Nearly every weekday around 4pm, my 15-year old son calls me here at PSMJ. I look at my ringing phone and see his name flash across my screen and the first thought that runs through my head is “what does he want?” It doesn’t take more than four or five seconds for my suspicions to be confirmed – can my friends come over to use the pool?...can you pick me up from here later?...can you get me this or that? Knowing that his weekday call is going to be about what I can do for him has conditioned me to adopt a specific posture: rather than looking forward to a pleasant exchange or hearing something interesting, I am starting to think of how I am going to tell him “no” and strategizing a defense of my position. In other words, besides this call confirming that my son is not in any overt distress – there is no upside for me – and knowing this grossly diminishes his chances of getting what he wants.
You probably deal with calls like this all the time in your professional life. But are you also initiating these calls yourself? Of all the clients and prospects you initiate contact with during the week, how many of them are thinking “What do you want from me?” The truth is, our egos make it virtually impossible to evaluate this accurately – but you can take steps to ensure that the posture of the person on the other end is not set before you even say hello.
The first thing you can do is come to the exchange with important information – not about you and your firm, but about them and their business. I have been interviewing PSMJ Circle of Excellence firms for our new book and one of the CEOs told me “we never call people to tell them how great we are – we call with information – about a project, a newsy development in their industry, an article or report that they would want to be aware of, etc.”
The second thing you can do it commit to follow up about what you tell them - “I’ll let you know if I hear anything else about this” – then you have a reason to call back.
Then when your prospects and clients see that it’s you on the phone, they’ll think “what do they have for me today?”
Bruce
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Stevens indicted for corruption in Veco case
U.S. Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK), the longest-serving Republican senator in United States history according to The New York Times, was indicted earlier today on federal charges for failing to report gifts and income.
The 84-year-old Stevens was indicted on seven felony counts related to renovations on his home in Alaska. The charges arise from a wide-ranging, four-year-long corruption inquiry involving public officials and corporations in his home state. The indictment accuses Stevens of failing to disclose that he received gifts of more than $250,000— in labor and construction materials— from Veco Corporation, a multinational oil services company based in Anchorage, Alaska, between 2001 and 2006.
Matthew Friedrich, acting assistant attorney general, said that at the same time Veco Corporation did architectural and construction work on Stevens' home, the corporation sought assistance on business-related matters. However, Friedrich said the indictment does not allege any quid pro quo, but added that Stevens did not reimburse Veco Corporation for any of the work done at his house.
Federal agents raided Stevens' home last year following questions about renovations at the home. A few months before that, in May 2007, Veco CEO Bill J. Allen admitted to bribery, and in court papers acknowledged making $243,000 in possibly illegal payments to a state lawmaker identified only as "Senator B," according to The New York Times. That abbreviation referred to Stevens' son, Ben Stevens.
Ted Stevens, who is running for re-election this year, was first appointed to the Senate in 1968 and has served nearly fix full terms. He also had been a United States Attorney in the 1950s.
According to The New York Times, federal officials said they did not know whether Stevens would surrender to authorities in Washington, D.C. or in Alaska for an arraignment.
For an exhaustive breakdown of who has been charged and/or convicted in the investigation, check out The Anchorage Daily News web site. Here's a link to the 28-page indictment.
Ed
The 84-year-old Stevens was indicted on seven felony counts related to renovations on his home in Alaska. The charges arise from a wide-ranging, four-year-long corruption inquiry involving public officials and corporations in his home state. The indictment accuses Stevens of failing to disclose that he received gifts of more than $250,000— in labor and construction materials— from Veco Corporation, a multinational oil services company based in Anchorage, Alaska, between 2001 and 2006.
Matthew Friedrich, acting assistant attorney general, said that at the same time Veco Corporation did architectural and construction work on Stevens' home, the corporation sought assistance on business-related matters. However, Friedrich said the indictment does not allege any quid pro quo, but added that Stevens did not reimburse Veco Corporation for any of the work done at his house.
Federal agents raided Stevens' home last year following questions about renovations at the home. A few months before that, in May 2007, Veco CEO Bill J. Allen admitted to bribery, and in court papers acknowledged making $243,000 in possibly illegal payments to a state lawmaker identified only as "Senator B," according to The New York Times. That abbreviation referred to Stevens' son, Ben Stevens.
Ted Stevens, who is running for re-election this year, was first appointed to the Senate in 1968 and has served nearly fix full terms. He also had been a United States Attorney in the 1950s.
According to The New York Times, federal officials said they did not know whether Stevens would surrender to authorities in Washington, D.C. or in Alaska for an arraignment.
For an exhaustive breakdown of who has been charged and/or convicted in the investigation, check out The Anchorage Daily News web site. Here's a link to the 28-page indictment.
Ed
One in four U.S. bridges needs repair
According to a report released Monday, the United States must spend at least $140 billion to make major repairs or upgrades to one of every four bridges in this country.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) report, titled "Bridging the Gap," cited Federal highway Administration statistics that 152,000 of the nation's 600,000 bridges are either "structurally deficient" or "functionally obsolete." The $140 billion price tag was derived by multiplying the total number of square meters of the problem bridges by the average cost per square meter— in 2006 dollars— to do the work.
"We need federal intervention, and federal intervention at a big level," said Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell after AASHTO released details of the report.
Rendell said a congressional study committee found that state and local sources account for 75 percent of the $80 billion spent annually on transportation infrastructure. "No matter how hard a state applies its efforts and its resources to this problem, it's never going to make enough of a dent without significantly and radically increased federal help," Rendell said.
The report recommends increasing gasoline taxes and new taxes on alternative fuels, turning free highways into toll roads, and increasing private investment in public works.
Most bridges are built to last 50 years, but the average U.S. bridge is 43 years old and approaching the age for replacement, according to the report.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) report, titled "Bridging the Gap," cited Federal highway Administration statistics that 152,000 of the nation's 600,000 bridges are either "structurally deficient" or "functionally obsolete." The $140 billion price tag was derived by multiplying the total number of square meters of the problem bridges by the average cost per square meter— in 2006 dollars— to do the work.
"We need federal intervention, and federal intervention at a big level," said Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell after AASHTO released details of the report.
Rendell said a congressional study committee found that state and local sources account for 75 percent of the $80 billion spent annually on transportation infrastructure. "No matter how hard a state applies its efforts and its resources to this problem, it's never going to make enough of a dent without significantly and radically increased federal help," Rendell said.
The report recommends increasing gasoline taxes and new taxes on alternative fuels, turning free highways into toll roads, and increasing private investment in public works.
Most bridges are built to last 50 years, but the average U.S. bridge is 43 years old and approaching the age for replacement, according to the report.
Live from Denver, Colorado...
We're not there yet, but Bruce and I will be blogging live from next week's Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) Build Business national conference in Denver.
We'll be bringing you the sights (describing them, anyway), the sounds (the pulse of the AEC industry through the eyes and ears of marketing and business development professionals whose jobs are to keep the project pipeline flowing), and all of the "buzz" this event generates every year.
From the opening keynote through the black-tie Awards Gala to the Hard Rock Cafe networking event and all of the breakout sessions in between, PSMJ and this blog are your all-access pass to everything that happens in the Mile High City.
If it happens during the conference (or after hours), you'll read it first here.
If you can't make it to Denver, check back here starting on Wednesday, August 6 for live reports from Denver.
Ed
We'll be bringing you the sights (describing them, anyway), the sounds (the pulse of the AEC industry through the eyes and ears of marketing and business development professionals whose jobs are to keep the project pipeline flowing), and all of the "buzz" this event generates every year.
From the opening keynote through the black-tie Awards Gala to the Hard Rock Cafe networking event and all of the breakout sessions in between, PSMJ and this blog are your all-access pass to everything that happens in the Mile High City.
If it happens during the conference (or after hours), you'll read it first here.
If you can't make it to Denver, check back here starting on Wednesday, August 6 for live reports from Denver.
Ed
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Odds and ends
Just a few quick hitters for a late Wednesday afternoon:
- Johnson, Mirmiran & Thompson (JMT), a 710-person engineering firm in Sparks, Maryland, has acquired the assets of 52-person engineering consulting firm Kupper Associates of Piscataway, New Jersey. JMT is the third-largest engineering firm in Greater Baltimore when ranked by annual billings, according to the Baltimore Business Journal. The firm reported $56 million in local billing and $82 million in company-wide billing in 2007. It has offices in Maryland, Delaware, Florida, New Jersey, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
- This one's kind of cool. Dallas architecture firm t. howard + associates (THA) has acquired Wells Janousek Architects. Mike Wells, principal with Wells Janousek, and Todd Howard, principal with THA, met years ago when Howard took a course from Wells at the Harvard Graduate School of Design Child Care Design Institute. Now, as a result of the acquisition, the teacher (Wells) will be working for the student (Howard). I thought that was kind of neat. Clearly, the teacher did his job, but does the learning ever stop?
- Another fun story here. CSO Architects, Inc. of Indianapolis announced that James Schellinger had been elected chairman and CEO of the firm by its shareholders. Schellinger recently returned to the firm after spending 15 months running for governor of Indiana. Not only was it neat that Schellinger had taken the time off to run for governor, but it was equally nice to see the firm take him back as its leader. Would your A/E firm do something like this if you took time to run for office?
- Finally, according to the Pacific Business News, Hawaii employers and state government are looking at four-day work weeks to cut costs, save energy, and get their workers off the roads one day a week. Hawaii isn't alone, either, as many cities and towns across the United States are looking at similar measures, but this was the first article I'd seen that said an entire state government was considering something so drastic. I thought this was an interesting tactic for A/E firms to pursue, except many of them were so hung up on work/life balance a few years ago that you are already giving employees at least a half-day on Fridays in the summer. Is it worth making it a year-round habit? Consider that gas prices are likely to moderate over the next several months and that you'd be essentially cutting back your work week by 20% and I would say not.
Ed
AIA sees modest declines in 2008, steeper drop in 2009
We mentioned earlier today (see previous post) that the AIA did not see bright prospects for architecture firms and here's what we meant...
The AIA last week put out a press release spotlighting its semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast, a survey of the "nation's leading construction forecasters" that includes the outlook for the second half along with a prognosis for 2009.
The Forecast calls for a 1.2% decline in construction of nonresidential facilities in 2008 with a more significant 6.7% downturn in 2009. The prognoses for commercial and industrial buildings are even worse, with an especially large decline in the office and retail sectors. The two largest institutional categories, health care and education facilities, should see a slight increase this year.
"The more pessimistic forecast this round stems from the lack of growth in the overall economy, the ripple effect from the faltering housing market, and the anxiety in the credit markets leading to a restriction in lending for all types of construction," said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker.
Baker did point out, however, that, the slowdown should be less severe than the construction recessions of the early 90s and earlier this decade.
We've said it before, but it really does depend on which market you are working in. Health care facilities are projected to basically hold steady this year (0.2% growth) and next (1.1% growth), but they are the only market sector projected to grow in the next 12 to 18 months. If you aren't in a hot market, keep your margins in line and try to weather the storm.
Click here to read the release, which includes detailed market segment consensus growth forecasts for commercial/industrial (retail, office buildings, hotels, industrial facilities) and institutional (health care, education, amusement/recreation, public safety, and religious) facilities.
Ed
The AIA last week put out a press release spotlighting its semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast, a survey of the "nation's leading construction forecasters" that includes the outlook for the second half along with a prognosis for 2009.
The Forecast calls for a 1.2% decline in construction of nonresidential facilities in 2008 with a more significant 6.7% downturn in 2009. The prognoses for commercial and industrial buildings are even worse, with an especially large decline in the office and retail sectors. The two largest institutional categories, health care and education facilities, should see a slight increase this year.
"The more pessimistic forecast this round stems from the lack of growth in the overall economy, the ripple effect from the faltering housing market, and the anxiety in the credit markets leading to a restriction in lending for all types of construction," said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker.
Baker did point out, however, that, the slowdown should be less severe than the construction recessions of the early 90s and earlier this decade.
We've said it before, but it really does depend on which market you are working in. Health care facilities are projected to basically hold steady this year (0.2% growth) and next (1.1% growth), but they are the only market sector projected to grow in the next 12 to 18 months. If you aren't in a hot market, keep your margins in line and try to weather the storm.
Click here to read the release, which includes detailed market segment consensus growth forecasts for commercial/industrial (retail, office buildings, hotels, industrial facilities) and institutional (health care, education, amusement/recreation, public safety, and religious) facilities.
Ed
AIA Architecture Billings Index: Good news, but mostly bad news
The American Institute of Architects' Architecture Billings Index (ABI) rebounded almost three points in June, after dropping two points the previous month.
That's the good news.
The bad news? This is the fifth straight month that the index remained below the 50 threshold, indicating that business levels at U.S. architecture firms continue to deteriorate.
As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI shows an approximate 9- to 12-month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending.
The AIA reported the June ABI rating was 46.1, up from 43.4 in May (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The inquiries for new projects score was 51.8, up sharply from 46.5 in May.
"Very recently, the Midwest has been showing the best regional conditions," said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker. "But otherwise, these numbers are a continuation of weak conditions in the nonresidential construction sector. Given that inquiries for new project work have not seen much improvement, it's likely we are several months away from a turnaround."
Regionally, the ABI breaks down as follows in June: Midwest (51.8, down from 51.9 in May), South (49.9, up from 47.0 in May), Northeast (40.7, down from 41.7 in May), and West (36.1, down from 36.3 in May).
The ABI also tracks other sectors, most of which continue to indicate a downturn in billings:
That's the good news.
The bad news? This is the fifth straight month that the index remained below the 50 threshold, indicating that business levels at U.S. architecture firms continue to deteriorate.
As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI shows an approximate 9- to 12-month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending.
The AIA reported the June ABI rating was 46.1, up from 43.4 in May (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The inquiries for new projects score was 51.8, up sharply from 46.5 in May.
"Very recently, the Midwest has been showing the best regional conditions," said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker. "But otherwise, these numbers are a continuation of weak conditions in the nonresidential construction sector. Given that inquiries for new project work have not seen much improvement, it's likely we are several months away from a turnaround."
Regionally, the ABI breaks down as follows in June: Midwest (51.8, down from 51.9 in May), South (49.9, up from 47.0 in May), Northeast (40.7, down from 41.7 in May), and West (36.1, down from 36.3 in May).
The ABI also tracks other sectors, most of which continue to indicate a downturn in billings:
- The index for institutional construction was 51.6, down from 53.9 in May, but still indicating more work on government buildings, schools, and hospitals.
- Commercial/industrial projects came in at 45.8, up 6.1 points from 39.7 in May, so while there were still fewer billings than in the previous month, the decline was not as steep.
- Mixed facilities dropped from 45.3 in May to 44.1 in June.
While the news remains bad for architecture firms, the declines have flattened a bit so there may be a light at the end of the tunnel. Will it last? The AIA doesn't think so. We'll have more later on the AIA's forecast for the rest of 2008 and 2009, but it doesn't look good.
Ed
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