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Blog

Adaptive Project Management with Scrum Techniques (Part 1)

March 20, 2023 By EMI

This is a guest post by Tevis Holzer, P.E.

Scrum Techniques

As the quantity and complexity of projects continue to rise across the industry, improving the efficiency for engineering teams is critical to meet demand. When current project demands already over-utilize staff, embracing the growth mindset required to provide career opportunities to staff can also be difficult. Efficiency gains relieve the pressure from current demands and open the doors to new markets and clients, which then provide career growth opportunities. Engineering teams have several buckets of resources to dip into to create efficiency, including People, Processes, and Tools.

A blend of these three resources is likely required to adapt and evolve with the industry. And as engineers, we are attracted to solving problems with Processes and Tools. Processes aid in streamlining tasks for similar projects but require significant effort to establish and maintain. Tools (e.g., innovative technology and software) often allow us to perform tasks faster but also require specialized staff and training. At first glance, we think of filling the People bucket by hiring more people. However, a trickling workforce pipeline and time-consuming onboarding for new hires can make this option unrealistic. This article series will focus on an often-overlooked portion of the People resource bucket: Team Collaboration. More specifically, this series explores how an approach to project management using Scrum techniques can create efficiencies and even reduce workplace stress.

Before digging into Scrum techniques of project management and how they promote collaboration, let’s establish some keys to fostering a collaborative environment. These keys seem obvious, but the consequences of their absence are detrimental. Like the three legs of a stool, these three keys are interdependent: collaboration will not occur without each of them.

1. Team

[Read more…] about Adaptive Project Management with Scrum Techniques (Part 1)

Filed Under: Blog, Leadership/Management Tagged With: Adaptive Engineering Project Management, Deploying your team’s “Superheroes, Project Management with Scrum Techniques, Tevis Holzer

Mastering Productivity: 3 Essential Hacks for Engineers

March 13, 2023 By EMI

This is a guest post by Tiffani Teachey

Mastering Productivity

“Time is not refundable; use it with intention.” ~ Unknown

As an engineer, your job requires a high level of focus and attention to detail. With so many tasks and projects to manage, it can be challenging to stay productive throughout the day. The good news is that there are many productivity hacks that can help you streamline your workflow, maximize your efficiency, and get more done in less time. In this blog, we’ll explore three essential productivity hacks that every engineer should know. Whether you’re struggling with distractions, need to prioritize your tasks, or want to automate repetitive tasks, these hacks will help you with mastering productivity and achieving your goals.

Minimize Distractions

Distractions can derail your productivity and make it harder to stay focused on your work. To minimize distractions, implement the following:

  • Turn off notifications on your phone and computer
  • Use noise-canceling headphones to block out noise
  • Close unnecessary tabs and apps on your computer
  • Work in a quiet, distraction-free environment

Use the Pomodoro Technique

[Read more…] about Mastering Productivity: 3 Essential Hacks for Engineers

Filed Under: Blog, Organization/Productivity/Time Management Tagged With: 3 Essential Hacks for Engineers, How to minimize distractions, Tiffani Teachey, Using the Pomodoro Technique

Leveraging Social Media to Boost Your Personal Engineering Brand

March 6, 2023 By EMI

This is a guest blog by Nick Heim, P.E.

Social MediaCivil engineers bring a diverse set of viewpoints, skills, and knowledge to the table.

Because of the impact our work has on society, there are many benefits to sharing our expertise outside of our day-to-day work – for our professional colleagues, our clients, and the general public.

Today, I would like to give some tips on how you can build your personal brand as a civil engineer using social media.

1. Establish a Niche

Social media is a tool that, to this point, has not been utilized very heavily by engineering professionals. I have heard and seen several reasons for this.

One way I have gotten past my personal reservations about the use of social media is by talking about topics that I feel that I can speak confidently about, or have something to share that others would find valuable.

social media

Some niches that I have seen executed successfully by Civil Engineering professionals:

[Read more…] about Leveraging Social Media to Boost Your Personal Engineering Brand

Filed Under: Blog, Networking/Client Relations Tagged With: Boost Your Personal Engineering Brand, Establishing a Niche, Leveraging Social Media, Nick Heim

Make New Friends, but Keep the Old; One Is Silver and the Other Gold

February 27, 2023 By EMI

Make New Friends, but Keep the Old is a blog post by Pamela A. Scott

New FriendsIf you were, are, or knew a Girl Scout, you’ve heard this tune. It is a classic in Girl Scouts. And it fits with today’s blog.

When I work with younger engineers, we invariably talk about business development and networking. And we should. Business development and networking are critical to a company’s success. And to your career path.

Senior engineers know this. They know they have to develop conversational skills, scope out prospects at networking events, and build relationships that bring in business.

Younger engineers know they have to develop those skills, but they have a vague notion of how or why to do that.

Before I give you ideas to work with, check out this true example of how networking today can lead to business now and years down the road.

Networking pays off long-term

I spent years as an associate member of the ACEC (American Council of Engineering Companies). I served on committees, presented workshops at conferences and PDH days, and got to meet lots of people.

At a monthly ACEC luncheon, Noah Smith, an exec with an AEC company, sat down next to me. “Pam, I know who you are,” Noah said. “We’ve talked here and there, but I don’t know what you do. Would you enlighten me?”

“Sure, Noah. Let me tell you how I helped a client this morning.” I took a few minutes to do that. (Emphasis on a “few minutes,” not an elevator pitch.)

Noah handed me two business cards and said, “Call me in the morning. I’ve got someone for you to work with.”

I followed up the next day. That luncheon led to me coaching a director for three years. And that led to me working with that director when he went off to start his own business as a CEO years later. So far, that simple conversation with Noah has led to other contacts and thousands of dollars in work with awesome people.

Networking is more important than you think. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.

What I hear from younger engineers

This is what I’m told: “I don’t really have a role at our project meetings. Our senior engineer is going to talk with their senior architect and other senior people involved in the job. There’s no way for me to add something to the discussion.”

  1. Be a sponge. Watch, listen, and learn. Watch how the senior professionals are interacting. Notice their body language. Listen to what they’re saying and how they’re saying it. Are they treating each other with respect or is there some friction, even hostility in the room? Be a sponge and soak up as much info as you can get simply by being in the room. It’s called on-the-job training. It involves skills in listening, note-taking, and reading body language.
  2. Who are the other younger staff in the room? Do you know them? Should you? Networking is about building relationships. Is there a benefit to you getting to know your peers? You bet. Like you, those younger staff members will one day be senior projects managers or principals. Ten years from now you will no longer be the young kid in the room. You’ll have a role to play in projects meetings. People will want to talk with you because you have the experience and knowledge needed for the meeting.
  3. “Who do you know who needs to know me?” I asked an ACEC exec that question. She introduced me to the woman who became my very first coaching client and life-long friend.
  4. Who do you know that you can introduce others to? As humans we naturally reciprocate when somebody does or says something nice to us. Build your network of contacts so that you can respond when somebody asks, “Who do you know who could help me with this?”
  5. People don’t forget you if you’re interesting. When you go to a networking event, look for ways to meet people, especially if the event has interesting activities off-site. Get to know your peers and potential clients as people.

I recently heard from a CEO I met on a deep-sea fishing trip sponsored by the Georgia chapter of ACEC 20 years ago. I remember watching his little kids having fun on the boat. Anytime he and I have talked since then, I ask about his kids. Twenty years later.

Then there’s my buddy David. We became friends through ACEC. He invited me to be the opening speaker on communications for the chapter’s Future Leaders program. I did that for seven years and met wonderful people. And David also introduced me to his boss, who brought me in for workshops with her executive team.

I hope you get my point in this blog. “Make new friends but keep the old; one is silver and the other gold.”

Listen to the Girl Scout song: Make New Friends
Be a Pro at Networking Activities
Mind Your Manners at Networking Events
Communicate Effectively While Networking

About the Author

give feedbackPamela A. Scott is an executive coach and founder of MentorLoft, a coaching firm that works with CEOs and execs to prepare their Next Gen leaders to run their company. Pamela specializes in coaching engineers and CEOs of professional service firms. For more information, visit www.mentorloft.com.

We would love to hear any questions you might have or stories you might share on your networking strategies and the things you do to make new friends.

Please leave your comments, feedback or questions in the section below.

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To your success,

Anthony Fasano, PE, LEED AP

Filed Under: Blog, Business Development, Networking/Client Relations Tagged With: Make New Friends but Keep the Old, Networking pays off long-term, Networking today can lead to business, Pamela A. Scott

The Power of Culture: Why It Trumps Strategy Every Day

February 21, 2023 By EMI

power of culture

In this article, I’d like to discuss the importance of building and maintaining the right culture in your firm. It’s the most important thing you can do.

This is a column I send to engineering executives, learning, and HR professionals, on or about the first day of each month, to help them best develop their most important resource: their people. If you’d like to receive a copy, please message me.

culture

How Bill Walsh transformed the San Francisco 49ers from the laughingstock of the NFL to a powerhouse in less than 1,000 days.

When Bill Walsh was hired as the 49ers head football coach in 1979, he knew that there was only one way to turn that franchise around, and it wasn’t about finding the best football players in the world. He needed to instill a culture and attitude of winning in every member of the 49ers organization.

So, Walsh spent many hours creating a Standard of Performance that consisted of 17 principles that he honed over the years. This Standard of Performance was to be followed by EVERY person in the organization, from the receptionist to the now hall-of-fame quarterback Joe Montana.

[Read more…] about The Power of Culture: Why It Trumps Strategy Every Day

Filed Under: Blog, Business Development Tagged With: Anthony Fasano, Creating a Standard of Performance, Culture Eats Strategy, The Power of Culture

How Engineers Can Break Through Career and Personal Development Barriers

February 20, 2023 By EMI

This is a guest post by Jeff Perry, MBA

We all have something that feels like if we could change or get over it and turn the weakness into a strength, it would unlock all sorts of progress and opportunities for us.

Uncovering what this change is and how to overcome it so we can move forward with purpose and confidence is what we are focused on today!

What Is Holding You Back?

Before you can start making changes, you first need to know what you need to change.

For me, it’s being present. With clients, with my work, and with my family. All too frequently my wife is like “Hey, be with us…” or I lose myself in the latest sports news update instead of remaining focused on the work I’m doing. Yep, there is work to do!

Additionally, here are just a few examples I have seen from people I have worked with:

  • An experienced engineer about three months into his new job at Blue Origin recognized that if he could effectively create better professional relationships, it would enable him to reach his goal of making the shift to work in a new group that is working on a project he is VERY interested in (think long-term living in space).
  • A senior data engineering leader recognized had already needed to take time off to get her health in check. She needed to figure out how to grow her team in a fast-moving startup while also staying healthy and creating boundaries for herself. Basically, not taking it all on herself and saying “yes” to everything.
  • An owner of an engineering business was taking it all on and losing himself in his work. He needed to build his team and create expectations with his clients and those he worked with while delegating and enabling his team to take on more responsibility. This would keep him from burning out (he got MAJOR sick for a while), and allow him to enjoy more time with his wife and kids.

So what’s your big change? What is the NUMBER ONE thing that would help you unlock your potential?

Why You Haven’t Made the Change

[Read more…] about How Engineers Can Break Through Career and Personal Development Barriers

Filed Under: Blog, Career Goals and Challenges, Personal Development and Professionalism Tagged With: Break Through Career and Personal Development Barriers, Jeff Perry, The NUMBER ONE thing to unlock your potential, The real key to sustainable change

The Four Major ‘Shifts’ Changing Everything About Leadership and Firm Success

February 15, 2023 By EMI

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

ShiftsLike most large-scale systemic events, March 2020 gave “official birth” to a new era of work and life — one with new rules, new ways of thinking, and lots of big change.

Among the change we’ve all seen and experienced for several years now, there have been a number of major “shifts.”

These shifts have already altered the workplace, marketplace, and recruiting space.

These shifts have also fundamentally changed the way we must lead and develop our teams and organizations if we want to sustainably grow and prosper in this new era — and do so making a real difference and not burning out. All of which is possible, should we choose to design for it.

“These shifts have fundamentally changed the way we must lead and develop our teams and organizations if we want to sustainably grow and prosper in this new era.”— Peter C. Atherton, P.E.

The four major shifts are listed here, and each is described further below:

  1. The redefinition of winning
  2. The shift of work from “place” to “space”
  3. The shift to what I call the “third way”
  4. The shift of performance from manager to teams and team success

The first two are more societal shifts and the second two are strategic and tactical shifts that we must make in response as leaders and organizations.

Shift #1: The Redefinition of Winning

[Read more…] about The Four Major ‘Shifts’ Changing Everything About Leadership and Firm Success

Filed Under: Blog, Leadership/Management Tagged With: Better spaces for real dialogue, Major ‘Shifts’ in Leadership and Firm Success, Making a difference and having a positive impact, Peter Atherton

Engineering Your Success: 5 Steps to Building Your Expertise and Confidence

February 13, 2023 By EMI

This is a guest post by Tiffani Teachey

Expertise and Confidence

“Engineering success is not about having all the answers, but about asking the right questions, seeking feedback, and continuously learning.” – Unknown

As an engineer, having a strong foundation of expertise and confidence in your field is crucial for your long-term success and career advancement. Whether you are just starting out or looking to enhance your skills, there are a number of key steps you can take to build your professional competencies. From staying up-to-date with industry developments and seeking feedback from others, to setting achievable goals and continuously learning, these steps will help you grow and progress in your career as an engineer. In this blog, we will delve into each of these important topics and provide actionable advice to help you build your expertise and confidence as an engineer.

Stay Up to Date

Staying up to date is crucial for engineers to remain competitive and relevant in their field. The technology industry is constantly evolving, and it’s essential to be aware of the latest advancements and trends. One way to stay informed is by reading articles and keeping up with industry news and blogs. This will help you stay updated on the latest technologies and advancements, as well as emerging trends and best practices. Another way to stay up to date is by attending conferences and workshops. Attending industry events can provide you with a wealth of knowledge, as well as the opportunity to network with other engineers and experts in your field. These events are also a great opportunity to gain hands-on experience and learn from industry experts. By staying up to date and informed, you can stay ahead of the curve and enhance your expertise as an engineer.

Expertise and Confidence

Seek Feedback

[Read more…] about Engineering Your Success: 5 Steps to Building Your Expertise and Confidence

Filed Under: Blog, Personal Development and Professionalism Tagged With: Building Your Expertise and Confidence, Having a strong foundation of expertise, Setting achievable and measurable goals, Tiffani Teachey

The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Civil Engineering Asset Management

February 6, 2023 By EMI

This is a guest blog by Nick Heim, P.E.

artificial intelligenceCivil engineers are designers and builders of everything related to infrastructure: roads, bridges, dams, ports, and many others.

While construction and maintenance of any asset happens in the physical world, there is a lot of work in the digital world that accompanies it.

One emerging trend we are seeing in the industry is applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in the maintenance of assets that civil engineers support.

artificial intelligence

Note: For more information and insights related to this blog post, please refer to Episode #009 of the AEC Engineering and Technology (AECTECH) Podcast.

1. What is artificial intelligence (AI)?

Dictionary definitions as follows:

  • Artificial: “Made or produced by human beings rather than occurring naturally, especially as a copy of something natural.”
  • Intelligence: “The ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills.”
  • Artificial Intelligence: “The theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages.” (Bolded emphasis is mine.)

Simply stated, artificial intelligence is the application of human intelligence, but through an artificial “brain” (computer).

[Read more…] about The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Civil Engineering Asset Management

Filed Under: Blog, Business Development Tagged With: Artificial intelligence (AI) in the maintenance of assets, Artificial Intelligence in Civil Engineering, Nick Heim, use cases for artificial intelligence, What is artificial intelligence

3 Proven Methods to Becoming a Better Engineer

January 30, 2023 By EMI

This is a guest post by Tiffani Teachey

Better Engineer

“The engineer’s first problem in any design situation is to discover what the problem really is.” ~ Unknown

Engineering is an ever-evolving field, and staying on top of the latest trends is essential for success. As an engineer, you need to stay abreast of emerging technologies and develop your skill set in order to remain competitive in the job market. Here are some tips for becoming a better engineer and advancing in your career.

#1 Stay Up-to-Date on Technology Trends

It’s important to keep up with the latest advances in engineering technology. The industry is constantly changing, and understanding new technologies will give you an edge over other engineers who are stuck using outdated methods and systems. You can read industry publications or attend seminars and workshops to stay informed about the newest developments in engineering technology.

Better Engineer

#2 Develop Your Soft Skills

Engineers often think of their job as purely technical, but it’s just as important to have strong soft skills such as communication, problem-solving, time management, leadership, teamwork, and critical thinking. These skills are essential for working effectively with colleagues on projects or leading teams. Consider joining a professional organization or attending a conference to network with other professionals in your field and develop these important skills.

#3 Focus on Quality Work

[Read more…] about 3 Proven Methods to Becoming a Better Engineer

Filed Under: Blog, Personal Development and Professionalism Tagged With: Becoming a Better Engineer, Staying on top of the latest trends is essential for success, Tiffani Teachey, Understanding new technologies

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