ISPE Announces Winners of "Best Engineering Firms to Work For" Competition

SPRINGFIELD, IL – As national eWeek kicks off to celebrate the work of engineers, a Sugar Grove-based engineering firm tops the list of the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers’ (ISPE) first “Best Engineering Firms to Work For” competition.  Five other engineering companies ranked as “High Achieving” firms in the competition.

“The Illinois Society of Professional Engineers is proud to celebrate the exceptional professional engineers and engineering firms in Illinois.  This competition is intended to shine the spotlight on engineering firms that receive the highest marks from their employees,” said ISPE President Claude H. Hurley, P.E.  “During this eWeek, ISPE congratulates the winning firms and others who took part in the competition.  They are advancing the practice of engineering in the state of Illinois.”  

Engineering Enterprises, Inc. (EEI) ranked highest among its employees in the anonymous employee satisfaction survey conducted by ISPE.  The firm, founded in 1974, is a consulting engineering firm providing services to public agencies throughout northern Illinois.  Over 35 experienced firm members including licensed professional civil engineers and land surveyors, LEED Accredited Professionals, and support team members provide a full range of services for planning, design and construction of infrastructure projects, plus grant and funding assistance.

EEI received the highest score of all nominated companies. Employees reported high rates of career satisfaction and were especially complimentary of the family-friendly work environment where the principals really care about the employees. The firm also scored exceptionally high in flexibility of hours, health insurance benefits, job security, recognition of employee contributions, interesting work, and opportunities to use new technology.

“Our Corporate Goals start with our people because they are our greatest asset. Without our people we wouldn’t be able to complete our projects for our clients. EEI believes in putting our people first and giving them the tools that they need in order to do their jobs to the best of their abilities. The Principals, myself included, realize that every single one of our employees has numerous demands on their time. To that end we offer the flexibility to our employees in order to be successful in both their business life as well as their personal life. Every single employee at EEI plays a vital role in our success as a company and we are grateful for their dedication to us.  It’s truly an honor to be recognized as the best of the best,” said Peter G. Wallers, PE, CFM, President and CEO

One EEI employee said:  “I have been part of EEI’s culture of ‘service first’ for over 15 years.  Here at EEI we continually strive to surpass our clients’ expectations in the professional services we provide.  This ethic is used as the foundation of our mentoring program to ensure our next generation of engineers is adequately trained to meet the yet unknown challenges our clients will be facing in years to come.  The primary client service goals of EEI are supplemented with volunteer activities in the communities we serve and employee family activities to extend the EEI ‘team’ far beyond our office.”

The five firms that ranked as “High Achieving” in the “Best Engineering Firms to Work For” Competition are:

Shive-Hattery

Year Established: 1895

Illinois locations: Bloomington, Chicago, Downers Grove, Moline

Key employee comment:  “The key thing here (is) they really treat you like a professional. They just trust that you are going to do your job.”

“When we asked ourselves why we exist, one of the answers we came up with that ultimately became part of our Purpose statement was to ‘provide fulfilling careers and professional satisfaction for our employees.’  This has established the fundamental framework in making decisions to develop the environment we strive for at Shive-Hattery.  Our people value that and we value them every day,” said Jim Lee, PE, LEED AP BD+C, President, Shive-Hattery.

Civiltech Engineering

Year Established: 1988

Illinois locations: Itasca, Chicago, Crystal Lake

Key employee comment:  “My co-workers are not only some of the brightest people I have met, but some of the nicest people to be around as well... The creative environment here only pushes you forward. I couldn’t have asked for a better start to my GIS career.”

“We are excited to receive this recognition.  It is a tribute to all the good people we have in our organization," said John Breitsameter, PE, President, Civiltech.

URS Corporation

Year Established: 1951

Illinois locations: Chicago, Decatur

Key employee comment:  “As URS evolves along with an ever-changing sustainability movement, I’ve been given the support and leeway to merge my passion for sustainability into my career growth, allowing me to help green our company as well as provide forward-thinking solutions for clients. Every day I get to work with smart creative experts who work with me to create lasting change in their fields. I am always looking for fresh ideas to help URS build on its commitment to sustainability.”

“It is a great honor to be recognized as one of ISPE’s ‘Best Engineering Firms to Work For.' We highly value our talented team of engineers and their accomplishments that helped put us in this position,” said Joel Feinstein, PE, CFM, URS Corporation.

Farnsworth Group, Inc

Year Established: 1890

Illinois Location:  Bloomington (Corporate Office), Normal, Peoria, Champaign, Effingham, Pontiac, Shorewood

Key employee comment:  “I have worked for many different companies, each with their own corporate culture. I have been most impressed with the way Farnsworth Group truly values its employees. There is a discernible respect for all team members involved in a project. There is an emphasis on client relations and producing a quality product.”

“I believe Farnsworth Group employees are among the best and brightest in the industry.  It is our mission to create an exceptional workplace that is not only productive, but creates an exciting work environment.  We strive to provide our employees with a competitive benefits program and encourage them to continually advance their professional careers.  I am honored that our employees are proud to work for our company.   We are pleased to have been selected as a ‘Best Place to Work’ by our employees and are proud to support the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers,” said Karen Jensen, PE, President & CEO, Farnsworth Group.

Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc.

Year Established: 1966

Illinois Location: Dixon, Rockford, Freeport, Moline, Joliet, Sterling

Key employee comment: “For me a large benefit of working for WHA is the broad base of disciplines, which brings a broad base of clients and a variety of projects. It also means that the collaboration required on a large project is much easier, as it is a short trip across the office to answer questions instead of a long drive or long distance phone call. The casual but professional atmosphere makes for a relaxing environment to complete the tasks at hand, without the added pressure of micromanagement.”

“We are honored because our goal is to be one of the best companies to work for - receiving this honor aligns directly with our mission statement," Ron Steenken, PE, SE, President, Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc.

The competition rankings were developed through a methodology that ranked those firms that chose to participate in the competition.  Engineering firms were required to self-nominate in order to participate, and nominated firms were required to circulate an anonymous employee satisfaction survey. A panel of Professional Engineers (PEs) who are members of ISPE analyzed anonymous data and ranked the firms. The first place firm and high achieving firms were selected based on this analysis.

These firms will be recognized at the ceremony for the state’s newly-licensed Professional Engineers at the Governor’s Mansion in May.  They will also be recognized among their peers at the 2014 ISPE Annual Convention, July 10 & 11, in Normal.

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Illinois Society of Professional Engineers – Quick Facts

The Illinois Society of Professional Engineers (ISPE), established in 1886, is a professional association representing engineers from all fields of practice.  ISPE, headquartered in Springfield, includes among its membership: licensed professional engineers, licensed structural engineers, licensed land surveyors, engineer interns, graduate engineers and engineering students.

ISPE also works closely with engineering schools to promote academic achievement and licensing.  The Society conducts the national MATHCOUNTS program which is a unique coaching and competition program for 6, 7, and 8th grade students in Illinois.  The program reaches hundreds of schools and thousands of mathematically-gifted children.