A Pocket Guide to Business for Engineers and Surveyors

Preface ix

1 Professionalism & Business 1

What Is a Professional Surveyor or Engineer?  2

The Dual Career Path 7

Being an Entrepreneur versus Climbing the Corporate Ladder 9

Types of Business Organizations and Their Structure 11

2 Managing Yourself 17

A Personal Quiz 18

Paradigms 19

Principles 22

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs 23

Theory X & Y 25

Time Management 27

Interruptions 32

Procrastination 34

So What Is Personal Productivity Anyway? 36

So What’s the Big Deal about Increasing Productivity? 38

3 Communications 41

Different Types of Communications 42

The Communications Model & Managerial Effectiveness 43

Listening 45

Speaking 48

Written Communication 60

Roadblocks to Effective Communication 70

Avoiding Roadblocks to Effective Communications 71

4 Leaders, Managers, & Motivation 73

Motivation 75

Leadership 81

Summary 94

5 Project Management 95

An Introduction to Project Management as a System 96

Pitfalls of No Project Management 101

How Did I Get to Be a PM Anyway? 103

Why Is PM Necessary? 104

The Project Life Cycle 106

Planning, Organizing, & Implementing Your Projects 109

6 Ethics & Professionals 135

Introduction 135

An Ethical Dilemma 136

Examples of Unethical Behavior 138

Professional versus Nonprofessional Ethics 140

Values & Morals 142

Ethical Obligations to Others 145

Codes of Ethics 148

Enforceability of Codes of Ethics 151

The Role of Mentoring 152

7 Basics of Financial Accounting & Analysis for Managers 155

Introduction 155

Accounting Basics 158

Income & Income Statements 164

The Balance Sheet—A Snapshot in Time 169

Capital Sources 175

Budgets 177

8 Legal Issues 191

Introduction 191

Definitions 192

The Legal System 194

Basics of Tort Law 203

Professional Liability 205

9 Marketing Professional Services 211

Introduction 211

How Do Surveyors and Engineers Get Work? 212

The Selection Process—Different Strokes for Different Folks 213

What’s the Difference between Marketing, Advertising, and Sales? 216

The Market Planning Process 219

Prospecting 229

Maintenance Marketing & Cross-Selling 232

Interviews & Presentations 232

Scope of Work 238

Negotiating the Agreement 241

10 Ownership Transition 245

Introduction 245

The Leadership Development Plan 246

Planning for Ownership Transition—Exploring the Options 248

Bibliography 269

Index 271