Evolution.

Change is tough.

But it can also be good for the heart, the soul and the experience.

After 14 years at Gannett Fleming, it was time to move to a new company and role.

It was tough to make this decision. The company has been like family to me. We went to the mat when Covid came around to get users to a safe working environment and improved the very platform they worked from in less than a year, changing the culture of the work environment.

We went to battle together when a cyberattack tried to shut us down and ruin our company.

But it was the evolution from 2D to 3D design and environments that made us close. We all learned together and took our projects to the next level.

They bought me an airline ticket home when my father had a heart attack, and never asked for anything in return. They became lifelong friends and colleagues that I can’t thank enough for the experience.

They gave me the tools to help teach others how to get better at what they do.

Acquisitions are tough enough, but when you’re dealing with a group that’s learning what it takes to run an engineering firm, mistakes will be made. Employees suffer the most, as sometimes the loss of their employment – whether it was one year or 35 years – tough to take.

I’ve been through this before, when CADre Systems was acquired by Advanced Solutions. The new ownership didn’t understand what made us successful and tried to apply a commodity business model to a consulting and mentoring mindset. The management was disrespectful and uninterested in how we could help build their team, as their goal was simply to acquire our book of business. That one eventually failed as well, but leaving was one of the best decisions I had ever made. The only thing I missed was the same from GF – the friends and colleagues I had made over the years, and relationships that are still here today.

For me personally, it was changes to our roles and responsibilities that caused me to look elsewhere. It wasn’t anger, but more of a case of looking out for myself and my family. Ultimately, they have to be my priority – so when my team was disbanded, I did what any other person would do and put out the resume. I didn’t agree with the corporate leadership’s position on the changes to IT services and was put into a place with limited input, to a team I loved to work with but where the practice leadership never had a chance to understand exactly what a technology manager does.

Communication and transparency are so critical when mergers and acquisitions take place. Keeping staff in the dark is really antithesis to team building, so my only advice is to put everything on the table and be honest.

And then things began to happen.

 I spent a good bit of time learning how to apply for employment and was woefully out of practice. But if you pay attention in the quietest moments, and listen, you’ll get the guidance you need.

And I did. An old friend from my past, and someone I’ve always looked up to, told me that it was OK to look around. He was the one that taught me Revit, and it shaped my entire career. When he said that I wouldn’t have a problem finding another place to land, I continued my search for a new opportunity.

And then another old friend from the CADre days called. He has amazing energy and put on some of the best AutoCAD and Civil 3D product demonstrations I had ever seen. His delivery methods have shaped mine for years, but his undying passion for what he does helped seal the deal.

And it was others in my community that I had met that encouraged me to join them. People that I’ve respected because they had the same vision and insight. They made a role and place for me that provides the security and goals that I want to finish my career achieving.

Interestingly enough, my new employer actually helped me get my job at Gannett Fleming. I was hired to train their staff on Revit communication and system tools for a project in Phoenix, and I met a designer from Gannett Fleming that eventually recommended hiring me (as well as my old boss at ASI, who was hired as a BIM Manager at Gannett Fleming four months earlier).

So I’m moving into a role as a VDC Manager for a Water business line, to start things off. The goal is to gain an understanding of what, who and how they are working on vertical projects, and help them learn more about system-based design and workflows. I’ll get to work on a few projects that I’ve always had a keen interest in learning more about, but I’ll also be helping move them to a higher integration of BIM practices and habits.

It will carry me to retirement in a few years, in a better place than I was, with clear goals and objectives.

As I was just told a few days ago…

Welcome to the Horn.

Better hold on….evolution is coming….