Principal's Report
Principal’s Report is a monthly newsletter for the owners of professional design firms. The editorial focus is on profitability and leadership. Regularly covered in the newsletter are such topics as partner compensation, leadership training, construction forecasts, fee levels, contract negotiation, and retirement plans. Timely surveys uncover useful information and insights by A/E firm principals.
April 2010 - Table of Contents
It is widely known that the A/E/C industry has been reeling since the collapse of financial markets in late 2008. For some firms, a backlog of previously contracted work helped them stay afloat in 2009. These were mostly firms that were diversified or solidly in the public sector and institutional markets.
One critical theme that emerged from the SMPS Foundation’s second Think Tank, which examined how the A/E/C industry is responding to the current economic development, was guarded optimism. In many cases, there appear to be significant disconnects between various functions in firms, which impedes strategies to maintain and increase market share.
More than 700 American Institute of Architects component leaders descended on Washington, D.C., for the 2010 AIA Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference where they presented the AIA’s Blueprint for Economic Recovery, a five-point plan from AIA’s Rebuild & Renew Program to involve architects in a broad economic and jobs recovery program.
In a series of podcasts by Capelin Communications, Joan Capelin, Hon. AIA, PRSA, FSMPS, talks with some very astute people about how the design and building industry can—no, will—get through today’s tough times.
Clients’ expectations are changing as a result of the current economic upheaval, and that is precipitating changes in how we organize our services for delivery to them. They’ve signaled some unhappiness with how they’ve been sold and served by design professionals. Some things to watch for:
Getting a firm sold today in the A/E/C industry presents interesting challenges. Most firms are privately held and most owners have often spent their careers actively working in their firm.
Social media—Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, FriendFeed, and all the other Web 2.0 applications—are invading your employees’ lives, and you need to create a strategy to protect your firm’s brand and your proprietary data.
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