Engineering Influence from ACEC

Matt Fultz, a principal at Matheson Financial Advisors, came on the program today to talk about firm valuations. We discuss the key factors in valuation, the steps to take to sell a firm, the most likely buyers, and why you might want to start the process today.

Matt recently presented an ACEC online class on valuation. Click here for the on-demand class.  

On today's Government Affairs Update, we re-cap the provisions of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan and discuss the rescheduling of the House Small Business Committee hearing on the PPP FAR credits clause now set for March 23rd. 

In honor of Women's History Month and International Women's Day, the Engineering Influence podcast welcomed ACEC CEO, Linda Bauer Darr to the show joined by ACEC Chair-elect Robin Greenleaf and NAECE President-elect Beth Bauer to talk about the state of women in engineering and ACEC's efforts to make the industry more inclusive.  

Steve Hall and Matt Reiffer joined the program to provide an update on the PPP FAR Credits Clause and to announce ACEC's participation in a House Small Business Committee hearing on the 9th focused on that very issue.  More information about the hearing can be found here.

The podcast welcomed Tommy Wells, Director of the DC Department of Energy & Environment onto the program to discuss the District's work towards net zero emissions and the challenges his department is facing due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tommy was a panelist during the most recent ACEC Research Institute roundtable on the Future of Engineering, which focused on sustainability and renewables in a post-pandemic world.

Simon Goodhead, principal of The Coxe Group, a management consultancy in Atlanta, GA, came on the program to discuss the challenges of employee retention in engineering firms and the high cost of failing to meet those challenges.

Goodhead recently presented the ACEC online class "Why Retention is You and Not Them." Click here to access the on-demand session.

ACEC's Lynn Schloesser joined the podcast today to discuss ACEC's first ever reverse industry day between the ACEC Water, Energy and Environment Committee and EPA.  

Unlike regular industry days, reverse industry days put agency acquisition staff in the audience while industry presents their perspectives of doing business with the government.  To make the event even more unique, ACEC partnered with the Professional Services Council to bring EPA officials in as moderators, which enrolled them even further in the preparation and execution of the event. 

Overall, reverse industry days help to uncover hidden challenges in the contracting process and serve to deepen relationships between government agencies and the firms looking to do business with them.

Engineering Influence continues to celebrate Engineers Week 2021. We were happy to invite three recent ACEC Scholarship winners to share their experiences as young engineers who are completing their educations or just starting out in the workforce.  Our panel discussion welcomed:

Alisha Stidam, who was awarded the $10,000 Jim Kleinfelder ACEC Scholarship, works for OHM Advisors.

Matthew Schomacker, who received the $5,000 Lennox Nishimura Scholarship, is working toward a bachelor's/master’s degree in civil engineering from Northeastern University.

Teresa Magana who received the $5,000 Professional Liability Agents Network (PLAN) Scholarship and is studying for a master's degree in geotechnical engineering at California State University, Sacramento.

The podcast welcomed Thea Sahr with Discover-e, the organizers of Engineer's Week to discuss how the event is going virtual in 2021.  

Learn more about DiscoverE's full range of resources for Engineers Week and ways to promote engineering throughout the year on their website: http://www.discovere.org 

Matt Reiffer and Katharine Mottley joined the podcast today to delve into ACEC's new online advocacy course: Effective Government Engagement at the Local, State and Federal Levels, which kicks off virtually on March 2.  

The 5 session course being offered by ACEC's advocacy team will provide the tools firm leaders need to effectively advocate and communicate the interests of their businesses to elected officials at all levels of government.  The sessions include:

Session 1: Federal Legislative Affairs: Where Do You Begin?

Session 2: Engagement in the Federal Regulatory Process

Session 3: Local Government: Engaging with Zoning Boards

Session 4: Effective State Legislative Engagement: Lobby Days, Recess Activities, and Virtual Meetings

Session 5: Using Communications Tools to Support Your Advocacy Efforts