I have been a member of SDA since 2008.  While I was originally requested to join that first year, I renewed my membership because of the excellent education I continued to receive, still 15 years later.  I recently attended EDS23 in Tampa, FL and it still did not disappoint.  In my current position of CFO with Legacy Engineering, one of the aspects I try to work on with everyone on my staff is to ensure that everyone is working to their best potential, is working effectively, efficiently, and productively each day. 

I thoroughly enjoyed every session this past June but one or two generally stands out to me. 

In our early session, held on Tuesday morning, in the Project Administration Workshop presented by Deborah Gill, Tony Casey, Diane Mika, and Val Higgins, we learned all about PMAs, Marketing and Contracts, Business Development, Managing Risk, Direct and Indirect Expenses, reviewed a Project Study and so much more!  This session refreshed my attention on the role of a Project Management Administrator (PMA) in the A/E/C industry.

In my experience, many firms do not seem to take advantage of the role of the PMA.  While some firms do not even take advantage of a separate administrative staff, this is a very pivotal role within the A/E/C industry. 

PMAs can help to improve the bottom line in every firm.  This role can take on a lot of tasks such as creating and reviewing proposals.  Reviewing contracts and / or subcontracts for accuracy and those pesky Scope Creep items that come up often, well the PMA role can help with those too.  This position can also help with project setup and document control.  The PMA works seamlessly with accounting to ensure that project execution, communications, billings, and collections are set up correctly and run smoothly at all angles.

Project execution can entail a lot of reporting requirements, lots of communication between the staff, Project Manager (PM), clients and accounting and the PMA becomes the pivotal person in between it all.  They can also assist the PM with billing and collections because they are aware of what is going on with projects daily.  PMAs also assist with project closeout, ensuring that all documents are signed, all data has been entered and compiled and filed in the correct locations for future use for marketing and / or other purposes.

A PMA can benefit your firm by allowing your PMs to stay organized, focused and the ability to take on additional projects.  They can help control costs and preserve profits.  They increase the chance of project success.

A great PMA has skills with accounting / project management software, contract administration, scheduling, billing, and collections.  They are good at communication and influencing others.  They are also good at mentoring and training others.  A PMA’s skills allow them to be directly billable and they contribute to the bottom line.  In summary, a PMA is a well-rounded administrator that directly assists just about everyone in the company daily, but most importantly, the Project Manager, making the Project Manager more productive, efficient, organized and most importantly, profitable.

The benefit of this session, and all our amazing sessions like this one, is to use this refreshed and revved up mindset, and present to my fellow directors and make a difference that will continue to make improvements to our bottom line.

ExCom 2023-24: Gretchen Renz, CDFA, Treasurer

At the 2023 SDA Annual Business Meeting in Tampa, Florida, Gretchen Renz, CDFA, was elected and sworn in as the SDA National Vice President. Renz returns to SDA's Executive Committee (ExCom) member, having served the past term as National Secretary. She is an active member of the SDA Seattle chapter, where she served on the board for nine years. She also served on the SDA National By-Laws committee for two years. 

Renz's vision Gretchen's vision encompasses promoting membership and raising awareness of SDA within the industry are also key priorities. She wants to prioritize creating "opportunities for short-term volunteers, and helping members find time to commit to SDA are priorities, as is promoting membership and SDA to the industry. No longer should we be AEC’s best-kept secret," says Renz. 

ExCom will benefit significantly from Renz's experience. She is the managing director of operations and finances at Bernardo Wills in Spokane, Washington, where she has been employed for over 31 years.  She has a bachelor of science degree in Accounting focused on Accounting, Project Management from Western Governor University. 

Says Renz, "The duties of the Treasurer are a good match for my experience and natural tendencies. (My co-workers recently voted me “Most Likely to Solve a Problem Using a Spreadsheet.”) I like order, tidy records, checklists, and, of course, spreadsheets. I am looking forward to the opportunity to improve my presentation, writing, and public speaking skills."