Engineering firm Toth & Associates (TOTH) celebrates their 20th anniversary December 2023. Founded as a specialized electric utility engineering firm by father and son Louis (Lou) and Adam Toth, TOTH is now a full-service multidisciplinary engineering firm that features electrical, structural and civil engineers.
TOTH’s two decades have seen the firm go from one office with two employees to five offices with 184 employees, 20 of whom have been added in 2023 alone. These 20 years of steady growth have helped them to become one of Springfield, Missouri’s largest engineering firms in 2011 and the largest in 2012, a status they have maintained over the last 12 years.
Reflecting on the recent growth, Vice President Matt Miller, who also manages the civil engineering department and is an owner, stated, “We’ve been using this year to kind of reflect on the growth of the company. In general, we’ve just seen explosive growth in the last few years.” The civil engineering department, notably, has seen exponential growth in the ten years since Miller and Shawn Barry started it. Forty employees were added to the department during that time. “It’s been quite a bit of growth, and we’re pretty excited about it,” said Miller.
Miller attributed the firm’s growth to one of the firm’s core values, that people matter. “We try to apply that to the people we work for and the people who make up our company.” Miller also noted that TOTH’s ever-expanding client base has contributed to the firm’s overall growth. TOTH’s civil department works with numerous local municipalities and counties on infrastructure work, architects, educational institutions, state departments of transportation, and developers. Additionally, they have recently partnered with franchisees of Arkansas-based 7 Brew Coffee, which currently has over 100 stores in the United States and plans for massive expansion over the next five years.
Miller said employee retention has also helped the firm grow. In the civil department, the people who were hired in the beginning are still there. “That continuity really helps give clients peace of mind that we’re going to meet their expectations,” said Miller. “We’ve had the opportunity to work with truly great clients and develop relationships with them. We want all our clients to be long term, and we take pride in getting to know them and their infrastructure needs. We also enjoy becoming a part of those communities and companies we’re fortunate enough to work with. I think that has contributed to our success and longevity.”
“Focusing on our clients and meeting their expectations but also making sure we’re recruiting and hiring good people makes all the difference for us,” said Miller. “We’ve been fortunate enough to add several quality employees to our department and to the company as a whole over the last few years. I think these are the reasons we’re seeing all this growth. Going from two employees to 184 in 20 years is a great accomplishment and speaks to the leadership that Lou and Adam have given to the company over the years,” said Miller.
Throughout 2023, TOTH has enjoyed reflecting on the last 20 years, including the retirement of Lou Toth in May 2023, after five decades in engineering, and when Adam Toth took the helm as executive president in 2019. They have enjoyed the journey of growth and developing an unwavering commitment to the belief that people matter, which has fostered enduring client relationships and enabled remarkable employee retention. Through this examination, they are encouraged that by staying committed to their core values, the company will be poised for another promising 20 years.
