Company: PBS&J
Company Division/Group: Human Resources
Company Description: PBS&J is an employee-owned engineering firm founded in 1960 by four respected engineers who joined forces to help develop Florida's first planned community. In the years since, we have grown to more than 3,300 employees and 60+ offices nationally. But the core values of our founders remain as PBS&J strives to become the consultant of choice for our clients and the employer of choice for our staff.
Nomination Category: Organization Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Human Resources Organization

Nomination Title: PBS&J Human Resources

Tell the story about what this nominated functional organization achieved in 2003 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

“I care.”  It’s amazing how two small words can convey so much and reflect so
accurately that for which a company stands… but they nonetheless do.  Albeit,
PBS&J is probably not the first (or last) company to tell their employees that we
do indeed care, but it is doubtful that most position these two words as the
cornerstone of the company, placing people on an even level with financials and
market growth.  But PBS&J does.  And it is this commitment to its people that
sets PBS&J apart from its competitors, and has established its HR department as
an industry leader.  What’s more, it is reflected in the fact that as competitors
have generally retracted over the previous two years, PBS&J has seen revenue
growth of approximately 10% for both 2002 and 2003 fiscal years, accompanied by growth in staff of nearly 13% in 2003 alone. 

2003 has marked many milestones for PBS&J HR.  The following are just a few.

In 2003, PBS&J was ranked number 2 among CE News’ annual Top 50 Civil
Engineering Firms to Work For, up from number 19 in 2002.  The eight judge panel ranked the firms according to several criteria provided by both the organization and
its employees.

2003 also witnessed the continued climb of the firm in the Engineering News
Record Rankings, with our ranking climbing in 14 of the 17 categories in which we
compete (two of which have not yet been announced for 2003).  We are currently
ranked #25 among top 500 design firms and #5 among “pure design” firms.

Also in 2003, PBS&J HR’s effort towards retention has reached a milestone,
cutting the turnover rate in half in just three years.  From 18.4% in FY 2000, FY
2003 saw new lows of just 9%, nearly half of the industry standard of 15.3%
(according to Zwieg White).  This translates to an estimated savings of $1.7M in
2003, and a total of savings of $18.1M since 2000.

As part of our effort to enhance retention, PBS&J has strived to break down
barriers between our leadership and our staff.  Through the introduction and
expansion of our Directors Lunches and New Hire Lunches, we strive to convey to
our employees that they are indeed valued, and that the leadership is personally
interested in the success, commitment, and ultimate satisfaction of each and
every employee in the firm.

The recently published results of an employee perception survey administered in
the fall of 2002 demonstrate the progress PBS&J has made insofar as morale and
employee satisfaction.  The results show impressive gains in all measured
variables from that previously administered five years earlier, including employee
satisfaction, diversity, and leadership.

The PBS&J Minority Scholarship Program for Black Students is now in its tenth
year and has expanded dramatically in that time; starting with just four
scholarships in 1993, in 2003 eleven scholarships were made available nationwide.
What’s more, the amount of each scholarship has doubled from $2000 per year to
$4000 per year.  In that time, PBS&J has assisted 40 recipients attain a college
education in the engineering field, a proud and important contribution to the
diversity of the industry as a whole.

In 2003, PBS&J HR embarked on a new collaborative effort with Technical
Operations to forge a new and comprehensive National College Recruiting
Program, aimed at recruiting and molding the next generation of young engineers
into the leaders of tomorrow through internships, work study programs, and full
positions upon graduation.  With an ambitious goal of yielding up to 25% of
PBS&J’s new hires, this program promises to be an important endeavor for the
future of the firm.

Over the previous three years, PBS&J has transformed their training function into
PBS&J University, a model for innovative training and organizational development
unparalleled within the industry.  With combined web-based training modules and
traditional in-house training programs, the University has brought PBS&J a
capacity to train and develop employees in the necessary competencies in the
ever-changing engineering industry, as well as deliver increasingly extensive
project management, program management, and leadership training so as to
provide a distinct competitive edge over our competitors.

List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: List each link on a separate line, begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.website.com]:

Who is PBS&J?:
http://www.pbsj.com/whoweare/fla/whoweare.htm
http://www.pbsj.com/publications/pdf/AnnualReport_6_03.pdf

Careers at PBS&J: 
http://www.pbsj.com/careers/fla/careers.htm
http://enr.construction.com/resources/special/archives/aec_04_02_master.asp
http://www.pbsj.com/sitemap/html/framesetswf.htm?sitemap.htm~display

CE News Top 50 Civil Engineering Firms to Work For:
http://www.cenews.com/edbestfirm1003.pdf
http://www.cenews.com/edbestfirm1002.pdf
http://www.cenews.com/edbestfirmlinks03.html

ENR Rankings
http://search.pbsj.com/cgi-bin/MsmGo.exe?rab_id=26&EXTRA_ARG=&host_id=42&page_id=7536896&query=enr+rankings

Other Awards:
http://www.mdchamber.org/news/advocate/business_advocate10-4-02.htm
http://www.bizmonthly.com/3_2002/3.html
http://www.esri.com/partners/bpc2003/bpc2003_awards.html
http://www.vanewswire.com/issues/issue16.htm
http://southflorida.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2002/04/15/daily110.html

Community Service:
http://www.wtcmf.org/pr02-27-02.html

Workplace Diversity:
http://www.zweigwhite.com/home/rc/ra052002.htm
http://www.acec-co.org/about/newsletter_files/july2002newsletter.pdf
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/business/3275598.htm

College Recruiting Program: http://www.pbsj.com/careers/html/framesetswf.htm?career_college.htm~display
http://www.itsa.org/itsnews.nsf/0/a5fab2e521e9b16485256d2d00489b4d?OpenDocument
http://search.pbsj.com/cgi-bin/MsmGo.exe?grab_id=26&EXTRA_ARG=&host_id=42&page_id=6553856&query=university

PBS&J Minority Scholarship:
http://www.eng.usf.edu/rnr/200-008.htm
http://www.cecs.ucf.edu/news/enewsletter-july02.pdf
http://www.engr.umd.edu/organizations/cmse/ug_services.shtml
http://www.miamidade-asce.org/fes_golf_flyer.pdf

PBS&J University:
http://learn.pbsj.com/
http://www.construction.com/NewsCenter/Headlines/ENR/20031027e.asp
http://www.pbsj.com/news/html/framesetswf.htm?news00.htm~display

PBS&J Highlights Publication:
http://www.pbsj.com/publications/html/framesetswf.htm?publications01.htm~display

PBS&J Annual Review: http://www.pbsj.com/publications/html/framesetswf.htm?publications02.htm~display

Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of this nominated functional organization:

Judith Squillante is an Executive Vice President and Director of Human Resources
for PBS&J.  Ms. Squillante is responsible for directing the human resources
activities of PBS&J's 3,300 employees in 60 offices.  She is a member of the
Board of Directors and Corporate Operating Committee, as well as a Trustee of the firm’s Profit Sharing Plan.  She has been named Florida HR Executive of the Year
and awarded the Lifetime Achievement in Human Resources Award conferred by
the Greater Miami SHRM Chapter.  Through her leadership, PBS&J has also been
honored with the NSPE (National Society of Professional Engineers) Professional
Employer’s Award, the Walter C. Mason Award by the American  Society of
Personnel Administration, Outstanding Achievement in Human Resources Award
by the Personnel Association of Greater Miami, and the FICE (Florida Institute of
Consulting Engineers) Professional Development Award.  The firm was also
highlighted in Florida Trend “Where They Treat You Right” article as one of the “10 great companies to work for.”

Ms. Squillante, a graduate of the Leadership Florida Program, is an active member
of various professional associations.  She was one of the original appointees of
senior human resource professionals and employment law attorneys to the
Personnel and Labor Management Committee of the Greater Miami Chamber of
Commerce, which she later chaired.  She also served as Vice Chair of the Human
Resources Committee at the Florida Chamber of Commerce.  Ms. Squillante is
currently on the Board of Governors of the Florida Chamber and the Executive
Committee of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce.

Ms. Squillante is also on the Board of Directors of the Florida Chamber
Management Corporation and a founding member of the University of Miami’s
Advisory Board for their Human Resource Management Institute and Florida
International University’s Advisory Board for their Masters Program in Human
Resources Management.