Engineering Management Institute

UPCOMING TRAINING

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Building Community and Your Engineering Career

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This is a guest blog by Sabrina Rivera, P.E.

communityI was going to start with the definition of community, but I have a feeling you already have a few examples in mind. For me, community is something that is created through multiple positive interactions with a group of individuals. Over time, bonds form and community develops, as all members are looking for the betterment of themselves and the group overall.

There are many benefits to being involved with a community, both directly and indirectly related to your career. The obvious one is professional organizations, which provide networking technical enrichment and social functions. Indirect communities can also provide opportunities by introducing you to people who are part of your network but not anyone you had met before or people from different industries who can serve as mentors and friends. Additionally, working with communities indirectly related to your career can provide an avenue for a cross-pollination of ideas and be a source of inspiration.

My first real experience with building community occurred when I served as president of the California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) ASCE student club. Although our organization had existed for many years, there were ebbs and flows with involvement. During this year, my fantastic team and I were able to increase membership and excitement for the club. A few steps we took to build community were:

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TGEP 003: How Engineers Can Stay Technically Sharp in Times of Uncertainty

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Stay Technically SharpIn this episode of The Geotechnical Engineering Podcast, we talk to Dr. Samuel Clemence, a professor at Syracuse University about his role as professor at the university and the things he does to help geotechnical engineers and students succeed. He provides some great tips on how engineers can stay technically sharp, especially during these uncertain times we live in.

Stay Technically Sharp

Here Are Some of the Questions We Ask Dr. Samuel Clemence in This Episode:

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TCEP 149: The Business of Engineering — Scaling an Engineering Firm

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scaling an engineering firmIn this episode of The Civil Engineering Podcast, I talk to Brian Saunders, founder and CEO of BigTime Software. Brian talks to us about the business of engineering, and more specifically, about scaling an engineering firm and provide some great on how you can grow your engineering firm.

Engineering Quotes:

scaling an engineering firm

scaling an engineering firm

Here Are Some of the Questions I Ask Brian:

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How Public Speaking Changed My Career Direction (and Can Change Yours Too)

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This is a guest blog by Carl Friesen

Public Speaking

How can one speech transform your life? If you’re the one giving it, on the right topic, and to the right audience, it can. That’s what it was for me. In 1999, I jumped out of the best job I’d ever had to fulfill my goal of having my own business before I turned 40.  Now my attention turned to building a base of clients for my business. I liked the idea of public speaking, as I’d heard it’s a great way to build personal rapport with people who might become my clients. 

As a marketing professional seeking to work with engineering firms, I knew that my best audience would be marketing staff. So, I found an organization of marketing people and booked myself as a speaker. Doing that speech involved flying halfway across Canada, from Toronto to Vancouver.  

I picked a topic for my speech to serve two purposes. One was meeting the informational needs of my audience — how they could build the professional profile of their firm’s members. The other purpose was to show that I was someone who could get results for them, without it being a sales pitch. 

At the end of the speech, two people from different firms came up and introduced themselves. They both became clients. One was a firm that I’d never heard of before, but it turned out to be a global environmental and geotechnical firm that has been my core client ever since. Many of the people I’ve worked with at this firm continued to work with me when they left for other jobs, so my business grows. 

That’s why I say that one speech in Vancouver transformed my life. 

Five Key Steps for Success as a Speaker 

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TSEC 30: Wind Engineering and Membership in ASCE SEI

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wind engineeringIn this episode, we talk to Antonio Zaldívar de Alba, a teacher and research assistant at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He talks about wind engineering and provides three great benefits that students can get by joining ASCE’s Structural Engineering Institute (SEI).

Engineering Quotes:

Wind Engineering

ASCE SEI

Here Are Some of the Questions We Ask Antonio Zaldívar de Alba in This Episode:

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Find Win-Win Scenarios

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This is a guest blog by Mike Burns, PE, PgMP, DBIA

Win-Win ScenariosLast month we discussed How AEC Professionals Can Approach Their Roles as Integrators. This role is critical as communities across the globe cautiously move from healthcare pandemic responses to economic recovery. In the United States, our rapidly evolving monetary and fiscal response has a significant infrastructure investment component, including the Federal Reserves’ Municipal Liquidity Facility, the CARES Act, and pending action in Congress as recent headlines note (e.g., House approves $1.5T plan to fix crumbling infrastructure). In our inherently complex industry, we must build on our integrator role to expose and promote local wins aligned to broader policy objectives.

The Legislative Outline for Infrastructure in America , developed with inputs from across the political spectrum, frames our policy emphasis:

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TGEP 002: ASCE National President Dr. Kancheepuram N. Gunalan on the Future of Geotechnical Engineering

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Dr. Kancheepuram N. GunalanIn this episode of The Geotechnical Engineering Podcast, we talk to Dr. Kancheepuram N. Gunalan (Guna), the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2020 National President and Senior Vice President at AECOM about his career in the geotechnical field, his time as ASCE president, and why he thinks geotechnical engineering is critical to the future of the built world.

Engineering Quotes:

Here Are Some of the Questions We Ask Dr. Kancheepuram N. Gunalan, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE, F.ASCE in This Episode:

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TCEP 148: How AEC Professionals Can Continue to Learn and Grow in This New ‘Normal’

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AEC ProfessionalsLearning is essential to our existence.  It is an indispensable tool for every career and organization. In this episode of The Civil Engineering Podcast, I provide five ways that AEC firms can deliver training and make sure that their professionals continue to learn during what many people are calling the ‘new normal.’

Engineering Quotes:

AEC Professionals

AEC Professionals

Here Are Five Ways AEC Firms Can Ensure Their Professionals Continue to Learn and Grow in This ‘New Normal’

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5 Ways to Convince Your Team to Implement New Technology

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This is a guest blog by Holly Welles

new technologyAdopting new technology into your workflow can have many benefits. With the right tech, you’ll find that you save money, increase efficiency, and improve performance. Despite these advantages, it can sometimes be challenging to get your team to accept new processes.

If you’re going to move forward with new technology, you’ll need your team’s support. Here are five ways you can help them realize the value of implementing new tech.

1. Keep Your Team’s Needs in Mind

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Applicability of Green Engineering Solutions

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This is a guest blog by Chris Jackson

Green EngineeringToday, the world is facing environmental problems such as climate change, high energy costs, and pollution-related illnesses. These issues have prompted engineers and architects to develop green solutions. Designed to be more environmentally friendly, new residential and commercial buildings and renovations are now able to reduce emissions, energy consumption, and illnesses. While the use of sustainable practices is currently a hot trend in both renovation and new construction, it was actually developed more than 50 years ago, when only few builders and designers gave this idea little thought.

One of the popular sustainable solutions includes green engineering. To learn more about green engineering, this article by Best Access Doors is something that you should check out.

What Is Green Engineering?

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