What is good leadership and how does it manifest itself within the leadership team and the firm? This issue is increasingly important for engineering firms as the Baby Boom generation retires and new leaders are evolving. It’s something you want to get right from the get-go. To offer some direction on how to do that, Mark Goodale, a principal at Morrissey Goodale,  came on the program. Mark recently presented a program for ACEC on Building Effective Leadership Teams. Click here for more information on the online class

Engineering Influence from ACEC

Mark Goodale on How to Build Effective Leadership Teams

Infrastructure is THE topic on Capitol Hill right now and the engineering industry is very invested in what happens. ACEC’s advocacy team has been working for months to build support for a robust infrastructure program and continues to work towards passage. As the Congressional debates drag on, however, individual engineering firms face uncertainty, unsure about how to incorporate these potential huge infrastructure investments in their business planning. To offer some context to where we are right now and to provide some guidance for engineering firms, Deniece Peterson, Senior Director of Federal Market Analysis at Deltek, joins the program.

Deltek‘s Deniece Peterson on the Congressional Infrastructure Negotiations and the Impact on Individual Firms

Renewables are the fastest-growing sector in the energy market, with solar and wind expected to make up 70% of utility-scale electricity generation capacity domestic additions in 2021. Critical to the current and future expansion of the renewables market is storage, because solar and wind are intermittent but energy demand is constant. Storage technologies have developed at a rapid pace in recent years, but what about going forward. What can we expect in the energy sector in 2035? Arup offers an answer to that question in its report—Future of Energy 2035: What will a future U.S. energy storage look like? Joining us on the program are two authors of the report. Cole Roberts is Arup's Energy Business Leader for the Americas region, and Geoff Gunn is the Energy Systems Lead. Click here to download the report. In the podcast, Roberts highlighted two Arup projects: Charge4AllTM, which is geospatial site suitability software for streamlining the deployment of public charging points for electric vehicles. SolarResilient, which provides recommendations for solar PV plus battery storage systems to simultaneously answer the need for energy resilience during a grid disruption while also decarbonizing the community by providing renewable energy storage and generation.    

What Will the U.S. Energy Sector Look Like in 2035?

Steve Hall joins the program to discuss the current state of play on infrastructure and reconciliation as well as the impending EO on vaccinations for federal contractors.   Make sure to register for our webinar on Monday, October 11th at 1:30pm "Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors." Register here: https://education.acec.org/diweb/catalog/item?id=8329585  The September 24th guidance to federal contractors covered a broad range of contract types and contractors, and mandates COVID-19 vaccinations for covered contractor employees along with masking and social distancing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The guidance also includes some unanticipated exceptions. The guidance sets baseline requirements under the Executive Order that are expected to be updated over time and implemented through a contract clause that will be issued by the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (“FAR”) Council on October 8th. Join attorneys from the Covington & Burling Contracts Practice Group on Monday, October 11 at 1:30 EST to review the requirements A/E firms must meet in order comply with EO 14042 and continue contracting with the federal government. Presenters: Jennifer Plitsch, co-chair of the firm’s Government Contracts practice group. Her practice includes a wide range of contracting issues for large and small businesses in both defense and civilian contracting. Her practice involves advising clients on contract proposal, performance, and compliance questions as well as transactional and legislative issues. Her practice also includes bid protest and contract claims and appeals litigation before GAO, agency boards and the federal courts. Ms. Plitsch has particular expertise in advising clients in the pharmaceutical and biologics industry. She advises a range of pharmaceutical and biologics manufacturers on Federal Supply Schedule contracts, including the complex pricing requirements imposed on products under the Veterans Health Care Act, as well as research and development contracts and grants with various federal agencies. She also has significant experience advising on the requirements of various programs under which vaccine products and biodefense medical countermeasures are procured by the Government. Tyler Evans, partner in the Covington & Burling’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the government contracts group. His practice covers multiple subject-matter areas, including research and development, non-traditional contracting, intellectual property, contract negotiations, flow-down requirements, small business issues, sourcing restrictions, costs, and compliance.  

Government Affairs Update for 10-8-21

Diversity and Inclusion is an important pursuit across U.S. industries and within engineering firms. It’s the right thing to do, but it is also a critical component in solving our STEM talent shortage and studies have found that diverse and inclusive companies perform better in the market. Many engineering firms have established D&I programs, and we have one of the leading firms with us today. Thornton Tomasetti, which is #62 on the 2021 ENR 500 and has 1,500 employees worldwide, launched its formal D&I program in 2016 and has continued to build and augment it ever since. Joining us on the program are Thornton Tomasetti President Wayne Stocks and Senior Principal Peggy Van Eepoel.

Thornton Tomasetti‘s Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Program

Immediately after Hurricane Ida swept through Louisiana last month, leaving a trail of destruction, the Terracon Foundation, which is a corporate philanthropy initiative of ACEC member firm Terracon, made two $5,000 grants to food banks in Louisiana for food and supplies in the hardest-hit communities. This is just the latest instance of the good work the Foundation has done since its founding in 2008, and we wanted to know more about it, so on the program with us today are two leaders of the Foundation. Scott Kolodziej is the Foundation Chair. He is an Environmental Department Manager and Principal at Terracon, and was appointed this year to the Chair role after three years on the Terracon Foundation Board. Kristi Tahmasiyan is the Manager of the Terracon Foundation. She is the Director of Mergers and Acquisitions at Terracon and a Principal of the Firm.  She has served the Terracon Foundation in various roles, including a three-year term on the Foundation Board from 2014 to 2017.

Doing Good with the Terracon Foundation

In August, Walter P Moore published a white paper titled An Introduction to Flood Protection: What Owners Need to Know to Protect Their Properties. The white paper focuses on the numerous flood protection approaches and building owner needs and provides an in-depth review of the flood protection process.  One of the authors of the report joined the program to talk about the white paper and flood protection. Ray Drexler is a Principal and Senior Project Manager in Walter P Moore Diagnostics with experience in diversified aspects of forensic engineering. Ray's expertise includes evaluating, assessing, and designing repairs for distress related to facades, steel/concrete structures, and below-grade waterproofing. Click here to view the white paper.  

Walter P Moore‘s Ray Drexler on the Current State of Flood Protection

Matt Reiffer joins the program to preview a critical week ahead in Washington.  Congress is facing numerous deadlines and the clock is ticking. Will there be a vote on infrastructure on Monday?  Can an agreement on reconciliation be reached?  What about the debt limit and the CR?  Tune in and find out.

Government Affairs Update for 9-24-21

Lindsay Simone with the ACEC Life Health Trust joined the program today to discuss the importance of ergonomics in avoiding long-term health issues.  We discuss simple things you can do to reduce back pain, eye strain and avoid the perils of the modern office and worksite.

Discussing Ergonomics with the Life Health Trust

Last week, ACEC released our latest Private Industry Brief, which provides practical, detailed information and targeted market insights on key A/E private sectors. This issue focuses on the Energy & Utilities market and provides a lot of data on the current state and future prospects of the sector To dive a little deeper into the numbers and analysis, Erin McLaughlin, ACEC vice president for private market resources, joined the program. Click here to download the brief.

Private Markets Update: ACEC‘s Erin McLaughlin Discusses the Energy & Utilities Market Sector

Ted Gerber, president of Addison Resources Group in New York City, joins us on the program to talk about team building. With more than 25 years of experience working with firms in a variety of industries to improve leadership effectiveness, Ted offers keen insights into the skills and characteristics that make for good teams within an engineering firm. Ted recently presented an online class on team building for ACEC. Click here for the On-Demand class.

Executive Coach Ted Gerber Shares How to Build Effective Teams Within an Organization

What began as a conversation about induced demand with urban planner Jeff Speck quickly broadened into a wider discussion about U.S. road engineering standards, their impact, and what responsibility engineers may have to improve them. Speck is the author of Walkable City, one of the most influential and widely read city planning books in recent years. He subsequently wrote Walkable City Rules: 101 Steps to Making Better Places, which is targeted towards traffic engineers and transportation professionals. If you've read these books, you know he doesn't hold back on his opinions, and that trait comes through on this podcast. So, buckle up.

A Conversation with Jeff Speck about Road Engineering Standards and a Lot More

On this week's Government Affairs Update, Katharine Mottley, our tax and regulatory guru, joined the program to discuss the status of the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill moving in Congress and how emerging divisions among congressional Democrats may impact the process.  We also discuss several revenue bills moving through Congress, including potential changes to important passthrough deductions for our industry.  

Government Affairs Update for 9-10-21

One of the most daunting challenges is business development, the pursuit of strategic opportunities for the firm, whether that be new clients, more business from existing clients, or even new partnerships or business relationships. This can often feel like you're racing on a hamster wheel that is always accelerating. Wes Guckert came on the program to help us dig into how to succeed at business development. President and CEO of The Traffic Group in White Marsh, MD., Wes is a frequent speaker on the subject and recently presented an online class for ACEC.  Click here to link to the ACEC On-Demand class, What is BD's Secret Sauce?

Minding Your Business: Wes Guckert Shares the Secrets to Successful Business Development

On today's Member Organization Spotlight, we feature ACEC Indiana's former and current President Michael Rowe and Cash Canfield to discuss a strategic enrollment process they undertook with their DOT.

MO Spotlight: Strategic Engagement with ACEC Indiana

Engineering Influence: A Podcast from the American Council of Engineering Companies. ACEC is the voice of America's Engineering Industry.

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Engineering Influence from ACEC

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