Women's Leadership Forum Presents: Adopting an Ownership Mindset-Women's Leadership Forum Presents Adopting an Ownership Mindset Recording

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Video Summary

The ACEC Women's Leadership Forum hosted a session titled "Adopting an Ownership Mindset," featuring Elizabeth Stolfus, President of Stolfus & Associates, and Judy Hline, Managing Partner at CES Group Engineers. Both shared their journeys founding and leading engineering consulting firms—Elizabeth’s transportation-focused firm established in 2003 and Judy’s multidisciplinary firm founded in 2011. They discussed motivations for starting their firms, including a desire to make impactful contributions professionally and personally, and a passion for developing and supporting team members.<br /><br />They highlighted challenges such as starting during economic recessions, relocating, and managing health insurance and financial aspects with limited formal business training, emphasizing the importance of mentoring, surrounding oneself with experts, and forging strong banking relationships. Both women underscored that their path to ownership was unplanned but driven by growing dissatisfaction with limited impact in prior roles and a desire to shape a supportive work culture.<br /><br />Looking ahead, Elizabeth and Judy focus on strategic growth, ownership transition plans involving key staff, and embracing industry shifts like electric and autonomous vehicles and infrastructure modernization. They stressed continuous, honest communication with partners and employees about growth and opportunities. Both emphasized adaptability, ongoing learning, and pursuing work-life balance as vital.<br /><br />Advice for aspiring owners included openly expressing interest in ownership roles, seeking mentoring, gaining business acumen gradually, and recognizing that change and challenges are inherent but manageable with an ownership mindset. They encouraged attendees to engage with owners’ perspectives to enhance career development and leadership effectiveness.<br /><br />The session closed with invitations for follow-up questions and emphasized the value of community and mentorship in fostering future women leaders in the engineering industry.

Keywords

ACEC Women's Leadership Forum

Ownership Mindset

Elizabeth Stolfus

Judy Hline

Engineering Consulting Firms

Entrepreneurship Challenges

Mentoring and Leadership

Strategic Growth

Industry Shifts in Engineering

Women in Engineering Leadership