Vito:
No clarification needed on your part given the initial post said "personal or conveyed". My response created the potential for confusion.
You raise a very interesting topic question regarding graduating, obtaining a license, and the dream of firm ownership. As a student, I was focused on studying and graduating. At my school (thankfully), taking the E.I.T. (now known as the F.E.) exam was mandatory and not an optional requirement.
[Note: The school's scoring average suffered because the requirement was to take not pass. Some would go to the exam, sign the attendance sheet, and leave.]
I cannot remember when I was introduced to the idea of obtaining a PE license. I was a co-operative education student with ODOT for a summer working on a bridge project and worked under a P.E. However, now I am not sure when the idea of owing a firm entered the picture. The large company for which I worked was a licensure exempt company. I was blessed to have worked for and with individuals that had their PEs but not necessarily need them.
Life may place dreams on hold, but I have discovered that it uses people, places and situations to place you every where you need to be. I have been blessed enough to have life happen and simply go with the flow with the knowledge that "Everything will be Alright!". If not for the influence & introduction of a single individual during two different periods six (6) years apart, I would not have obtained my Masters Degree nor my PE. Oddly, I viewed the individual as "adversarial" and a career hinderance that was not going to allow me to grow within the company. This touches on the topic recently discussed "Time for a Change?".
[For the sake of anyone reading, I erased the majority of that rambling. LOL!] Life later placed me in positions where having a PE, my own company and schedule flexibility were a necessity: stay-at-home dad and family care-giver. I did return to the company and moved to a management position out of need. I ran into the individual on the elevator. We did not speak. I wanted to and should have said "Thank you!", but I was afraid he would consider it sincere. The strange part of all it is, of all the individuals that have aided me and influence my career, the one that I considered the most negative of individuals was in fact, the most helpful, positive, influential and impactful. My family and I owe him (and life) our sincerest of regards and thanks.
Be on the look out for a "Vito inspired" topic associated with when ,why and inspiration to become a PE and/or own a firm. As someone that carries
Arch, PE, and SE, your engineering love story as an "
Adrenaline Junkie" is one to tell. Thank you, Vito!!!!
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James Williams P.E., M.ASCE
Principal/Owner
POA&M Structural Engineering, PLC
Yorktown, VA
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Original Message:
Sent: 09-20-2022 03:54 PM
From: Vito Rotondi
Subject: Big Companies/Firms vs. Small Companies/Firms: Subjective "Pros" and "Cons"
Hi James:
I want to clarify that I have always worked for large multi-discipline companies. My comparison with small companies is that my engineering and architecture friends have worked for small companies and learned through them their frustrations in doing so. I got a very good view and understanding of small firms through their experiences.
I always felt I was leaps ahead of them in my career development and they acknowledged that. I think many students want to graduate, get their licences and onday have the dream of owning their own firm. However, life places dreams on hold and financial realities set in. Working for large multinational firms exposed me to a career on a global scale. That is difficult to do in a small office environment.
Looking back, I felt for me it was a great decision. For others, it depends on their personality and goals.In the end, one needs to love their work. If one does not, they are in the wrong business. Running projects is difficult. Leadership is very important to success. Again, large firms allow opportunities for the strong willed individuals. I always said that my job as a leader was always to work myself out of my current job by successfully completing it. Then this would allow me to go on to the next challenging project.
While typing this, I thought to myself, I must have been an "Adrenaline Junkie". It was at times Love Hate. But in the end I was a happy person after all.