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Providing Stellar Service to Your Engineering Customers

September 13, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest blog by Pamela A. Scott

Think back to the last time you had a marvelous buying experience. It doesn’t matter what you were buying — a car, prescription drugs, or a hot dog. What made that experience stand out for you, the customer?

Now, put yourself in the shoes of your customers. They are the clients who hire you or your firm to provide whatever services you or your firm offer. How would they rate their experience as your customer?

A few years ago, I asked that question to a group of engineering project managers (PMs). Here are a few of dozens of topics they raised related to providing excellent service to their engineering customers:

Questions for Your Clients

3 Ideas to Help Grow Your Community and Improve Your Life

September 6, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest post by Nader Mowlaee

It goes without saying that we are living through unprecedented times. But we’re all tied up together in this thing called life. Think of each other as bees of the same hive. When one bee is hurt, the entire hive suffers. It goes the other way too; when one bee thrives, the whole hive prospers. So I’m here to discuss how growing as a single person will help grow your community and improve their quality of life.

It’s not difficult to wake up nowadays and feel like life is awful on all fronts: our jobs are stagnant, our government is letting us down, and our physical and mental health has been neglected. All of this makes us feel like we are not fulfilling our true potential, and we are unhappy as a result. Sure, we are not going at it alone, and this happens to everyone. But, how can we change it?

We can change it by bettering ourselves. Yes, we can help our communities grow and prosper by improving our own lives. It will take lots of work, but fortune favors the courageous. If we believe in ourselves, we will reach our personal life goals and become the best version of ourselves, therefore positively and holistically affecting our communities and the people in them.

1. Compete With Yourself and Root for Everybody Else

Growth and Empowerment Through Community

August 30, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest blog by Fernando A. Ceballos, P.E.

I’m often asked, “Why do you volunteer so much, aren’t you worried that it’s going to affect your career development?” The answer to that is “NO, why would I be worried — it’s likely going to help my growth.” However, it is a problem if I allow my involvement to distract me from my job and impact my performance. Here are a few things for you to think about.

Find Your Tribe

It is pretty typical for people to mention that it is harder to make friends after college. You either get lucky with good co-workers you enjoy spending time with outside of work or you join some type of social club. I’ve found the easiest way to find people I “click” with is through community organizations that have a cause behind them. That cause unites us and provides the initial filter of knowing that the people you are meeting have something in common with you.

I can attest to this! My wife and closest friends were all relationships that I made after joining an organization focused on a mission larger than myself.

Know the End Goal

Paying It Forward: Engineers Can Make an Impact

August 23, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest blog by Tiffani Teachey

You might be thinking, “What does this have to do with engineering?” I’ll tell you. One of the most valuable traits that an engineer can possess is empathy, which is the ability to understand and share in another person’s emotions. What better way to exercise this trait than by helping others? Whether it is donating food, clothes, or time, engineers can make an impact by finding ways to give back!

“Service is the rent we pay for the privilege of living here on Earth” ~ Shirley Chisholm

Here Are Three Ways That Engineers Can Pay It Forward:

[Read more…] about Paying It Forward: Engineers Can Make an Impact

How to Write Emails That Get the Job Done

August 16, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest blog by Pamela A. Scott

What if you could write really good emails? Would it boost your career?

I’m sure it would because being able to write really good emails would make you stand out from the crowd. Most people write emails that are average or below average.

How do you know if your emails are above average, or even really good? Here’s my formula for writing emails that set you apart from the others and endear you to your boss.

Your reader can:

Read and understand your email the first time through
Find your main point quickly
See whether or not he/she needs to take action now, then do so
Find the details needed to understand your message and act accordingly
Go on about his/her day without having to ask clarifying questions via another email or phone call

Top 10 Tips for Writing Great Emails

Healthy Conflict: How Disagreements Spur Innovation

August 13, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest post by Patrick Sweet, P.Eng., MBA, PMP, CSEP

For most engineers, conflict at work is something to be avoided. It’s about as desirable as spilling coffee on your pants before a big presentation or dealing with (yet another) paper jam. There’s an important difference, however, between conflict and most other office challenges: conflict is incredibly important. In fact, almost all innovative products and processes are the result of conflicts at work.

This leads us to two questions. Why is it that conflict is so important for innovation, and how can you approach conflict in a healthy way? In today’s article, I’ll tackle both important questions.

Why Is Conflict Important for Innovation?

5 Reasons to Say YES to Volunteering

August 9, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest post by Lindsay A. O’Leary, P.E., CAE, LEED AP, M.ASCE

Volunteering allows you to bring positive, measurable changes to your community and professional family. You’ve probably thought about saying YES to a volunteer opportunity. But how? When? Does it work with your schedule? You are busy, and what will you get out of it?

My advice is simple: Say YES and say it NOW. And the more you put in, the more you’ll get out of it.

Here Are Five Reasons Why Community Involvement and Volunteerism Will Improve Your Life:

Accepting Responsibility Is the Precursor to Closing the Deal

August 2, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest post by Nader Mowlaee

Whether you close business deals daily or consider a completed deal to be a new job offer that will catapult your career forward, you must first accept full responsibility for what will happen after signing the agreement. Taking responsibility is required for progressing in your work, business, life, or relationships. It is just the right thing to do, and it is a precursor to overcoming or altogether avoiding negative consequences.

Engineering Leaders Take Responsibility for Their Actions

Great engineers take responsibility for their actions and their thoughts because, ultimately, those thoughts turn into action and insights that enable business stakeholders to make decisions. I have seen time and again how engineering leaders take responsibility for their actions. Sometimes they win and get recognized for their efforts, and more often, they fail and get scolded; some even face criminal and obstruction charges. What makes someone a well-rounded engineer heavily relies on how many lessons they have learned from their failures and their career wins.

Should My LinkedIn Profile and My Resume Have a Motherhood Section?

July 26, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest blog by author Rae Taylor, one of EMI’s Civil Engineering Collective Content Contributors

It’s always been known that having kids can be detrimental to a woman’s career. There is more research that can be cited here that women pay a price for having a family, whether it be reduced promotional prospects or a complete loss of career.

Maybe this is why I’ve always been told not to talk about having or wanting kids. I’ve even been advised to not mention being married and of childbearing age. One charming man once told me he wasn’t going to teach me anything because I would get myself pregnant and then have to leave, so what was the point? Side note here: I taught him Excel, Word, and some other software, but I guess being months from retirement, which he talked about constantly, he wasn’t going to go get himself pregnant, so I was safe in the knowledge that my efforts wouldn’t be wasted.

In the interest of never talking about having kids, let’s talk about motherhood instead, and if that should be on resumes. I haven’t been thinking about this at all while applying for jobs. I’ve been thinking about selling myself in the best possible light to all possible employers. But then the BBC asked me if motherhood belongs on a resume. I said “Yes, it does!’’ But I said it in the way you do when what you mean it, “Someone else should do that and break that glass ceiling for all the mothers out there, but not me, because I actually want a job.”

Avoid Conflict by Focusing on These 3 Areas

July 19, 2021 By EMI

This is a guest blog by Pamela A. Scott

“This is what I NEED them to do,” a client said during our call recently. I had to squash the groan that was trying to escape my mouth.

The words and the tone of voice this client used were enough to ensure that “they” were not at all likely to do what she wanted them to do. “They” were her peers. She was asserting authority that she didn’t have.

Here are steps you can take to have successful conversations that don’t turn into unnecessary conflict.

Look At the Words You Use

“I need,” “I want,” and “you should” are good ways to send a conversation downhill before you’ve really gotten started.

When you use those expressions, you come across as a dictator. The persons you’re talking at — not with — can feel belittled, bullied, run over, and more. They’ll possibly end up thinking you’re a jerk.