Bridging the Skills Gap: Retention Strategies that Keep You Competitive

Let’s be honest: the skills gap in the AEC industry isn’t going anywhere. Your most qualified people know they’re in high demand, and you’re faced with figuring out how to keep them. Here’s the takeaway: keep your people happy and invested, or their heads will more easily be turned elsewhere.

What can be done? Well, smart firms are getting creative. They’re adopting some seriously innovative strategies to combat the skills gap and make sure their employees stick around for the long haul. If you’re not already considering these tactics, you should be.

1. Invest in the Talent You Already Have

First off, if you’re not actively developing your people, you’re part of the problem. I’m talking about continuous learning, training on new software (BIM, CAD, Revit—you know the drill), and offering up certifications like LEED or PMP. You want your people to stay? Make sure they’ve got the tools and knowledge to grow with the company. Better yet, to grow the company.

Customize your learning programs to your team’s career goals. Not everyone needs the same development path. Engineers might need more technical training, while project managers need leadership and client management skills. The point is, if they see you’re invested in their growth, they’ll stick around.

Communicate early and clearly what career advancement looks like at your firm, and then back it up with action. Promote from within whenever possible and develop career pathing plans that outline clear steps and opportunities. Employees want to know how they can get from point A to point B – set clear expectations and measurable goals around these milestones and revisit them often. If they perceive the potential for advancement to be fair and attainable, they are more likely to pursue internal growth opportunities.

Recognize stellar employees as a regular part of your firm’s culture. Performance-based incentives also go a long way. Profit-sharing, bonuses, and project milestone rewards align your employees’ success with the success of the company. When they know their efforts directly contribute to the company’s success, they’re more likely to stay engaged and committed.

2. Prioritize Mentorship and Coaching

You’ve got seasoned professionals sitting in your office, and young talent eager to learn. Pair them up. Mentorship isn’t just a “nice-to-have” anymore—it’s a must. Senior staff have tons of valuable knowledge, which is a resource as valuable as any but that is being critically under-utilized by many firms. Create structured mentorship programs where the veterans can pass on everything they know to the younger crew.

And if you’re really on top of your game, create avenues for multidisciplinary mentorship. Get architects talking to engineers, engineers talking to project managers, and so on. Collaboration drive innovation. You want people who can think outside their immediate role. When your team is working across disciplines, they’re learning more and, importantly, staying connected.

3. Flexible Work Options are Not an Option

If you want to stay competitive, break away from the idea that “everyone needs to be in the office 9 to 5.” Sure, some roles are outliers, and that comes with the territory of that skillset. But your technical staff, project managers, etc.? Let them work from home or offer hybrid options. It’s not a “perk” anymore—it’s a basic expectation from candidates across the board. You need to be demonstrating, at the very least, a willingness to be flexible with work scenarios and working hours. In a candidate-driven market, most things should be on the table for discussion for the right candidate.

4. Stay Privvy to Evolving Tech

Look, if you’re not embracing new technologies in the AEC world, you’re missing out on talent that can help you revolutionize the way you’re doing business. Drones, AR, VR, AI, 3D printing—these aren’t just buzzwords. Professionals you want to attract recognize technology not only as a tool that drives optimization and innovation, but also opportunity and continued growth. The safe bet for them is to align their careers and goals with firms they perceive to have longevity. The key to longevity is to evolve with the rest of the industry in meaningful ways.

Don’t just implement new tech for the sake of it—create a culture of innovation. Be a firm that encourages thought leadership. Give your people the latitude to team up and experiment, brainstorm, and take calculated risks for the sake of innovation.  When your people are part of creating something new, they feel invested. That’s the kind of engagement… the kind of buy-in… that keeps them from jumping ship.

5. Wellness and Motivation Go Hand-in-Hand

The AEC industry has a serious burnout problem. Long hours, tough deadlines, and demanding projects should be balanced with an acknowledgement of the importance of employees’ wellness, including their mental health. Actively investing in programs, benefits, and other avenues that promote employees overall wellness not only sends a message of compassion, but makes perfect business sense. If you want your people to work hard and care about what they do, provide support to ensure they have an opportunity to stay healthy enough to do so.

Some firms are offering Lunch and Learns, stress management workshops, access to counseling services, flexible time off such as ‘mental health days,’ gym memberships, access to financial advising services, and many other variations of support. The bottom line is this: people want to feel like people and not cogs in a machine. Underscoring the importance employee wellness through firm-wide initiatives makes folks feel taken care of.

6. Compensation—Make It Worth Their While

Are you aware of what your competition is offering? Is your internal compensation structure stacking up? Comparable compensation packages don’t always beget loyalty in today’s competitive market. If base salaries are immovable, get creative about the compensation package you’re offering as a whole. At minimum, firms need to offer salaries that match the market – invest in comprehensive salary surveys of the AEC industry to stay apprised of how they fare against other similarly structured firms in their region. Many are offering sign-on bonuses, comp. time, performance/merit-based bonuses, work-life balance incentives (such as extra vacation days, paid family leave, sabbaticals, etc.), gifted equity and profit-sharing, shorter probationary periods, flexible work scenarios, and other ancillary and highly desirable benefits.

7. Get Feedback

If you’re not regularly checking in with your employees, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to improve retention. Start conducting regular surveys, one-on-ones, and feedback sessions. Don’t just collect the data—act on it. Address concerns as soon as they come up. You want employees who want to matter. Adopting an open-door policy or another mechanism by which to regularly gather employee insights reduces the risk of silent-quitting and by contrast, gives them a greater sense of a validation.

Use predictive analytics to track patterns in turnover. Don’t wait for your top talent to quit before you act. Spot the signs early and take action.

8. Partner with Schools to Proactively Build a Talent Pipeline

Finally, if you’re not building relationships with schools and universities, start today. Co-op programs, internships, and joint-degree programs are a great way to build a pipeline of future talent. Partner with educational institutions to create tailored programs that market your firm, promote your brand recognition, and expand your network of connections. Start planting the seeds now, and when you are ready to capitalize on some of those efforts, you’re more likely to have low-hanging fruit to pick from.

All this to say…

The skills gap in the AEC industry is a serious issue, but it’s not an insurmountable one. If you’re serious about retaining top talent, you need to take action. Start offering professional development opportunities, embrace flexible work arrangements, prioritize employee well-being, and create clear career pathways. The companies that get this right are the ones that are going to win the battle for talent. So, take a step toward implementing these strategies today—your workforce (and your bottom line) will thank you.