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II WAS OVERCOME WITH PRIDE WHEN AN

ENGINEERING CLIENT RECENTLY STATED:

WE WANT TO SIGNIFICANTLY GROW THE

QUALITYNOT NECESSARILY THE QUAN-

TITYOF OUR PEOPLE. Its true; scramblingto recruit new hires is not always the best way toaccommodate an increase in workload.

Quality is the operative word. Is success mea-sured in terms of growth? Often, yes. And is growth

defined through an increase in revenue, an increasein profit, or a combination of the two? Think aboutthis: A firm can reasonably double its revenue inabout five years, but potentially remain stagnantin (yikes!)or even decrease (double yikes!)itslevel of profitability.

A firm is more profitable when it has qual-ity clients that value the services offered, pay ontime, and partake in an active client-engineerpartnership. Profitability is also realized when the

engineering firm itself is producing quality workthrough a quality process with quality profession-als. Which brings us to my core message: Proper,multi-faceted training of existing staff is well worththe investment.

This is great news (and advice) for engineeringfirms that are racing to hire warm bodies. In todays

ever-present talent war, the best and brightest areenjoying kudos and attention from their employ-ers, not to mention offers from other firms. En-gineering leaders need to examine their existingresources with a fresh perspective. What can youdo to secure staff loyalty and retention; tap intoundiscovered talent; enhance existing value; andstrengthen teams so that the whole is more thanthe sum of its parts? The answer is clear: Qualitytraining programs will go a long way in fulfillingintense staffing requirements.

Who, What, Where, When, and How

So, you know what you need to offer (a solid

training program within a learning culture) andwhy you need it (to grow your business by strength-ening your existing talent base). As for the rest:

Who needs it?

When a department head submits a new staffrequisition to human resources, does it occur tohim or her that perhaps dwelling in their midst isa professional with the intellectual bandwidth, am-

bition, and enthusiasm to expand into a new role?Through purposeful, multi-faceted training, theseperformers can elevate themselves to star quality,

where mutual employer-employee benefits will ul-timately be realized.

Lets also review folks on the flip slide. Considerthe non-performers in your firm: those folks thathave become too comfortable, even lackadaisical,in their existing positions. At this stage, expecta-tions from themselves and others have becomedramatically reduced. What impact do they haveon your firms overwhelming workload? Are theystill part of the solution, or have they become part

of the problem? Can they still be motivated, evenreinvented, with a rigorous training program?

Where are the best areas to focus upon?

Marketing/business developmentSurprise! My training recommendations are

strongly biased towards marketing. (Its my lifesworkwhat did you expect?) In support of thisbias, marketing training is a: learnable endeavor. Where there is intellect and

sincere interest, there is someone predisposedto learning and practicing marketing. Brokendown, marketing is logical, straightforward, and

process-drivenan appropriate fit for the engi-neering mind.

valuable asset to every staff member. Demandfor A/E/C services will ebb and flow. Duringdowntime, those who excel at marketing contri-butions are better positioned for job security.

opportunity for technical staff to grow person-ally, becoming more multi-dimensional.

means to build vested interest and long-termcommitment to the firm from the technical staffmember.

vehicle for refining communication skills, valu-able every day for a lifetime.

way to reach above and beyond primary respon-

Nurture Your Staff and Reap the Benefits

Training will dramatically boost the quality

and retention rateof your employees.

BY ANNE SCARLETT

career building

Anne Scarlett is president ofScarlett Consulting (www.

annescarlett.com), anA/E/Cmarketing advisoryservices firm that providescustomized business de-velopment/marketingtraining programs. Shecan be reached by phone at773.251.8132 or by e-mailat anne@annescarlett.com.

Grow the qualitynotnecessarily the quantityofyour workforce.

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sibilities, get promoted, shape the firmsfuture, and be a business leader.

Professional skills, management, andleadership

Very few A/E curriculums contain busi-ness and management courses. Therefore,the majority of our exposure to manage-ment occurs on the job. To further exac-erbate this deficiency, many A/E industryfirms are failing to captureand transferthe critical workforce knowledge of seniorstaff. By providing learning mechanismsfor internal staff, the benefits go beyondsimply educating them to building mutualrespect, stronger teams, and an unbeatableesprit de corps. These mechanisms rangein complexity from brown-bag seminars,internal finite courses, and intranet-postedprograms to comprehensive curriculumprovided by a firms corporate university.

To assemble a well-rounded trainingprogram, variety is essential. It is most

sensible to seek expertise from diverse

sourcesnot just internally. External train-ing for professional enhancementtimemanagement, writing, negotiating skills,leadershipcan be delivered via webinars,off-site open-enrollment training, or a pro-fessional program with on-site, customizeddelivery.

TechnicalKeeping technically current is easy; op-

portunities are abundant! Make softwaretraining mandatory for appropriate roles;propose off-site and/or online opportu-nities to earn PDH or CEU credits; andfacilitate cross-discipline training (i.e., sitesafety training from a reputable construc-tion firm).

Work-life balanceOne A/E firm I work with offers en-

hanced value through an array of non-in-dustry-related topics, such as coaching onfinancial investing, personal health for thelong-term, family planning, and elderlycare for aging parents. The firm serves as a

well-rounded resource, one that gains em-ployee loyalty and longevity from the staff.

When is the best time to train?

How about all the time, every week ofthe year? One way to make training preva-lent in everyday work is through staff-created and staff-led programs. And thereare creative ways to do this. One of my EastCoast engineering clients has sustained abook club that started at the associates lev-el, then evolved into a multi-generationalmembership. Their reading list includes:The Tipping Point, First Break All the Rules,Managing Up, Five Dysfunctions of a Team,and other business books. It was enlighten-ing to discover that these folks are not justreferencing what they read in conversation,but also experimenting and applying theconcepts in their work.

The firms that are most resistant toformalized training are those that are ul-tra-concerned with productivity. Split thedifference! For your formalized training

program, hold the sessions partially dur-ing lunch or after-hoursand offer foodas an immediate incentive. (Naturally,the real incentives come later when at-tendees realize they are enhancing theirown careers.)

How do we measure results?

Establish key metrics and then measureyour return on training investment. Onceyour new (or improved) program has beenin place for one full year, conduct beforeand after comparisons on:

Project performance (schedule/budget) Hit rates on proposals and interviews Results from client perception surveys Percentage of attrition (and feedback

comments from those that depart) Recruiting success (a robust training

program is an added value for recruits) Revenue growth Productivity Profitability

In addition, hold biannual reviews withemployees in order to directly discuss theircareer, contributions, and assessment of thetraining program as it relates to their pro-fessional and personal growth.

Commit to Your Staff

The best training programs are thosethat truly align with the corporate strat-egy and are championed by an enthusiastic,visible leadership team. Every step of theway, be sure to monitor the programs re-sults, evolve the content, and emphaticallycommit to its success. It may sound crazy,but there are firms that allocate as much as

a $6,000 annual training budget per indi-vidual. Now thats commitment!

Quality trainingprograms will go a longway towards fulfillingstaffing requirements.