Analyzing McKissack and McKissack Group Inc - Essay Example

?The McKissack & McKissack Group Inc. The oldest minority-owned professional design and construction firm operating in the United s is McKissack. The founding fathers of thins firm established the upright principles excellence in construction and customer dealing and that is why McKissack has planned and designed over 6000 projects which makes them the leader in design and construction. McKissack is a family business and it has been in operation for over 100 years. With the advancement of technology and complexities of construction business, McKissack knows that projects have become difficult in recent years. The reason why these projects have become tougher is due to old infrastructure, more stringent regulatory requirements and increasing costs. McKissack has worked on various civil developments, fresh water and wastewater projects and have examined hundreds of miles of pipelines. Business strategy of McKissack has always been based on long term basis. And records show that over the past 100 years, McKissack has acquired and retained hundreds of clients through their excellent business relationships and customer retention. And they have achieved this through broad management approach and forming and achieving concrete strategic objectives. McKissack is a close knitted business entity which administers each project from its seed stage to its completion, while overseeing all the operations. McKissack is always looking for projects in the market that require innovative yet pragmatic and affordable construction solutions and the reason that gives them the courage to take such bold steps is their experiencing of completing thousands of projects in the past 100 years. Teamwork, quality and commitment have always been the hallmark of their business strategy that enables them to grow as an outstanding industry. The legacy of McKissack dates back to over two centuries when Moses McKissack (a slave) became an expert builder after learning the craftsmanship from his owner William McKissack, who was among the first contractor in the US. Moses McKissack, before dying in 1865, passed on his knowledge of structure to his son Gabriel Moses, who did the same by teaching the skill to his two sons; Moses III (born 1879) and Calvin (born 1890). When Moses III believed that he was skilled enough to start his own construction business, he moved to Nashville in 1905. He received education in architecture and engineering and in a short time got commission for structuring the Carnegie Library at Fisk University, which was the first major structure designed by a black American in America. After that assignment, he got recognition which landed him many more contracts of various colleges in the South and some Middle Tennessee’s better-quality homes (Governor A.H. Robert’s mansion was among them). In 1912, Calvin and Moses were the first individuals who were registered under the new licensing law with the State of Tennessee. The McKissack brothers did not stop there and proceeded to make Tennessee’s first black designing and building firm in 1922. They received national recognition when the US Government paid them $5.7 million to construct an air base at Tuskegee in Alabama. To this day, this contract remains the largest construction contract given to a black firm by the federal government. Moses McKissack had six sons who went into education, architecture, construction and law. Moses was invited to the Whitehouse to discuss the issue of national housing problem because of his expertise in architecture and construction in housing projects. This occurred during the reign of President Franklin Roosevelt. Calvin became the president of the McKissack firm after the death of his brother Moses who was succeeded by Moses’ son, Williams in 1968. McKissack flourished under the leadership of Williams who held on to the innovative ideas of his father and brought much praise to McKissack’s design and construction. Williams retired in 1983 and his wife took over the firm as Chief Executive Officer. Since then, she has brought over $300 million to McKissack & McKissack by designing and constructing. Cheryl McKissack became the president and CEO of the firm in the year 2000. She has proved to be a remarkable CEO by contracting over $50 billion in construction by incorporating synergies of over 100 architects, construction managers and engineers. Such a success could not have been made possible without a service oriented and professional team as it is not the name of a firm that sets it apart but it is the people who run the firm that bring success to the firm. People at McKissack are compliant, skilled and impartial. When these attributes are fused with excellent craftsmanship, it gives McKissack the liberty to provide exceptional services to their clients without any compromise on quality and time while remaining under budget. The founder and CEO of The McKissack Group Inc., Cheryl McKissack has over 20 years of experience in all segments of construction industry. Her focus is on business segments such as commercial, healthcare, transportation and education. She was born to William D. Berry (architect) and Leatrice McKissack (teacher) in Nashville. Cheryl is from the fifth generation of the McKissack family and represents family’s centuries old business, the McKissack & McKissack, the oldest minority-women owned construction business in the US. McKissack provides comprehensive services in design, construction, architecture, engineering, construction management and consultation to East Coast and the US. The service range goes beyond the customary A/E/C disciplines. Services are flexible and customer oriented. Cheryl has been a wonderful addition to the McKissack & McKissack Group. She leads by example, listens attentively to customers, asks the right questions and provides innovative solutions to complex problems. Being always prepared has been her secret for success. She doesn’t impose her own decisions to her team, instead she takes expert advice from her architects, engineers and construction experts. Customers say that at McKissack, they find commitment and pragmatic skills of instructions under the leadership of Cheryl. She serves as the Project Executive on company’s all high profile contracts by ensuring that diversity is used at every stage of construction. She is skilled in design review, scheduling, estimating, document control, construction inspection, and developing and implementing quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) programs. Some notable clients of McKissack include Columbia University, the Dormitory of the State of New York, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the City of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Housing Authority, and Philadelphia International Airport.  Community work has always been an inspiration for Cheryl and she has been the community leader for Philadelphia Authority of Industrial Development. She was privileged as the “Hero of Liberty” by the National Liberty Museum Board for her support and initiatives for a free America. Cheryl also served as co-chair on Philadelphia Mayor John Street’s Transition Committee for Small Business. Currently, she is an active member in the New York Building Congress, Women in Transportation (WTS), and other professional organizations.  McKissack & McKissack Group Inc. is one of the leading construction firms in the US. Considering its context and where it came from, it is unique as a black American founded it and it is now run by women. Broadly speaking, AECOM is ranked number one by the Engineering News-Record at this moment. AECOM Technology Corporation is technical and management support services firm where AECOM is short for Architecture, Engineering, Consulting, Operations and Management. AECOM is considered only a couple of decades old but it is older than. In 1900s it was an oil refinery known as the Ashland Oil & Refining Company in Lexington, Kentucky. After many transformations and acquisitions, it became AECOM in 1990. This company offered its IPO in 2002 which banked it an immediate $400 million. Works Cited "AECOM." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 21 Dec. 2011. . "McKissack & McKissack." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 21 Dec. 2011. . Read More