To view the figures and tables associated with this article, please refer to the flipbook above.
“Better, faster, cheaper.” This is the old “All 3,” a timeless desire unlikely to ever change.
It wasn’t long ago that the standard response to All 3 requests was “pick two.” For a project to be better and more cost effective, it will take more time. To pull together some plans to meet the budget and time constraints, there will be the assumption of more risk. Or for a top quality project design that will meet the timeline, it will cost more as workflow and teams are reprioritized.
However, with the rapid emergence and accessibility of more powerful AI and advanced technology, more of our competitors will not be so constrained by past norms.
As structural engineers, ensuring our growth and prosperity in this new era of unparalleled marketplace and practice space changes requires something both new and different.
A New Reality
Knowledge, client focus, good communication, and responsiveness used to be enough to safeguard our business and professional success. Although these are still critical (and always will be!), more is needed.
Knowledge—the facts, information, and skills acquired by a person through experience or education –is used to differentiate us.
However, when the cost and availability of basic knowledge—technical or otherwise—is essentially free and immediate with an intelligent “prompt” into a powerful AI-powered large language model, what’s the advantage of paying or waiting?
The same is true in terms of design when a smart prompt placed within a powerful graphics model can instantly generate an image of possibility.
The “New All 3”
What WILL be worth paying for and appropriately waiting on is our ability to provide what I call the “New All 3”:
- Deep expertise and expertly applied knowledge
- Execution excellence
- Trusted relationships
Deep expertise tells us (and those we serve) what’s wrong or missing from even the best prompts and models. Expertly applied knowledge is what allows us as obligated professionals to ensure public health, safety, welfare, and policy goals, while meeting budget constraints and investment returns on projects and pursuits that, by their timing and nature, are never technically, politically, financially, geo/ecologically, and jurisdictionally the same.
Execution excellence includes client focus, good communication, and responsiveness, and has become an expectation across disciplines.
Trusted relationships, both internal and external, are only increasing in importance as we become more digital and reliant on technology tools. Trust is also inherent in our duty to serve.
Two-Step Process
Succeeding with “better, faster, cheaper” is a good thing if done strategically and in sequence. If not, it can ultimately limit and commoditize us.
Whether project, proposal, or talent related, our basic internal operations have many known inputs and well understood outputs and variables making them ripe for both automation and augmentation.
Thinking more strategically to solve for the old All 3 internally can yield process and systems optimization and essential learnings—and in doing so, the promise of newfound internal capabilities and time and financial resources. These new treasures can then be used to increase capacity, lighten the load, and reinvest.
Similarly solving from an external marketplace perspective with so many different and less understood inputs, outputs, and variables, often related to evolving client desires and emergent project and location constraints, is less fruitful—and trying to do so limits us to what’s present and known and to relatively simple and straightforward projects.
There will be demand for simplicity—and if this is the game we choose (or default to), we must be ready for the emergence of our industry’s version of Walmart and Target that will look to fill this market niche and put downward pressure on pricing.
For most of us, our best move is to leverage our newfound insights and resources to play a different and much more valuable and strategic game—one that expands client opportunities and choice.
A Different Game
This game is about providing “net new value.”
The fact is most of our projects in engineering and architecture are not so simple. It’s also true that advancing them in silos or without grander consideration of community and resiliency needs, decarbonization trends, and the energy transition won’t serve us well individually—or collectively.
Solving for these, especially in the face of increasing costs, regulation, and technological change certainly adds complexity—but is also our opportunity.
Solving bigger and more meaningful, timely, and complex problems in more creative, thoughtful, and cost-effective ways—and doing so in consideration of all five phases: planning, design, construction, operations, and maintenance—is of great (and increasing) value to all asset owners and developers.
To become (or remain) a more valued project partner, we must resist “supply chain” interchangeability. Each discipline must ensure it provides value both up and downstream of any previously distinct roles or functions. For any design firm this could include leveraging its unique expertise through and alongside technology, either commercially available or bespoke, to provide expanded possibilities and increased certainty faster and more effectively during the planning stages so that ultimate or enhanced asset design, construction, operation, and maintenance goals are met.
Delivering on such allows for a different value proposition. This then opens the door for more evolved business models designed to better capture the value we create—further adding to our opportunity.
Keeping the Trust
The use of AI and advanced technology will be a key element to achieving this new level of success.
As entrusted professionals, it’s on us to learn how to best leverage the technology and not fall prey to the hype.
Real change is coming and as we explore and educate others on all that’s possible, we must keep in mind that:
• What’s easy and quick is rarely the best or in compliance with the standard of care
• FOMO (the fear of missing out) doesn’t inspire
• MVPs (minimum viable products) are not full-on solutions
• Opportunists, well-meaning or otherwise who understand much less about what we do, may make promises too good to be true.
Providing new net value can help us to elevate on macro and micro levels while also achieving both incremental and exponential gains for ourselves and all those we serve.
To grow and prosper during this time of great change requires that we:
- Recognize the reality that the old All 3 is not enough.
- Understand and proactively build towards the “New All 3.”
- Become better, faster, cheaper internally.
- Leverage internal insights and resources to practice differently to solve bigger problems and create more meaningful opportunities externally.
- Evolve our business models to capture more of the value we create.
- Grow in our ability to lead our people and teams differently.
- Strategically redesign our organizations to support our new ways of working.
Unplanned change, disruption, and disintermediation don’t need to be our fate.
Our choice to individually and collectively evolve beyond the old All 3 is a powerful first step.
Winning with the “New All 3” is more of a marathon than a sprint – but we need to make sure we’re moving… and starting now to apply these elements strategically and effectively is our key to enjoying greater next-level success moving forward.
This article was originally posted as a Next Level Blog on the ActionsProve website.
About the Author
Peter C. Atherton, P.E. has over 30 years of AEC industry experience, 24 as a successful professional civil engineer, project manager, principal, practice group leader, major owner, and member of the board of directors with high-achieving firms. He is now the President and Founder of ActionsProve, LLC, a strategic planning, advisory, and leadership development practice focused exclusively in AEC.
(pete@actionsprove.com).