Networking/Client Relations

The 4 R’s that are Critical to a Successful Engineering Career

April 25, 2015 By EMI

This information was sent to me by Anthony Venafro who serves as the Director of Engineering at Smith Engineering in Chantilly, Virginia. I was so impressed with the information; I asked Anthony if I could post it here on the Engineering Management Institute blog.

These are four core attributes that Anthony feels are critical to a successful engineering career:

#1 Responsiveness – This is the number one compliment I receive from clients and county staff, and it goes a long way. Being responsive is very easy to do, and people appreciate it. Simply returning a phone call or email to explain that you received their message and will look into their question and get back to them at a later date goes a long way. Time is money and if you exude to your clients, that you are aware of this fact, they’ll have more confidence in you. Do simple requests fast, even if it means dropping everything to do so. A client doesn’t want to wait a day or two for you to change a label or provide him or her with some quick information because you were too engulfed with a more substantial task. If it’s something quick and can be turned around in minutes, then do it immediately. They’ll love you forever if you give them the feeling that serving them is what is most important to you. [Read more…] about The 4 R’s that are Critical to a Successful Engineering Career

Four Reasons You Must Seek Peer Support in Your Engineering Career and Where to Find It

August 5, 2014 By EMI

I read a lot of blogs and books, and one of my favorite authors is Seth Godin. I particularly love his book Linchpin (affiliate link), where he discusses how to become indispensable in your career and why it is important. One of Godin’s recent posts, on July 21^st, really hit home for me and is the inspiration for this post. Here it is:

Finding Your Peer Group

Your peer group are people with similar dreams, goals and worldviews. They are people who will push you in exchange for being pushed, who will raise the bar and tell you the truth.

They’re not in your business, but they’re in your shoes. [Read more…] about Four Reasons You Must Seek Peer Support in Your Engineering Career and Where to Find It

Lessons Learned from Two Days with Engineering Leaders, and Laws on Life’s Outcomes

April 29, 2014 By EMI

A few days ago, we put on our annual Institute for Engineering Career Development (IECD) meetup in Austin, Texas.

The event consisted of three days of intensive learning sessions from over 15 accomplished speakers, several social outings, and interesting tours. Of course, I can’t forget to mention the more than 50 motivated engineers who attended the event from all over the US—all of whom walked away with career- and life-changing information and friendships.

This post will provide some lessons from this event in hopes that you can utilize the information to better your performance and results, both personally and professionally.

Lessons from Engineering Leaders

During the event, attendees had the opportunity to ask questions of some of the most successful engineering presidents and CEOs, and here are some key takeaways.

In order to become a partner in an engineering firm or an engineering leader, consider doing the following: [Read more…] about Lessons Learned from Two Days with Engineering Leaders, and Laws on Life’s Outcomes

How to Create an Extraordinary Engineering Career – Anthony Fasano’s Complete Engineering Career Guide

October 10, 2013 By EMI

JULY 2014 UPDATE: Since I wrote this post in October of 2013, the feedback from engineers has been amazing. This is a very long post that is meant to help you throughout your engineering career, so please bookmark this page. I have also created the following table of contents to make it easy for you to read about the topics you most need help on at this time. The original post begins immediately after the following table of contents:

The Engineer Career Guide
The One Thing You Must Do Before Developing Your Non-Technical Skills
Video 1: Setting Clearly Defined Goals
Video 2: Obtaining the Right Credentials in Your Engineering Career
Video 3: Finding a Mentor
Video 4: Become an Effective Communicator
Video 5: Networking/Building Relationships
Video 6: Being Organized and Productive
Video 7: Develop Your Leadership Abilities

Developing my non-technical skills while practicing engineering was one of the best things I have ever done in my engineering career and life. Since I started Powerful Purpose Associates in May of 2009:

My ability to set clear goals has helped me to understand that my mission was and is to inspire engineers.
Obtaining the right credentials in my engineering career as well as my coaching career has helped me to be able to rapidly advance my career and grow my business.
Finding a mentor was a key component for me being able to become a partner at the age of 27 in a reputable engineering firm.
Improving my communication skills has allowed me to write daily and weekly e-mails to engineers that inspire them to grow personally and professionally. They have also helped me write my book Engineer Your Own Success.
Improving my public speaking skills has afforded me the opportunity to present in front of over 5,000 engineers, many of whom have told me that my talk changed their lives.
Developing my networking skills has allowed me to build relationships that have brought me so many of the opportunities mentioned above and also so many rewarding friendships.
Increasing my productivity has allowed me to develop Engineering Management Institute (ECC) brand and The Engineering Mastermind community, now serving thousands of engineers every day — including two podcasts that have been downloaded over 1.5 million times.
Developing my leadership abilities has given me the confidence to start to coach engineers one on one and subsequently start my podcast, where I coach them on the air.

Most importantly, developing my non-technical skills has enabled me to build stronger relationships with my audience – much stronger than I could ever have done if I failed to focus on my own personal development, like many engineers do. The phrases that engineers use when they describe their experience with my coaching or one of my seminars include: [Read more…] about How to Create an Extraordinary Engineering Career – Anthony Fasano’s Complete Engineering Career Guide

The Only Stability You Have in Your Engineering Career Is You

September 24, 2013 By EMI

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If you are reading this post, you’re most likely an engineer working for an engineering company. You get up each morning and go to work in what appears to be a ‘stable’ job. In reality, though, no matter how safe or stable your job appears to be, your employer can decide at any time to stop paying you and take away that perceived stability. However, your skill set, your professional network, and your reputation can allow you to react to a situation like this and quickly replace that paycheck. Developing your engineering skills as well as your non-technical skills will give you the tools to truly maintain a stable engineering career. The following are some things you can do in your engineering career to ensure that it is genuinely stable.

Realize the Importance of Your Own Development

Don’t get tricked by the illusion that your 9-to-5 job and paycheck create a stable career. Don’t build your entire financial future around that paycheck. Go through your career with a plan B that addresses the question, “What will I do if I lose my job tomorrow?” Having a good answer to this question and a good plan to go along with it is where true stability will come from.

Build a Very Strong Professional Network

A company can always take your paycheck away from you and end your employment with them, but they can’t take away your relationships. If you build strong relationships in the industry, it is very likely that should you lose your ‘stable job,’ you will be able to quickly find another one. I can’t stress this point enough, as many engineers rank networking low on their list of things to do because they feel that they can lean on the relationships of their company. WRONG. If you take this approach and lose your job or decide to relocate, you will not be able to lean on the company’s contacts. Also, having a strong network gives you a direct avenue to potential new business for your employer, which is like gold, especially in today’s economy. [Read more…] about The Only Stability You Have in Your Engineering Career Is You

Are Certain Consulting Engineers Destined for an Unfulfilled Engineering Career?

May 17, 2012 By EMI

The other day I was speaking with one of my clients who owns a small consulting engineering company. In his line of work, he is often called on when his clients are in trouble with a municipality or building department. For example, a client may call him when a building permit has been revoked, therefore his job is to figure out why and help his client to restore the building permit to good standing so that the project may proceed.

My client tells me that in this scenario, the owner (or his client) is always angry because of the situation they are in, which they often caused themselves. They never want to pay the engineer because they feel that the municipality is wrong and they are just causing them to waste money. Ultimately, they see the consulting engineer in this case simply as an expense; and they can’t wait to cut that expense.

Doing this type of work can really weigh you down and present a lot of negative energy because your clients may constantly make you feel like the bad guy. Clients in these situations rarely view you as someone who is coming to save the day, because they don’t agree with what the municipality thinks needs saving. [Read more…] about Are Certain Consulting Engineers Destined for an Unfulfilled Engineering Career?

6 Simple Ways to Develop Your Engineering Career

May 17, 2011 By EMI

Featured Guest Blogger: JC Ryan from MyCollegesandCareers.com

Knowledge and skill often extend and expand engineering careers, but sometimes the squeaky wheel needs some amplifying in positive ways. Fortunately, engineers looking for ways to develop their careers and fortify positions can do so easily and simply.

Networking

One of the mainstays in any career field, networking with other engineering professionals and firms increases your professional profile among those with whom it counts.

Regardless of your engineering specialty, get to know those in the field and let them get to know you in return. Read their books, magazine articles and reports. Subscribe to their newsletters or e-zines and send comments to them. Ask pertinent questions that spotlight their specialty. Give them professional attention and respect without fawning over them.

Presentations

Attend professional conferences and seminars. Spend constructive time outside the conference room discussing the presented information, projects and other industry issues. Attending presentations of various forms extends your professional networking into national or international arenas, not just locally. However, if there’s an important conference in or near your city, don’t overlook that silver-platter opportunity. [Read more…] about 6 Simple Ways to Develop Your Engineering Career

7 Tips and Quotes to Help Rapidly Advance Your Career

March 30, 2010 By EMI

Hello all, I thought this week I would share 7 tips that I have found to be extremely helpful in advancing my career. These tips are based on my own experience as well as the many books I have read on both personal and career development.

If your industry has any type of license or certification that you will need to succeed (i.e. P.E., Esq., etc.), get it as early on as possible in your career. The longer you wait, the busier your life becomes between more job responsibilities as well as family obligations. “He who hesitates is lost.” – Gregory Y. Titelman [Read more…] about 7 Tips and Quotes to Help Rapidly Advance Your Career

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