From technical to business, students take a range of classes in college or graduate school. Each class helps prepare students for their chosen profession. However, some classes better prepare firm leaders for the daily and long-term requirements and challenges associated with managing an organization. Find out what firm leaders said when The Zweig Letter asked, “What college or MBA courses helped the most for your future career?”

Tom VanDorpe, president of VanDorpe Chou Associates (VCA) (Orange, CA), a 50-person structural engineering consulting services firm:

“One of my favorite classes was engineering economy, which was a finance class. It included topics like financial formulas and present value. It provided the background for financial literature.”

Karl Stumpf, vice president of RTKL Associates, Inc. (Baltimore, MD), a 1,050-person A/E firm:

“Architecture history classes in graduate school were the most helpful. One of the things about architectural school is that it’s a general field but what you don’t get in school is a general sense of architectural history. The class provided a broader perception of design and why things are done in a certain way over time.”

Peter Terry, president of Benchmark Civil Engineering Services (Allentown, PA), an 11-person civil, transportation, and surveying firm:

“Of course, having a strong technical foundation in civil engineering was most important. My English classes were also a huge benefit. Being able to write letters and reports put me ahead of many of my colleagues. I also took some easy accounting and marketing classes which have helped me in starting and running Benchmark.”

Paul VanDuyne, president of KJWW Engineering Consultants (Rock Island, IL), a 400-person structural, mechanical, plumbing, and technology firm:

“I’d have to say management supervision. It focused on how to evaluate staff and how to motivate staff. Professionals typically want to succeed if you provide them with the proper direction.

“One of the things we do at KJWW is we get our employees additional education. We hired a corporate education manager. We’ve cherry-picked 10 of the best courses from a local university and we now offer them to employees. The courses are taught by a professor who comes to the office. The classes include business negotiation, goal setting, finance and budgeting, and management supervision.”

Louis Vergne, president of LAVA Architecture (Phoenix, AZ), a 4-person architectural firm:

“Technical design. General design. They are more directly related to starting out in the professional world as opposed to theoretical design courses. There should be business courses included, but aren’t.”

Mark von Bradsky, principal with Structure Studio, a division of 60-person consulting structural engineering firm NK Architects (Morristown, NJ):

“Structural Analysis I: This course set the bar for engineering thought and standard operating procedure processes that have guided me for the last 28 years. It drew on all of the math, science, and mechanics training we had in our early years of college and pulled it all together. Technically, it formed a very strong basis of structural engineering theory and forced us to visualize how a structure reacts to various external forces. The professor was an ‘old timer,’ who stressed a standard operating procedure that had to be utilized on every problem. This process has been beneficial throughout my career in helping me define the problem, determine what is known and what needs to be determined and finally, laying out a clear path to the answer. This process can be used on any type of question, be it a technical engineering problem to an administrative issue in the office.”— FRANCEEN SHAUGHNESSY (fshaughnessy@zweigwhite.com)

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