With all of the A/E/C industry-related content published on this blog in January 2019, it's easy to let some important articles slip through the cracks, and get lost in the clutter. In an effort to keep you up-to-date on the hottest topics, PSMJ has compiled a list of our top ten most-viewed blog posts from last month.
10. Managing Overhead: Utilization versus Chargeability– Utilization—hours or payroll dollars—which one tells the story when it comes to managing labor-based overhead (time spent on non-project related activities)? A primary approach used by managers to monitor chargeability is reviewing time sheets or time reports for time put to projects. But what if you don’t look at time sheets but you do review the income statements for the firm, the business unit or the team—can you monitor chargeability as well using information on the income statement?
9. 10 Design Secrets to Enhance Your Next A/E Project Presentation – Delivering exceptional presentations can substantially improve your ability to differentiate your architecture or engineering firm from your competitors. Of course, the content of your presentation, how you sell your firm's talent and expertise to prospective clients for a specific project, is the key. There is no doubt, however, that an engaging presentation also goes a long way in winning that next job. And an important component of a winning presentation is nothing less than a high-quality design.
8. How to Empower Your Firm for Strategic Growth – Do you exercise tight control over your firm? If so, you’re likely hurting your potential for growth. Find out what it takes to build an empowered culture that will assist you in moving forward. It’s a fact: most firms stay small because their principal owners stunt their growth. Strategic growth, whether it be in staff size, revenue, or project size, is greatly affected by the structure and culture of your firm, and it is through an empowered firm culture that firms truly move forward.
7. 20 Ways to Overcome Project Problems – No matter how carefully you plan your project and protect yourself against the possibilities of trouble, problems will arise. You will fall behind schedule, or you will run over budget.
6. 10 Ways Your Firm Can Benefit from a Strategic Alliance – Forming a strategic alliance isn’t a walk in the park, but when it’s planned correctly and the parties commit the right level of leadership and resources, you can win work that was previously out of reach.
5. 7 Reasons Why PMs Should Do Business Development– There are many reasons why Project Managers should be given the responsibility for business development, and provided the training, coaching, and mentoring to know how to do it.
4. The New Rules for Employee Engagement – Part 4: Doing Our Job as Employees – We know leaders, managers, and organizations need to work harder and do things differently to create conditions for more effective employee engagement – especially today, but it’s not only about them. As employees, we play an equally vital role.
3. Ten Characteristics of A Good Schedule – Is it really critical that an architecture or engineering project manager have a project schedule? Most clients and design firms will probably answer the question with “You must be kidding! Of course, you need a schedule, and a good one at that.
2. Intellectual Property Rights: What Architects Need to Know – Architectural ideas are intellectual property just as much as a novel is the intellectual property of its author. In fact, one of Congress’s most important responsibilities is “to promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries,” as stated in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution.
1. How to Choose Your Next Generation Leaders – Have you identified those individuals who will step into greater leadership roles in the next few years, and are you specifically developing them for that transition? If not, what traits should you be looking for in selecting future leaders?
Thank you contributing to the growth of the PSMJ A/E/C Pulse blog in January 2019! For an archived list of our past blog posts, click HERE. We look forward to continuing to bring you powerful tips and top news from the A/E/C industry.
Thank you for reading!
Now its your turn: We invite you to submit a blog post on any hot topic related to the A/E/C industry.