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Numbers May Drive the Business, but People Drive the Numbers®

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This is a guest blog by Pamela A. Scott

People Drive the NumbersFor several years, I had the good fortune to be in CEO mastermind groups. These confidential mastermind groups were comprised of CEOs who shared their frustrations and challenges in running their businesses.  A favorite mantra of these CEOs was, “This would be a great business if I didn’t have to deal with people.” That mantra led to me creating my tagline: Numbers may drive the business, but people drive the numbers®.  Without the people, you have no business.

Here Are Some Tips for Taking Care of Your People:

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As a Leader, You Must Extend Trust to Earn Trust

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This is a blog by Jeff Perry, MBA

Can you ever write and talk enough about trust? Probably not. Its power is huge at work, at home, in communities, and more.  

Without trust, things just break down. Yet trust doesn’t just happen or magically appear. It is built and shaped over time in relationships by making and keeping commitments to each other.  

But where does it begin?  

With you. 

A Leader’s Job Is to Lead 

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Three Situations Where Customers Are Not Always Right

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This is a guest post by Nader Mowlaee

CustomersYou must have heard this phrase before: “The customer is always right.” And chances are you have assumed that it applies to everyone and every business. However, based on my experience, there are three situations where this is not the case. In this article, I would like to share those situations with you so you won’t be negatively affected by misplaced beliefs or false expectations.

The idea or purpose behind this saying is to improve the quality of service we offer to everyone, whether they are purchasing products or services from us (external customers) or working on the same team as us (internal customers). However, over the last few years, I’ve seen many cases where internal and external customers have quoted this phrase to bend the truth a bit or break a rule. Here are three situations where the idea of,  “the customer is always right,” is wrong.

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Engineers Can Provide Stellar Client Service

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This is a guest blog by Tiffani Teachey

Provide Stellar Client ServiceStellar client service is the key to retaining clients. As an engineer, one might not think client service would be in an engineer’s wheelhouse, but it’s often one of the most effective ways to retain clients. Stellar client service is the key to your business and company’s success. It is a way to provide a competitive edge in the industry and help grow one’s company. The benefits of stellar client service outweigh the costs, as they will gain loyal customers who will come back for more! Below are three ways engineers can use their skill set and knowledge base to provide stellar client service:

Solving the Client’s Problems and Providing Solutions

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The (Not-So) Secret to Successful Client Management

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

Stellar Client ServiceA consultant’s priority is to provide a service in exchange for payment. It may be advice or developing and executing a plan. In civil engineering, our industry’s charge is to build a better quality of life for all of civilization, doing so both ethically and sustainably. Each completed project brings us closer to that goal. Each time a client hires us, we have an opportunity to make a difference. Clean drinking water. A reliable route to emergency medical care. Structures that withstand flooding or safely sway during an earthquake. Our jobs are rewarding. And happy clients are critical to our success. 

So, what’s the not-so-secret key to providing stellar client service? COMMUNICATION! But it’s not always easy and, frankly, it can be downright intimidating at times. 

Here Are Four Communication Checkpoints for Stellar Client Service to Start Implementing Today:

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The Ways Technology Maintains Productivity of Teams That Work Remotely

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This is a guest blog by Brian T.

TechnologyWondering how advanced technology can assist businesses in making their teams productive? In this article, I will discuss several ways how technology has already optimized the work of remote employees! 

Last year, businesses witnessed a fundamental transformation of the traditional office due to the havoc caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This resulted in a kind of “remote-work economy,” which is presumably to be a foundation even after the pandemic is long since passed. 

The above-mentioned became a new issue for businesses as well as staff because remote work has become a common practice. However, the growing access of super-fast internet, side-by-side with the development of cloud computing, has enriched present businesses with the infrastructure that is necessary to promptly adjust to multiple remote work challenges. 

As a result, according to Statista, small and medium-sized enterprises are expected to invest more than $100 billion on teamwork tools, cloud-based apps, cybersecurity platforms, and many other remote digital services during 2021-2023. Online business-to-business (B2B) marketplaces like Engre are also gaining momentum. This innovative technology has turned out to be an integral part of business daily routines. Offices, educational establishments, and even hospitals count on contemporary tech to guarantee that business processes function as usual. 

Nowadays, people are free to work from anywhere, partner with each other seamlessly, optimize client care, and gain new skills and competencies online. Let’s explore how technology maintains the productivity of employees who work remotely. 

Technology Reconsiders Remote Work Culture 

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What the Redefinition of Winning Means for Your Success

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This is a guest blog by Peter C. Atherton, P.E.

Redefinition of WinningTo be successful as leaders and leadership teams, we need to see both the “big picture” and what’s happening “on the ground” within our firms and the marketplace.  

Being a leader at any level is about constantly looking for problems to solve and opportunities to realize — but which ones are the right ones, which ones have the greatest return on investment, and in what order should we pursue them?  

The Big Picture 

As part of my work these days as a management consultant, I purposely look for meaningful patterns of issues and opportunities that express themselves in leadership teams throughout the industry, across the country, and in both smaller and larger firms.  

And to this end, I see eight great challenges changing our industry in real time:  

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Providing Stellar Service to Your Engineering Customers

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This is a guest blog by Pamela A. Scott

Engineering CustomersThink 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

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3 Ideas to Help Grow Your Community and Improve Your Life

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This is a guest post by Nader Mowlaee

Grow Your CommunityIt 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

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Growth and Empowerment Through Community

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

CommunityI’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

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