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PARTNER SPOTLIGHT Spotlight on... Wallace Engineering Besides being lazy and impersonal, these messages show that the senders clearly have done no research into what goods or services I might need. Studies show their chance of success of making a deal using such methods is less than one-tenth of one percent, but still they come. Can you imagine sending out an email blast to unknown recipients along the lines of, "We can build your building for less" or "For- give me for reaching out like this, but do you need any structural engineering help?" Of course not. Why? Because we work in a relationship-based industry. At its heart, the architectural/engineer- ing/construction world turns on the axis of re- lationships. People want to work with people they like and trust. We want our day-to-day interactions to be meaningful and productive. Don't believe it? Think of your Top 10 cli- ents. Who are they? Do you just consider them clients or are they friends? What are their likes and dislikes? Do you just talk business or do you talk about their lives? I'm willing to bet that your best – and probably favorite – clients are people you also consider friends. The same goes for people you hire as consultants and subcontractors. Do you just hire them or do you truly enjoy working with them? The best AEC teams I've been involved with were made up of companies that commu- nicated well, focused on getting things done, and worked on creating relationships along with creating a building. Focusing on a team culture is crucial to a company's success and it should be taught at all levels of the organization. A firm with a team Brad Thurman, PE, FSMPS, CPSM is a principal and CMO at Wallace Engineering. He joined Wallace in 1987 and has been involved in marketing and business development since 1997, helping lead Wallace's marketing efforts across two disciplines and six offices. culture understands a truly successful project is one where all members – owner, contractor, ar- chitect, engineers – are successful, not just one or two entities. Team members must be willing to communicate regularly and freely, and be open to suggestions and, yes, criticism. At Wallace Engineering, we work to build relationships at all levels with our clients and their clients. Historically, the primary relation- ship was initiated from the interaction be- tween firm principals, top construction officials and project owners. It's important, though, to also stress relationship building at the associ- ate/project manager/superintendent and the project engineer/project architect/construction engineer levels. Lately, my email inbox has been inundated with messages from people who want to sell me something. So far this week, I've received offers from folks wanting to redo our website, optimize our SEO, sell me 10,000 contacts in my industry, introduce their cleaning service, provide hotel accommodations for site visits and, my favorite, be "my" bollard manufacturer. Being able to communicate horizontally across a project at all levels makes working together run more smoothly. It builds respect for peers and makes conflict resolution eas- ier. Most of all, it can solidify a partnership that lasts over the years as senior mem- bers retire and younger staff moves into leadership positions. Our relationship with The McIntosh Group is a perfect example. Our history goes back to the mid 1980s, when a few 20 and 30-some- things started working on projects together. To- day, those people are owners of our companies and meet regularly. Our marketing departments work and serve on committees together, and a new generation of 20 and 30-somethings are connecting with each other. In this day and age of impersonal electronic communication, when it's easy to fire off an email and assume it solves a problem, I encourage you to think differently. Pick up the phone. Make a call. Meet in person. Encourage two-way communication. Build relationships that transcend the project. I promise you won't be sorry and everyone will be better for it. Brad Thurman, PE, FSMPS, CPSM Focusing on a team culture is crucial to a company's success and it should be taught at all levels of the organization. Editor's Note: Business is all about relation- ships, and The McIntosh Group has a strong and lasting relationship with our friends at Wallace Engineering. This quarter's Partner Spotlight is with Wallace Engineering Principal Brad Thurman, who shares his perspective on the importance of relationships. 139 MCINTOSHTRANSFORMS.COM JULY/AUGUST 2016 ISSUE 3 COMMERCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS