Schedule - The Civil Engineering Collective

Civil Engineering Collective Training Schedule

If you are enrolled through in the Civil Engineering Collective through your company, you will be automatically registered for all sessions. If you are interested in becoming a member, please contact us here.
If you would like to request a specific topic, please click here.

Mar. 16, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Failure Analysis and the Professional Liability Claims Process

Apr. 06, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Ingenuity and the Engineer – How to Harness Creativity in Engineering

As consumption of resources continues to increase, creativity will be even more important to ensure longevity for future generations. The ability to generate and implement creative solutions can ultimately decide the future, especially when it comes to dealing with some of the world’s biggest challenges like failing infrastructure and global warming. As cheesy as this may sound, we need to embrace creativity as a necessary skill set and not let it fall by the wayside with other skills that were nurtured in our youth, such as imagination and curiosity.

Imagine if we all included creativity in our day-to-day activities. Wouldn’t your workday have an almost whimsical feel to it? What if we were free to let our minds explore various solutions to problems—without ridicule. This is all very possible. Just like any habit or skill in this book, it requires a shift away from the belief of “we always do things this way.” This dogma traps organizations and individuals and shackles them from producing truly extraordinary results. I challenge you to take off the proverbial blinders and look at your projects with a new zest. Look at them with fresh eyes and see what you’re missing “in plain sight.”

Learning Objectives: In this session, you will:

Learn how to harness creativity on your team.
Understand the common barriers to creativity in engineering teams.
Determine the best way to tackle a problem using creativity.
Find out how to maintain a “rookie” mentality in your day-to-day practice to increase creativity.

Apr. 27, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Networking Roundtable: Tips on Building Effective Relationships and How to Avoid Networking Pitfalls

Building relationships is a critical component of engineering career success as well as the growth of any civil engineering firm. However, civil engineering professionals are rarely taught how to network effectively and build relationships. In this session, Civil Engineering Collective instructors will start the session with some key networking tips and examples followed by a panel of Civil Engineering Collective members who will talk about how they have had success in networking and business development in their firms.

This session will cover:

Strategies on networking and building effective relationships
How to build relationships online and offline
How to avoid common networking pitfalls
How to network through projects

Past sessions

Sept. 16, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Maintaining High Engagement with Team Members, Managers, Clients and other Consultants thorough Virtual Interactions (1 PDH)

The number of people working remotely may decrease the further we get away from COVID-19, but odds are it will remain high, permanently. Therefore, virtual calls, meetings and events will become part of the new normal. Are you ready for that?

Whether you are part of a design team, managing a team, or building client relationships, you will be interacting more, virtually. How will you be sure to maintain high quality communications, a high level of engagement, and ultimately sound relationship?

In this session, you will learn how specific strategies that can help you support your virtual interactions, specifically:

-How to conduct or participate in remote meetings effectively,
-Simple tools that you can use to maximize these interactions and ensure they are meaningful,
-Strategies for streamlining your calls and meetings without sacrificing productivity,
-Steps to take to ensure those that you meet with leave your meetings with clear next steps, and
-How to save you and your colleagues time, by running smarter meetings.

Sept. 30, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

The Value of Positive Perception for Your Civil Project (1 PDH)

Positive public perception and approval, is an important, yet often underrated aspect of bringing civil engineering projects to reality is . What if it was easier for your firm to gain these items for your projects? This session is intended to help you in this important aspect of the project process. Sam Lytle, P.E. a civil engineer who now focuses on making civil projects look good, full time, will focus on the following objectives.

Learning Objectives:

How to demonstrate the value of positive public perception for civil projects
Review examples of positive case studies
Learn multiple strategies for improving public perception
Understand the return on investment on public outreach

Oct. 21, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Make Your Proposal Examples SHINE to the Selection Team (1 PDH)

Want to win more work for you, your team and your company? You’ve got to understand what appeals to the unique Selection Team you’re proposing to…and understand subconscious powers at play. In this training course, learn what’s really going on in a Selection Team’s brain and how to create examples in your proposals that help you stand out in a crowded field.

Learning Objectives:

What does Harry Potter’s “Mirror of Erised” have to do with successful proposal writing? (aka Understand the effect of subconscious Perceived Value and how most Selection Team members actually decide the fate of your proposal)
Why can’t I bring the Potential Client a strawberry ice cream cone with crunchy toppings?? (aka What to ask your
Potential Client before the RFP/Q hits the streets to gather the best information)
Best strategies for submitting a proposal to a client you don’t have a history with
How to write SHINY proposal examples that get noticed
Use Eye Stops to capture the Selection Team’s attention

Nov. 12, 2020 - 12:00pm ET

Manage Your Projects to Meet Your Client's Expectations (1 PDH)

Manage Your Projects to Meet Your Client's Expectations - The common goal at the end of every project should be for the client and design professional to be able to look at each other and both say “Yes, that is exactly what I expected.” The range of the client's response to anything short of that outcome will at best, diminish the likelihood of future assignments from that client, and at worst, possibly result in a professional liability claim. This presentation will address the various factors that can influence a client’s expectations, while at the same time cover various tools that can improve design efficiency. Specifically, the selection-for-work process, contract terms, critical elements of every contract, avoiding construction bidding pitfalls, and managing professional liability claims, is addressed.

Objectives:

Understand the importance of meeting client's expectations
Learn ways to anticipate client's expectations
Become familiar with contract terms that influence client's expectations
Learn procedures that can minimize or manage professional liability claims.

Dec. 1, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Annual Goal Setting for Civil Engineering Professionals and Companies: Take Action Today (1 PDH)

Regardless of your experience level, if you don’t have clear goals, you may be setting yourself up for disappointment. This applies both to individuals and firms. We live in an uncertain world, yet your trajectory should be focused around your mission and goals, and the end of the year is a great time to set or reset your goals.

During this session, you will be taken through a simple goal-setting process to not only set your goals but to get to the true meaning of why certain goals are important to you. Knowing WHY you want to achieve a goal is just as important as setting goals, if not more. You’ll also be given three very specific steps to setting clear goals that you can use immediately upon completion of the session. These strategies can be utilized by individuals, teams, departments, and even firms.

Learning Objectives:

Performing a year-end reflection prior to your goal-setting process,
Understand the importance of setting career goals,
Be able to define what success means to you,
Have a simple formula to establish goals that align with your values, and
Be able to create SMART goals.

Dec. 15, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

PM Roundtable: Common Project Management Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Most mistakes or issues related to project management revolve around the same issues such as scope creep, projects going over budget, or projects taking longer than planned for. However, if your firm can avoid these costly pitfalls, they will save a lot of money and build an even better reputation when it comes to client satisfaction.

This session will begin with PM experts discussing some of these common pitfalls, and end with a panel of Civil Engineering Collective (CEC) members discussing how their firms have navigated these common challenges.

Lead Instructor - Ann Tomalavage, P.E., PMP, LEED AP

Ann Tomalavage has walked in the shoes of the project manager. As a civil engineer, she has worked as a project manager for over 35 years in top-level firms. She developed a solid understanding of what it takes to become a world-class project manager.

Ann is also the sole provider of in-person project management foundations training for the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) nationwide. Of more than 200 ASCE professionals teaching nearly 100 civil engineering topics, Ann is consistently rated among the top four of all ASCE instructors.

Jan. 12, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Showing Thought Leadership Through LinkedIn

LinkedIn is far more than a way to get a job. It’s a way to stand out and get noticed as a thought leader in your field. Points to cover:

The four ways that LinkedIn offers, for members to publish thought leadership content
The two kinds of “Education” you need to show – your formal university program, and your continuing/online courses taken
Why you need to build your connections
Why recommendations are important – and four ways to get them
Why having videos is particularly important in COVID time (it’s the only way they’ll get to “meet” you)
Three LinkedIn activities most important to building your career

Feb. 02, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Global Infrastructure Introduction: From Policy thru Project Development

Provide an introduction to, and overview of, global infrastructure development demands, trends, opportunities, and typical risks.As a result of this course, you should be able to:

Understand global soft and hard infrastructure conditions, demands and trends
Apply knowledge of historic and current US and International Infrastructure programs
Analyze history and current economic and political trends and consequences associated with infrastructure development programs
Evaluate the basic economic, finance and delivery principles associated with infrastructure development

Feb. 23, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Magnifying Your Mindset for Collective Success

When it comes to success, we don't succeed alone. We succeed together! And in order to do that effectively, it's critical that we don't just change what we do, but also change what we think and believe. That's the power of mindsets - the foundation of personal and organizational change.

We'll discuss critical aspects of mindsets, provide tools to increase self-awareness, and discuss some activities to use in team settings to improve the mindsets of everyone together. Attendees should come away with a combination of theoretical and practical ideas to use right away to improve team success.

Civil Engineering Collective Training Schedule

Mar. 16, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Apr. 06, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Apr. 27, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Past sessions

Sept. 16, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Sept. 30, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Oct. 21, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Nov. 12, 2020 - 12:00pm ET

Dec. 1, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Dec. 15, 2020 - 1:30pm ET

Jan. 12, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Feb. 02, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

Feb. 23, 2021 - 1:30pm ET

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