COLUMBUS, OH A major change in the leadership of ACEC Ohio occurred when Michael E. Duffey, of SSOE Group, assumed the Presidency and Beth Easterday was welcomed by the Board of Directors as the organization's new Executive Director.

Approximately 60 members took part in the daylong conference, which was kicked off by industry consultant June Jewell, who provided a presentation on the topic, "Find the Lost Dollars in Your Firm," based on her book of the same title.

Jewell explored the nine ways firms lose money carelessly and six steps firms can take to increase their profitability. One of her key tips: require project employees to complete daily time sheets, rather than doing them weekly or even less frequently.

"Your invoicing is directly tied to time sheets," she said. "Requiring daily time sheets will help your cash flow by improving the accuracy of time sheets, which allows you to recover the cost of all the time your people expend on projects. It shortens the billing cycle, which means you get paid more quickly."

During the afternoon's Annual Meeting of the Board of Directors, members heard reports from all of the Council's committees relating to their activities of the past year, as well as from the organization's four chapters. ACEC Ohio's Lobbyist, Kevin Futryk, provided a comprehensive briefing on legislative issues affecting the industry.

Outgoing President Lynn S. Miggins presented retiring Executive Director Don Mader with a crystal award piece, recognizing his 34 years of service to the Council, and she in turn received a Professional Service Award for her leadership of the organization over the past year.

The day's activities culminated with a social welcoming new Executive Director Beth Easterday to the Council.