The Zweig Letter

We sat down with Matthew Van Gilst, Principal with Callidus Engineering in London, Ontario, Canada, for a conversation to discuss the growth of his firm, how the pandemic has affected them, and how bullish he is about the future. You just need to listen for yourself.  All of this and more on this episode of The Zweig Letter podcast .    Get your FREE Subscription to the Zweig Letter...

TZL Memorial: Ed Friedrichs Throwback Episode from 2016   We sat down with Ed Friedrichs on the podcast five years ago for a great conversation about the evolution of the design industry.  Ed shared some great stories from back in the day including with Art Gensler and the actor Mel Brooks.  We can’t do this episode justice in the show notes. You just need to listen for yourself.&nb...

Architect Julia Su Jack is Elevating HERself One Day At a Time   We recently sat down with Julia Su Jack, AIA , for a spirited conversation on being an architect, a woman of color, and making the transition from the private sector to the public sector.  Julia attended HBCU Howard University and studied Architecture there.  Julia took time to raise five children and, for a while, struggled with won...

Strategy and Ownership Transition a Conversation with Will Swearingen   We recently sat down with Will Swearingen, Director of Ownership Transition at Zweig Group. Known as “the leading research, publishing, and advisory services resource for design firms in the AEC industry,” Zweig Group offers a comprehensive suite of products and services, from newsletters and market research reports to ma...

How Schillivia Baptiste Pivoted Her Construction Management Business During the Pandemic  On this episode of The Zweig Letter podcast, we sit down with Schillivia Baptiste. She’s a professional engineer and the CEO of Laland Baptiste, and a Principal at Baptiste Engineering. Laland Baptiste is a construction management firm dedicated to providing leadership, organization, supervision, and dir...

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On this episode of The Zweig Letter podcast, we sit down with Stephen Lucy, CEO of JQ Engineering .  Based in Dallas, Texas, JQ is a full-service design firm focusing on Structural, Civil Engineering, GeoSpatial, and Facilities Performance Services throughout the United States.  We had a far-ranging discussion about growing up with a dad for a Civil Engineer and knowing that he wanted to go into t...

On this episode of The Zweig Letter podcast, we sit down with Dr. Kit Miyamoto from Miyamoto International .  Dr. Kit shared his origin story with us, which included coming from Tokyo to the United States with a desire to play football for the Dallas Cowboys ultimately.     This conversation would have been super interesting if he had made the team, but I believe the world is a...

On this episode of The Zweig Letter podcast, we sit down with AllanTsang and Dan Oblinger professional Negotiators from Oblinger & Tsang. We had a far-ranging conversation about Negotiation and Active Listening for Design Professionals.  Dan and Allan go deep in these areas to discuss how to overcome scope creep, telling the client “No!” and making sure that you are making better decision...

We recently sat down with Janki DePalma, the Director of Business Development with Kirksey Architects based in Austin, Texas. Janki has a unique perspective to bring to the Zweig Letter Podcast audience. She has done Business Development and Marketing on both the Architectural and Engineering sides of the table.     Janki brings energy and enthusiasm to everything she does, and this...

We recently sat down with Zweig Group’s  Director of Strategy, Phil Keil, to discuss the importance of Strategic Planning. Phil shared several stories of how Strategic Planning can make the difference between a Design firm that is just getting by and thriving even during a pandemic. Connect with Phil Keil  here . Phil Keil on  LinkedIn Get your  FREE Subscription  to the Z...

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We recently sat down with Chad Coldiron and John Bray from Zweig Group's Advisory Team to discuss all things related to Recruitment and Retention for Design Firms during the Pandemic. Click Here to Read Transcript and View Show Notes

We recently sat down with Brandon Pinkerton and Steve Williams, President and COO respectively of HP Engineering based in Rogers, AR. Brandon and Steve discussed how HP Engineering has survived and actually grown during the pandemic. With offices in Northwest Arkansas, Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and Dallas, TX, HP Engineering has successfully penetrated multiple markets here in the Southwest.  HP Engin...

Additional Show Notes and Transcript Coming Soon Tony Hans Email CMTA Website

In this episode of The Zweig Letter Podcast, we sit down with Chad Surprenant. Chad is currently the Chief Strategy Officer and Board Chairman of ISG.  He was previously the President, CEO, and Board Member with the company.  Chad shared his journey from being one of the company's primary shareholders and running everything to creating an ESOP and enlarging the ownership of ISG to everyo...

In this episode of The Zweig Letter Podcast, we sit down with Engineer, Model, and Activist, Marcia Alvarado from TRC Worldwide Engineering.  We had a far-ranging discussion about how Marcia got into engineering, how her modeling career organically grew, and why Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is so important to her, and how she hopes to spread the word and best practice throughout the Desig...

2020 has been a year like no other, and the folks at Zweig Group have figured out a way to make the best of it.  ElevateAEC, what has typically been one of the premier in-person events in the Design Industry, has gone virtual.  In this episode of The Zweig Letter Podcast, we sit down with Zweig Group CEO, Chad Clinehens, to learn more about this effort and the plans that are in place to make this...

We recently sat down with former CEO and Chairman of Burns & McDonnell, Greg Graves.  Greg engaged us with a far-reaching conversation about what life is like as a retired Design Industry Executive - although Greg has not really taken any time off since leaving Burns & McDonnell in 2017.  He has stayed busy working with local organizations in the Kansas City area where he resides...

Laura joined Hickok Cole 2017 to drive business development efforts firm-wide. Laura takes a task-oriented approach to managing Hickok Cole’s existing relationships and forging new ones. She enjoys directing and learning about the creative and thoughtful design methods of her colleagues and disseminating in-house research initiatives to forward-thinking partners. Social handles: LinkedIn:  li...

We recently sat down with LaShawn Stewart-Baylor, founder of Integrated CM Solutions , a Program/Construction Management firm based in San Antonio, Texas.  In five years, LaShawn has built a firm to be reckoned with in the HUGE Texas Construction landscape.    We had a far-reaching conversation about Program/Construction Management in San Antonio and beyond. We also discussed h...

We recently sat down with James Garrett, AIA, NOMA, Founder of 4RM+ULA Architects in St. Paul, MN. Nothing was off-limits during this far-reaching conversation. We discussed George Floyd, Racism in the Design Industry, the challenge in designing Memorable Structures, and James’ family history in St. Paul – He’s a 5th Generation Resident with ties to an influential City Architect and a Grandfather...

On the Zweig Letter Podcast today, Randy Wilburn sat down with Vatsal Shah, VP, and Principal Engineer with Mott MacDonald in New Jersey and New York.  Vatsal talks about the challenges that Mott MacDonald and so many other Design Firms are dealing with during the Coronavirus Pandemic.  He shares a lot of the things they are doing to promote remote work, keep the culture going, and how they have d...

Zweig Group's Randy Wilburn recently sat down with Chris Huckabee, CEO of Huckabee and Associates, to talk about how his Architectural firm has learned to quickly evolve over the past few months during the pandemic. Chris has engaged his leadership team to stay connected with all of his employees. And, if that wasn't enough, he has made an effort to personally keep in touch with the whole company...

Zweig Group's Randy Wilburn recently sat down with Brian Sullivan, CEO of Sullivan Engineering, to talk about what it's like running a design firm in the midst of a pandemic. Sullivan Engineering has offices in Northern New Jersey and New York City, one of the epicenters of COVID-19.   To say this pandemic has affected his firm would be an understatement. Brian has made the most of the s...