President’s Monthly Update–September, 2019

ACEC News / President’s Monthly Update

September 9, 2019

President’s Monthly Update–September, 2019

Dear Colleagues –

I hope you all enjoyed a great Labor Day weekend!  Thanks to all who participated in the recent webinar for MO leaders on our proposed Strategic Plan.  The draft Plan could not have taken shape without the benefit of input from over 1,000 stakeholders – from ACEC’s members and volunteer leaders to stakeholders in the industry, in government, and in the media.  We continue to welcome your thoughts and questions leading up to the Plan’s formal presentation to the Board for a vote on October 13 – feel free to reach out to me at any time.  And don’t forget to register for the Fall Conference in Chicago if you have not already done so – the Early Bird cutoff date is coming up on September 12.  Not only are we planning a great conference, but this will be the first opportunity for most of us to meet and welcome our new ACEC/Illinois President & CEO Kevin Artl.  I also had the pleasure of participating last month in the CAMEE ExCom meeting in Boston and a reception hosted by CAMEE members Robin Greenleaf and Joel Goodmonson, as well as meeting with Chris Vincze, Chairman and CEO of TRC, a top ENR 500 firm, and ACEC/MA Executive Director Abbie Goodman.  Last but not least, I attended a productive DPC meeting in Park City, Utah.  I look forward to seeing you all in Chicago.

            Linda

 

PRESIDENT’S MONTHLY UPDATE

September 9, 2019

MO Services

• ACEC’s award-winning magazine Engineering Inc. will switch to a seasonal publication schedule (four issues per year) beginning in February, 2020; the magazine will still deliver the best coverage of the business of engineering, including advocacy updates, marketplace news, Member Firm innovations, and starting next year, in-depth profiles of Member Organizations.
• ACEC National hosted its first ever MO staff training session on August 7 and 8; 22 staff from 14 different Member Organizations attended, including five Executive Directors; a second training session is being planned for early 2020.
• ACEC has released a customizable Value Proposition for MOs as part of the NAECE Executive Toolkit; this tool allows MOs to add local accomplishments, testimonials and content, while maintaining the overall ACEC brand and messaging.
• The next webinar in the NAECE Executive Toolkit Series, “Sponsorship and Non Dues Revenue Best Practices,” is scheduled for Thursday, September 19th at 2:00pm EDT; click here to register and receive your calendar invite.

General

• Produced a new podcast episode on the business case for a diverse workplace, featuring an interview with Chandra Storrusten, CEO & Chief Value Creation Officer at Visible Value; remember, our Engineering Influence podcasts are found here and to date we have archived 20 for your listening pleasure!

Advocacy and External Affairs

• Held a monthly advocacy conference call with the MOs; the next call is scheduled for September 19 at 1:00 p.m. EDT – contact Steve Hall for further details.
• Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), the Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, joined members of ACEC’s Executive Committee during their summer meeting in Jackson Hole to discuss his $287 billion surface transportation reauthorization bill.
• ACEC sent a letter to the Treasury Department requesting guidance on the application of the R&D tax credit to the engineering industry in order to streamline audits and provide improved direction to firms that claim the credit.
• Met with Treasury Department staff to discuss solutions to the problem of governmental entities requiring payment in exchange for allocating the Section 179D energy efficient commercial tax deduction to the designer. 
• Submitted pre-publication comments on EPA/U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proposed compensatory mitigation rule changes.
• ACEC Superfund and Emerging Contaminants Work Group submitted four recommended program performance measures to EPA’s Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation.
• The ACEC Water, Energy and Environment Committee held its 2019 Summer meeting in Denver; presentations covered water project finance, electric and water utility cybersecurity requirements, watershed flood resilience, UAMP advanced nuclear power station deployment, Colorado River management, microgrid market development and more; the committee took positions on energy and water measures pending in Congress, and identified topics for advocacy and awareness development e.g., federal resilience program performance, and cybersecurity webinars (certifications, water systems).  
• Participated in National Governors Association infrastructure stakeholder summit focused on multimodal investments and technology innovations for congestion relief and economic development. 
• Hosted P3 Coalition meeting that featured USDOT’s Chief Infrastructure Funding Officer.
• Sent recommendations to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers updating EP 715-1-7, the Engineer Pamphlet providing guidance to USACE contracting staff; the recommendations address industry concerns over the Corps’ policy of competing task orders and include updated best practices for effective selection of a firm for a specific task order under a multiple award IDC.
• Met with members of Senate staff on passage of United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA).
• Met with GSA staff on numerous open FAR cases and issues related to procurement.
• Contacted all MO executive directors, updating them on their respective PAC budgets and encouraged them to meet with the delegation members during the August recess.

Business Resources

• With more than 30 participants, August’s most popular online class, Understanding Your Key Financial Ratios, helped member firms examine how financial ratios are derived and how to interpret and communicate these figures.
• On August 15, Linda Bauer Darr participated in CAMEE’s highly productive summer meeting in Boston, where attendees collaborated on the development of new practice documents, discussed how new technologies continue to impact project work, and shared best practices.
• In anticipation of their first session on October 24, Pathways to Executive Leadership participants completed their Lifestyles Inventory survey with Human Synergistics, an assessment that evaluates leadership, work style, and overall approach to challenges.
• CASE released 12 updated model agreements and three commentaries which cover a variety of situations as well as guidance on AIA documents; a usage guide and all CASE agreements and commentaries can be found here.
• September online classes will feature: Fighting Capitalism with Capitalism: How ESOPs Stack Up; Identify When, Where and How to Increase Profit with Value-Based Pricing; Dealing with Cost Escalation and De-Escalation in a Trump Tariff World; Workplace Violence and Firearms – A Risk Management Discussion; What’s the Secret to Achieving Your 2019 Strategic Goals & Beyond?; Why Your Internal Ownership Transition Plan is Failing; Keys to an Effective Growth Strategy.

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