in many ways. It is a great experience to be a part of an infrastructure project from the planning, scoping, design, budgeting, and through construction. Being a leader in these great projects has made me feel that I have contributed to the built environment for the benefit and good for all.”
—Charles Gozdziewski, chair
“I had the opportunity to work on the Veterans Affairs (VA) replacement hospital in New Orleans several years ago. For nearly a year, I attended planning meetings in New Orleans, immediately after Hurricane Katrina destroyed the original VA hospital. The exposure to the needs of the medical professionals, patients, and hospital staff left an indelible impression on me that the beauty of engineering lies in the understanding of the impact that we can have on the lives of the people who live and work in the buildings and structures we design.”
—Robin Greenleaf, chair-elect
“Being named CEO of Kennedy Jenks, a national water and infrastructure firm. It was not necessarily a role I sought but given the responsibility to serve as caretaker of a now 100-year-old company was an honor. I see my job as taking an organization that was a gift from our predecessors and helping the organization remain enduring and successful, so generations in the future can reap the benefit of working for an employee-owned engineering firm.”
—Keith London, senior vice chair
“A career accomplishment I am proud of is to succeed my father in leading a 115-year-old firm and being a leader in ACEC, the association that safeguards the practice of consulting engineering. I consider being in ACEC leadership a humbling honor to serve our industry and practice.”
—Matthew Hirst, treasurer and vice chair
“I have been fortunate to work with an incredibly talented leadership team that grew our firm from 210 to 760 employees and from five offices in four states to 37 offices in 17 states over the last 10 years. I am very proud of our collaborative management style and to have played a small part in our success.”
—John Carrato, vice chair
“Our multidiscipline firm recently completed its 107th year. I represent the third generation of Smith family leadership. Within this time frame, we had had over 2,500 people be a part of our firm, offering them a fulfilling place to work, allowing them to grow professionally and personally. We call it investing in people to enhance communities.”
—Kenneth Smith, vice chair
“My efforts to mentor and develop our professional staff over the years to help them take on greater responsibility within the firm is something I am incredibly proud of. My efforts to support charitable organizations in Southeast Michigan—with both time and money—and to inspire others to do the same, are part of the ongoing revitalization of the metro Detroit area.”
—Michael Cooper, vice chair
“I love the profession and the career it has offered me. Sure, there are challenges and obstacles, but there are successes too. I cannot really point to anything, yet, that I would say is my greatest civic or professional achievement. My wife says I suffer from ‘restless dissatisfaction.’ I am never quite satisfied. I am always thinking, ‘How can I do that better, how can I improve this or that?’”
—Dr. Gary W. Raba, vice chair
“My tenure as chair of ACEC was the culmination of so many other career accomplishments that ultimately prepared me for, and led me to, that position. More importantly, as ACEC chair I was surrounded and supported by such incredible and dedicated professionals—both volunteer as well as paid staff—who enabled me to move ACEC in a new and broader direction through the new strategic plan.”
—Mitchel Simpler, chairman emeritus
“I still feel vibrant and fully expect that my greatest accomplishment is yet to come. For now, I just try to be a positive force in every business and community endeavor and every personal relationship. Do good, be good, think good.”
—Ed Alizadeh, vice chair
“Being an engineer and having practiced in the industry for nearly 40 years, I consider my position as executive director of ACEC/NC as the culmination of my career. I have always enjoyed helping those around me achieve success, and now I am able to help our Member Firms throughout the state achieve success.”
—James Smith, NAECE president