Good candidates prove elusive in tight job market

Low unemployment rates have affected businesses of all types, including professional design firms.

Finding enough engineers and architects to supply the needs of a strong construction industry is an ongoing challenge.

That makes for an excellent market for graduates launching new careers, according to Michael Buono, director of Drury University's Hammons School of Architecture.

"In terms of the number of architectural graduates finding jobs in this economy which is a great architectural economy it is pretty much 100 percent. Our graduates are very much in demand," Buono said.

It's a job seeker's dream, but it can be a nightmare for the firms who must compete for a limited number of qualified candidates.

"It has been tough for the past four or five years. Engineers, in particular, are in short supply," said Tim Rosenbury, vice president of Butler, Rosenbury & Partners Inc.

"Graduates of architecture schools are in relatively short supply. Many are being attracted to larger cities. That would be natural simply because architects are urban animals. As a result, Springfield has a difficult time attracting architects," he added.

Jeff Wells, chief executive officer of Pellham Phillips Hagerman Architects-Engineers, agreed that the market is tight.

"We constantly have to be looking for new people, even when we don't have an open position, because talented people who can be productive are in such high demand," he said.

However, for the most part, design firms have not had to look too far afield for new employees.

For instance, Anderson Engineering Inc. has listed job openings in professional journals primarily in Missouri, according to Steve Brady, Anderson's president.

Dick Scott, president of Scott Consulting Engineers PC, said he has hired engineers from as far away as Alaska, but he doesn't actively look that far away.

One of Scott's most recent hires is an engineer who graduated from the University of Missouri-Rolla.

Butler, Rosenbury & Partners Inc. concentrates the search for prospective employees in the region around Springfield.

"We recruit at virtually all the architecture, engineering and landscape architecture schools within a day's drive," Rosenbury said.

A number of their architecture employees are Drury University graduates, and several engineers are from the University of Missouri-Rolla.

"Every time I go and visit local design firms, I find Drury graduates," Buono said.

And because of demand, starting salaries are competitive.

Buono estimated the average starting salary for a recent graduate with a degree in architecture to be at $30,000.

One Springfield firm offered specific starting salaries: interior designers, mid- to upper- $20,000 range; architects/landscape architects, $30,000; engineers, upper $30,000 range.

According to its Web site, www.e-architect.com, the American Institute of Architects found that between 1996 and 1999, salaries for architects, interns and staff engineers increased by 17 percent.

Salaries for other technical positions such as CAD staff and landscape architects increased even faster, but nontechnical staff also realized gains.

Based on its research, AIA stated the average compensation (salary, bonuses, profit sharing, incentives) for an architect I was $30,000 in 1990; $41,100 in 1999.

For an intern, AIA stated the average compensation was $24,200 in 1990; $35,200 in 1999.

For a more regionally focused example, the AIA found that, in the West North Central Region, which comprises Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, Nebraska and South Dakota, the 1999 mean salary was $41,100 for an architect I and $26,000 for an intern. Engineers were at $56,500, landscape architects were at $39,400, CAD managers were at $38,700 and drafters were at $29,900.

The problem with paying new graduates so much is two-fold. First, Wells said, it takes firms time to recoup the cost.

"If you try to hire a brand new engineering graduate, it will be at least a year before they know how to do anything productive. In that time, they get an average salary of $40,000 depending on the area of the country. A design firm needs them to make 2 1/2 times what their basic salary is to profit. That's hard for new graduates to do," he said.

Second, Rosenbury added, salary compression is occurring. New graduates are being hired at entry-level salary rates that are closer to what experienced professionals with seniority already earn.

Incentives and perks are an important piece of the salary picture.

Some firms pay referral or signing bonuses that may range from $500 to several thousand dollars, Rosenbury said.

For local firms, perks may range from creature comforts to stock options.

"We're providing more senior staff with laptop computers, handhelds, and cell phones. Besides coffee, we provide soda and snacks for the staff," Rosenbury said.

But beyond that, "we share financial information with our people. Our firm is working on broad-based ownership through stock options, separating the concept of ownership and management," Rosenbury added.

As for the future, there is no consensus on what lies ahead.

Jack Hood, president at Hood-Rich Inc., said "the market is probably easing up as far as employment is concerned. More people are available than in the last six months. The construction industry is slowing down a bit."

However, Wells added that, "all the industry studies that I've seen continue to forecast a shortage of people in the design field."

Rosenbury said he wonders what the next six months will bring.

"The president-elect keeps mentioning the R' word recession. If such a thing were to happen, I think you'd see a change in the dynamics," Rosenbury said.