The Best Civil Engineering Firm Logo contest was spawned a few years back when the aggressive onset of social media and when the concept of corporate branding was at the top of every business owner or marketing executive’s “to do” list.  No longer are logo’s seen on just business cards, brochures, and corporate stationary, but they are now subject to the scrutiny of electronic media – be it email signatures, corporate websites, corporate social networking sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, corporate recruiting sites, job boards, etc.  With the amount of exposure companies get these days, the importance of a firm’s logo and how it is incorporated into the cumbersome electronic world for all to see, we felt that a Best Civil Engineering Firm Logo contest was warranted.

In judging the dozens of entries that we received, we looked at a number of different criteria:

A.    Immediate impact
B.    Is it memorable (in a positive way)?
C.    Is it appealing to the eye?
D.    Accuracy in depicting the services of the company
E.    Effectiveness  in depicting the corporate and employment branding initiatives of the company

Taking all the criteria into consideration, without further ado, this year’s winner of CivilEngineeringCentral.com’s Best Civil Engineering Firm Logo is:

With dozens of entries to choose from, there were a few front-runners, but Woolpert ended on top.  This is Woolpert’s first time entering our contest, and with their recent re-design they scored very high on all the criteria. 

“Woolpert is very proud to be the recipient of Civil Engineering Central’s Best Civil Engineering Firm Logo. As we wrapped up our 100^th year in business, it is rewarding to see that rigorous efforts to update our logo are being recognized in the industry.” – Jocelyn Hodson,  Woolpert

We would like to thank all of those firms who entered our 3rd Annual “Best Civil Engineering Firm Logo” Contest and we look forward to the next contest at the end of this year!  CONGRATULATIONS WOOLPERT!

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CivilEngineeringCentral.com

For the 2nd consecutive year the CivilEngineeringCentral.com blog has amassed over 51,000 visitors…not too shabby considering that in 2008, the blog’s first year of existence, we had just over 16,000 visitors!

Thanks to all of our readers for reading, sharing, contributing and commenting.  The goal of this blog is to discuss a wide array of topics specifically as they relate to the civil engineering community.  Typical topics include project management,  civil engineering job search, hiring, civil engineering projects, education, marketing, civil engineering career paths, career advancement, client development, social networking for civil engineers, civil engineering infrastructure, licensure and certification, training and development, etc.   

Beyond the home page of the blog which receives the most visitors, below is the list of the Top 10 Blog Posts of 2011:

1.      Hiring and Job Interviews Gone WILD!  A Few True Tales from the Civil Engineering Job Search Archives

2.      Are You Having as Much Fun as This Guy?

3.      The Civil Engineering Boss Who “Knows it All”

4.      Top 9 Most Recent “C’mon Man” Moments in Civil Engineering Recruiting

5.      Civil Engineering “Dream” Projects

6.      Conversation With a Civil Engineer

7.      Civil Engineers:  Laid Off? Now What?

8.      Is Your Civil Engineering Firm Getting Squeezed?

9.      Negotiating the Non-Sense in Your Non-Compete

10.   Civil Engineers:  It’s Time to Get Organized from A-to-Z

From the bottom of our hearts here at CivilEngineeringCentral.com, we truly thank you for the time you take to visit our blog.  May you and yours have a safe and joyous Holiday Season and an amazingly prosperous 2012!

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THE GIST

1. All nominated logos (tag lines should be included if you have one) must be from civil engineering firms who operate within the United States.
2. If the logo has a story behind it, we would like to know about it.
3. Logo nominations can be submitted via:

EMAIL: info@CivilEngineeringCentral.com
DIRECT TWEET: http://twitter.com/civilengineers
LINKEDIN: By responding directly to our announcements you see on any LinkedIn groups

CRITERIA

Logos will be judged on a sliding scale based on the following criteria:

1. Does the logo make an immediate impact by grabbing one’s attention right off the bat?
2. Is the logo memorable? Is it uniquely applicable to what the firm does – enough so that it will positively embed itself in the memory of clients, employees, peers, etc?
3. Is the logo appealing to the eye?
4. Does the logo accurately represent the company and its services?
5. Does the nominated logo accurately represent the firm’s corporate and employment branding initiatives?

RETURNING JUDGES

1. Ron Worth
   Chief Executive Officer
   Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS)
   www.smps.org
   
2. Dusty Burchnall
   Owner
   2 Fish
   www.2fish.com
   
3. Matt Barcus
   Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
   
4. Carol Metzner
   Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com

WINNER

Contest winner will be notified by CivilEngineeringCentral.com during the week of October 30th, 2011. Winner will receive:

1. Corporate logo prominently displayed on CivilEngineeringCentral.com‘s December 2011 e-Newsletter (13,000+ distribution).
2. One month as sponsor on ourLinkedIn Groupe-update, “The LinkedIngineer.” This e-update goes out twice a month to all 5,300 (and growing!) members of the Civil Engineering Central Group on LinkedIn.
3. 10 free job postings on CivilEngineeringCentral.com + Featured Employer upgrade.
4. Bragging rights until next year

DEADLINE

All entries must be received by October 31,  2011

NOTE

Gist, Criteria, Judges, Prizes & Deadline are subject to change without notice as determined by A/E/P Central, LLC, home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com

I read a book not too long ago entitled Getting Things Done by David Allan.  The book provides strategies and an overall process for getting organized and becoming more productive.  One strategy that I’ve been able to take from this book and not only use myself, but also help engineers to implement through coaching is David’s A to Z filing system.

It is common amongst us civil engineers for papers to pile up on our desk throughout the course of the day.  Papers, plans, invoices, etc can swallow up our office.  Every once in a while it will become so overbearing that we’ll take a whole day and clean out our office which usually consists of throwing most of these items out.  Does this sound familiar?

David’s A to Z system is a great process that will help you to get and STAY organized.  Here is how it works.  Start by designating one large filing drawer or an entire filing cabinet for you’re A to Z system.  Fill the cabinet with 26 hanging folders and label them A through Z.  Next, start making a list of all of the items that you might file away (i.e. example, specifications, estimates, manufacturers information, stormwater guidelines, etc.).  Then create a file folder for each one of these items and be sure to label them clearly.  Then the fun part begins.  Starting with your desk begin to file away items into the proper folders.  You may have to create new folders along the way or slightly modify the system over the first few weeks.  For example, you might have to decide on whether you want to use the word ‘drainage’ or ‘stormwater’ which will determine whether that folder ends up in ‘D’ or ‘S.’

After a few weeks of implementing this system, your office will be clean!  Then you just have to work on keeping it clean, which is pretty easy with this system.  As items come across your desk simply file them into the proper folder or create a new one, when necessary.

You may think that this system is extremely simplistic and actually it is.  I have successfully implemented this system both in my office and in my home and I never have a problem finding something.  I hope this tip is helpful for you can bring more balance to both your career and your life.

Please share any organizational strategies that you are currently using!

As a Search Consultant specializing in the civil engineering profession,  I speak to dozens of civil engineers on a daily basis discussing with them their careers, their employers, their projects, what motivates them, their strengths and weaknesses, their likes and dislikes about their job, their career goals, etc.  When discussing their motivation for exploring new opportunities one thing I hear from time-to-time is how they would like to find an opportunity that is ”fun.”    I am sure I just got a few chuckles there as the concept of having fun in one’s career is buried by deadlines, stress, non-stop meetings, overbearing bosses, needy employees, critical clients who are never satisfied, and pressure from outside shareholders who barely know what a civil engineer is…and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!   Everyone’s perception of fun is different, but is there REALLY a way to have fun as a civil engineering consultant?

Well, according to civil engineer and professional career coach Anthony Fasano, PE, civil engineers CAN have fun, and they SHOULD have fun.  Here is what Anthony had to say to me on this very topic:

“ It’s amazing when I coach engineers on career growth and development, how many of them think fun and work can’t go together.  My question to them is, why would you want to do something for 40 plus hours a week if it’s not enjoyable?

Many professionals ask, how can I make my career more fun?  First of all, if you are passionate about what you do, you will have a lot of fun.  Another tip I always give engineers is to get out there and network.  Build relationships in your industry through professional societies and other networking groups.  Do it with the goal of building lasting relationships and you will find that your days are much more enjoyable.  Building personal relationships in your industry can greatly increase your level of enjoyment.  Don’t just join these organizations, get involved!

You only get one career, why shouldn’t it be fun?”

So as you ponder your career and some different ways that you can inject some fun into it, take a look at Chris Stone’s Summary below.  Chris is the President of Clark Nexsen, a 90+ year old AE firm based out of Norfolk, VA.    I uncovered Chris’ profile on LinkedIn, and his profile was the inspiration for this blog…check it out:

Chris’ summary is taken from one of the most quotable texts found on the internet,  Hugh Gallagher’s famous College Application Essay.  Now I’ve never spoken to Chris, but after reading his profile summary on LinkedIn, if he truly looks through his lens on life with that perspective,  I would bet that his career success can been partially attributed to his ability to have fun.  So the question remains,

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In a January 2011 article in CE News titled Change is Good, John P. Bachner, CEO of Bachner Communications, Inc and Executive Vice President of ASFE/The Geoprofessional Business Association stated that civil engineers right out of the gate have three strikes against them:

Strike One — Civil engineers are taught to be civil engineering professionals, not civil engineering businesspeople. The result: They know a lot about civil engineering and all too little about business in general and the professional service business in particular.

Strike Two — Many civil engineers are ineffective communicators. Some, it seems, sense these deficits at an early age and find comfort in math and science, where a lack of expository skills doesn’t matter all that much; numbers do the talking.

Strike Three — Many civil engineers have weak interpersonal skills, except when it comes to other civil engineers who want to talk about civil engineering. Regrettably, in the civil engineering business, most of the folks civil engineers deal with are businesspeople, administrators, “finance guys,” contractors (who may be graduate civil engineers but now live in a far different world), government officials, and so on. Those civil engineers who do not fit the stereotype — the gregarious extroverts — have a huge advantage over their less-outgoing brethren because the service business in general and the professional service business in particular are all about people.

Many of you have seen the wide array of satiric videos on YouTube published by xtranormal right? <blank stare>

In any event, I uncovered such a video that, though likely a little “over the top,” leaves no viewer scratching their head as to the point they are trying to get across:

I know, I know, those of you who are engineers and have taken part in these conversations yourself may be thinking,  ’you’re right Matt, the message in this video is indeed quite clear, the homeowner is a knuckle head ! ‘ Often times it is the public that cannot see the forest through the trees, and that is exactly the point. As a consultant, you need to remove your engineering hat and put yourself in the shoes of the homeowner, the business owner, or the organization that is being impacted by the changes taking place. Like John mentions in Strike Three, civil engineering consultants do very well at speaking with the State Bridge Engineer regarding a cable-stay bridge that is being designed, or with the Director of Public Works regarding drainage issues on a major thoroughfare being built through the city, or with the home builder or developer in the design of a 3,000 acre master planned community. But what about homeowners whose property is being effected by a street widening? Or the citizens of a local community where a Wal-Mart Super Center is being proposed who are concerned about traffic congestion and drainage issues? The video very much makes light of this issue and for all intents and purposes is overly dramatic in order to make the point. Most civil engineers have a “knack” for what they do and the advanced math, physics, and engineering courses they study in school build upon that innate ability and passion they have for civil engineering.

So, what is the best way for a civil engineer to hone their communication skills when dealing with the public?

-> Is it the trial-by-fire method where they are just sent to public meetings and expected to learn through immersion?

-> Do they tag along with project managers and company principal’s and learn by example and mentorship?

-> Will seminars alone on this very topic make a difference?

-> Should one join Toastmasters?

-> Or does this ability just come along with maturity in the profession?

What has your experience been in relation to this topic? How have you honed your communication skills when interacting with the public? What strategies would you recommend implementing in order for a civil engineer to improve this particular skill set?

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You are in your office trying to complete a set of civil engineering plans or wrap up a civil engineering project proposal that has to be submitted that afternoon, but there is this one co-worker who is always coming into your office and talking to you, and not about work-related issues.  Most of the time they gossip about co-workers or talk about their personal issues, a recent vacation, the game last night, or even complain about their job to you.  Yes I know, camaraderie and friendship are both important aspects of teamwork and morale, but when is enough, enough; and gossiping while in the office about co-workers, how unprofessional?

I see a few options for dealing with a chatty co-worker:

Close Your Door:  You can always close your door (assuming you have one).  That usually helps you to stay focused on the task at hand and increase productivity. However, you risk people getting upset with you for shutting them out and disconnecting yourself from the office. You may also get a few eyebrows raised as to why your door is closed often, especially from upper level managers.

Temporarily Relocate:  When I was working as a civil engineer and had to read a report or review a set of plans, I would utilize a conference room, simply to get away from distractions.  Not only does this save you from the gossiping co-workers, but it also gets you away from the phone and the computer.

Ask Nicely:  Another option is to ask your chatty co-worker to leave, in a nice way of course.  Maybe say something like, “John, I am sorry but I really have to get this report done in the next few hours, I will stop by when I am finished.”

Can you recommend any other options?

The reason I raise this topic is because I have heard many professionals complain about working late hours, only to see them chatting a good portion of their day away.  Again, I am all for building strong relationships with your co-workers and I do think you should take some time to get to know them, but where do we draw the line?

How do you maintain personal relationships with your co-workers without letting it affect your productivity?

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For those of you football fans who watch ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown, you are likely familiar with their “C’Mon Man!” segment.  For those of you who don’t have the slightest clue as to what I am talking about, in a nutshell, the Monday Night Countdown crew members compile moments from the past weekend’s games that leave you scratching your head and saying to yourself (or out loud in their case) “C’Mon, Man!”

Here is segment to give you the gist of what I am talking about:

Now that you catch my drift, after speaking with a number of my recruiting colleagues across the country, I have compiled my Top 9  ”C’Mon, Man!” moments from the world of civil engineering recruiting over the past year:

1. A  candidate who has been out of work for 6 months goes through three stages of the interview process, she is on the cusp of receiving an offer contingent upon references checking out and she provides a poor reference that sells her down the river…C’MON MAN!
2. A candidate tells us all the motivations for him to consider a change, we provide an opportunity that meets all those needs and gives him a $25K/20%  increase in his base salary.  He verbally accepts to the hiring manager on Friday and then on Monday decides to stay where he is…C’MON MAN!
3. We successfully recruit a C-Level candidate for an extremely confidential CEO search.  The candidate is aware that this position must be treated with the highest level of confidentiality and agrees to abide by the “rules” of confidentiality.  After being shortlisted by the existing CEO as a candidate, said candidate decides to call a friend AT THAT COMPANY in attempt to get some inside information on the company and ultimately spilled the beans…needless to say he knocked himself out of contention…C’MON MAN!
4. A client asks us to conduct a search and bring candidates to the table for a Regional Manager position…a great candidate with a solid reputation is presented and interviewed, but the client is unable to provide ANY feedback until four weeks later, only to say “not interested.”  That’s it?   C’MON MAN!
5. A client company has two candidates they are considering interviewing …one is unemployed and has some of the skills they are looking for…the other is gainfully employed and fits most of what they are looking for.  The client company would rather interview the unemployed candidate first and make a decision because they are worried that the employed candidate may take a counteroffer…C’MON MAN!
6. A candidate has been so brainwashed as an employee that he tells us he will never leave his current employer because it is the “best company to work for in the history of all companies ever.”  Really?  The best company to work for in the history of all companies… ever?    C’MON MAN!
7. A company wants a” rainmaker” who will significantly increase top line revenues for their office or company, but they are not willing to pay market value…COME ON MAN!
8. We spoke with an engineer who diminishes the value of obtaining her PE because she says that she knows PE’s that she has worked with and she already knows WAY more than they do…C’MON MAN!
9. A candidate was referred to us by someone we respect in the industry, yet they respond to our contacting them by making a completely egotistical and arrogant statements about how great they are….C’MON MAN!

These are just a handful of “C’MON MAN” moments that have happened in our industry over the past year.   I know I am dishin’ it out here, but I will be the first to confess that we have had a few “C’MON MAN” moments on our end over the  years as well that we have learned from.  I guess it’s all a part of what makes our careers…and life  interesting! 

If you have any “C’MON MAN” moments from the world of recruiting or civil engineering that you would like to share, please feel free to do so!

One more thought…”Top 10″ lists, yes.   But who the heck ever heard of a “Top 9″ list?   C’MON MAN!!!!!

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The battle for the top spot was extremely competitive this year, but when the final tallying was complete our winner was S&ME out of Raleigh, NC.   S&ME is a geotechnical, environmental, construction materials engineering & testing, industrial health & safety, solid waste engineering, cultural resources and natural resources firm. Headquartered in Raleigh, NC with 26 locations in the southeast USA. They are employee owned and 1,000 employee strong.

From S&ME, “Our mission is to safely deliver excellent client service through responsiveness and technical excellence; provide fulfilling careers and professional satisfaction to our employees; and achieve financial success that provides company growth and rewards our employees.” 

According to Dianne Yusko, Communications Specialist with S&ME,  with the exception of one color change, S&ME has carried the same logo since 1973!   Their logo arrow represents their original service of geotechnical and geology. The bottom arrow represents subsurface stratification. The top arrow represents the firm’s work above ground.  They have used their signature PMS 476 brown to represent the earth and their PMS 158 orange to represent their commitment to safety on the job.

 The judging criteria for the contest was based upon the following questions that were posed to the judges as they were asked to respond with a numeric point value on a sliding scale of 1-5.  The logo with the highest cumulative point total was the winner:

1. Does the logo make an immediate impact by grabbing one’s attention right off the bat?

2. Is the logo memorable? Is it uniquely applicable to what the firm does – enough so that it will positively embed itself in the memory of clients, employees, peers, etc?

3. Is the logo appealing to the eye?

4. Does the logo accurately represent the company and its services?

5. Does the nominated logo accurately represent the firm’s corporate and employment branding initiatives?

Finally, we would like to give thanks to the following judges for their commitment in making this another highly successful contest:

Ron Worth 
Chief Executive Officer
Society for Marketing Professional Services

Lizz Pellet 
Chief Culture Officer
EMERGE International

Dusty Burchnall
Owner / Web & Graphic Designer
2Fish Group

Carol Metzner
Managing Partner – CivilEngineeringCentral.com
President – The Metzner Group

Matt Barcus
Managing Partner – CivilEngineeringCentral.com
President-Precision Executive Search

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I am a die-hard Philadelphia sports fan.  I’m a Phitin’ Phillie Phan during baseball season, I bleed green during football season, and I bleed orange during hockey season (and if the Sixers could give me an inkling of hope…anywhere…I would bleed for them as well!).  I am blessed with a wonderful wife who is pretty patient with me when it comes to watching the games on TV, especially the Phillies since every game is on TV – not that I watch every game, but I watch enough to admit that I may get in trouble in other homes.  In any event, a couple of times a year I score some tickets to head into Philly to watch a game or two. A few  weeks ago was one of those times.  Under normal circumstances, during non-rush hour times, I can make it down to the Philadelphia sports complex in about fifty minutes.  During rush hour I would give myself an hour-and-a-half just to be safe.  This would give me enough time to enjoy a few cold one’s at McFadden’s before hand, or enjoy some crab fries from Chickie & Pete’s.   Well, two weeks ago I left at 4PM for a 7:05PM game where Roy Halladay would be vying for his 20th win of the season…plenty of time to sip a few suds and grab a bite to eat before game time, right?  As it turns out, from 4PM – 6:30PM I had the following view:

Now, at the end of the day, after parking and walking to my seats I was able to grab a beer and a kielbasa sandwich from Bull’s BBQ in time to see Halladay’s first pitch on his way to his 20th victory of the season.  It was all good.

Where am I going with all of this and what could this possibly have to do with civil engineering?  Well, I would have much rather taken a 3D Fast Bus:

A DETAILED PRESENTATION (apx. 5 minutes):

90 SECOND VIDEO ONLY SIMULATION:

As U.S. cities continue to pursue funding and public support for light  and high-speed rail services, Civil, Rail, and Transit Engineers in China continue to develop advanced concepts that will help alleviate congestion on our roads and make travel a much more enjoyable, less stressful experience.  There is not a doubt in my mind that we will eventually get there ourselves, as not only do we have the some of the most creative and innovative engineers in the world, but we really do not have a whole lot of choice based upon the current state of our infrastructure and the needs of our society…I just wish a 3-D Bus was in place a couple of weeks ago!

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