4TH ANNUAL—2024
PRESENT AND FUTURE OF WORK IN ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE
An in-depth study of the state of the AEC industry and talent market – and what it takes to attract top talent and drive growth.
New research from ActionsProve
and the Engineering Management Institute uncovers what drives employee engagement, retention, and belonging at work.
Women in AEC | Flexible Work | Role of AI | 2025 Roadmap
A survey of over 600 engineers and architects in North America captures attitudes about careers, work hours, stress, and technology — among many other factors. By comparing views by generation, professional background, and seniority, we shine the light on troubling friction points and take inventory of the difficult decisions facing firm leaders.
AN INDUSTRY EXPERIENCING GROWING PAINS
After years of talent market volatility – including historically high levels of turnover and a profound reshaping of the workplace norms – the new reality for the AEC industry is coming into view.
Despite slowing turnover rates in other professional industries — US business turnover dropped 24.7% between 2022 and 20231 — our research shows turnover rates are not yet falling in the AEC industry.
Just 22% of AEC industry professionals say turnover dropped in 2023 compared to 2022. And larger firms (i.e., those with at least 1,000 employees) were more than twice as likely as firms with fewer than 250 employees to say turnover rose in 2023.
The high rates of turnover at larger firms are surprising, in part because our research shows that employees of larger firms have higher levels of engagement and better
development opportunities compared to employees working in smaller firms.
TECHNICAL STAFF MORE LIKELY TO DEPART IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS
We know one critical variable is career advancement and growth opportunities. In an online poll conducted in February of 2024 by the Engineering Management Institute, nearly half of engineers (48%) point to career growth opportunities as the single most important benefit their company can provide. Yet other important influences exist.
Quality of life is an unspoken career goal
Within the constellation of issues pushing employees to consider switching employers, quality of life is nearly as important as more traditional priorities like compensation and
career development.
Among those who say they’re interested in switching jobs, career advancement is the No. 1 driver. The search for higher compensation is No. 2. (Both are not surprising.)
What’s more surprising: Thirty percent of those who say they’re considering leaving their current employer seek greater flexibility. And when evaluating a new employer, higher quality of life is the No. 1 priority.
This is a thorny issue for engineering and architecture firms. The pay-your-dues mentality is still very common, and a generational divide about work-life drives friction in the workplace.
THE CURIOUS CASE OF AEC
AEC professionals tell us they’re stressed and burned out, but they also say they’re willing to work long hours and “pay dues” in order to advance their careers. Will AEC evolve to match expectations and working conditions in other high-paying professions?
The AEC industry has remarkably high levels of burnout/ stress (see graphic at right). And rates of burnout, stress, and compromised health are all significantly higher for mid-career professionals, the people sandwiched between inexperienced new hires and firm leaders.
Despite all this, there’s a strong culture of overwork in the industry. More than two in three professionals say long work hours are an expected part of being an engineer or architect — and they are willing to work long hours and pay dues as a prerequisite for career advancement.
“Firms that do not address this tension between stress and overwork will face talent shortages and turnover at rates higher than their peers, which in turn leads to more stress and overwork,” explains Anthony Fasano, P.E., president of the Engineering Management Institute. “Ultimately, this is a business-sustainability issue. Over time, pervasive stress and overwork will affect other areas of the business, including team dynamics and client satisfaction.”
WOMEN IN AEC
Women feel greater levels of stress and
less support
The majority of women (65%) say workplace stress affects how they interact with family and friends. And despite higher levels of stress, just 38% say they frequently feel supported by their manager (compared to 46% of men).
Women value flexibility … yet few experience
it at work
Forty percent of women say flexibility (e.g., setting their own hours or work location) is extremely important — compared to 25% of men. And 73% say it’s extremely or very important. Yet just 31% of women say they frequently have control over their schedule.
Women feel out of sync with workplace culture
Women are much less likely to say they’re willing to pay their dues in the industry. Fifty-eight percent of women say they’re willing to work long hours to pay dues compared to 73% of men
A WAIT-AND-SEE APPROACH TO AI
AI-driven tech will remake the AEC industry, but so far firms are only starting to embrace it. And some professionals worry it will undermine the value of their hard-earned degrees.
AI is poised to be a major disruptive force in the industry — but given concerns about quality and accuracy, as well as a restrained outlook about AI’s potential, organizations may need to take a slow approach to implementing it.
Just one in four organizations currently use AI platforms — and inside the smallest firms, that figure drops by half. Professionals we surveyed say AI will have the biggest
positive impact on generative design, VR/AR design presentations, and administrative tasks. And, of course, each AEC discipline will apply AI in unique ways. For
example, mechanical engineers will lean strongly into energy optimization, while civil engineers and landscape architects will focus on geospatial site and building modeling.
Authors
Peter Atherton, P.E.
President and Founder of ActionsProve
Peter C. Atherton, P.E. is an accomplished AEC industry insider turned executive coach and consultant. Pete has over 30 years of experience, 24 as a successful professional civil engineer, project manager, principal, practice group leader, major owner, and member of the board of directors with high-achieving firms.
Pete is now the President and Founder of ActionsProve, LLC (www.actionsprove.com), author of Reversing Burnout. How to Immediately Engage Top Talent and Grow! A Blueprint for Professionals and Business Owners, and the creator of the I.M.P.A.C.T. process.
Pete is also the host of the AEC Leadership Today Podcast and the AEC Leadership Mastermind.
Pete works with AEC leaders and firms nationwide to grow and advance their success through modern and new era focused strategic planning, executive coaching, leadership and management team development, performance-based employee engagement, and corporate impact design. Connect with him at [email protected]. You can also connect and follow him on LinkedIn.
Anthony Fasano, P.E.
Founder of The Engineering Management Institute
Engineering Management Institute helps engineering professionals become better managers and leaders through learning transfer so that they are equipped to lead the projects that will shape the world moving forward.
ActionsProve and the Engineering Management Institute collaborated on a survey of engineers and architects to understand how these ongoing, tectonic shifts in the nature of work are affecting the industries that hire engineers and architects, and how individuals in these fields imagine their future careers given these shifts. The study will help employers rethink their current approach to talent sourcing and challenge them to build more strategic, agile, growth-oriented and recession-proof talent ecosystems moving forward.