GS&P Celebrates People, Projects and Practice at Annual Firmwide Event
Gresham, Smith and Partners employees gathered to recognize award recipients and numerous promotions at the firm’s annual Celebration event on Thursday, April 12. All GS&P staff joined together in-person and via livestream broadcast from the Omni Nashville Hotel for a Q&A session with the management team and to honor the many achievements of GS&P employees, projects and practice over the past year. After-parties in each GS&P office were also held following the firmwide event.
“Celebration is one of my favorite parts of the year,” said Al Pramuk, P.E., chief executive officer at Gresham, Smith and Partners. “It’s a time to recognize important achievements, to learn a little more about the firm as well as the offices and divisions outside of your own, and to simply have fun. We hosted live GS&P-themed trivia across the firm each day during Celebration week to get everyone excited, and then more than 900 employees came together for the main event on Thursday. It’s exciting to take stock of the many things we have accomplished and to cheer on our teammates for the great work being done for our clients and communities.”
The annual Edgar Powers, Jr., Memorial Award, which recognizes one or more employees who demonstrate leadership in incorporating technical tools to support GS&P’s practice-led business model, was presented to Brian Hubbard, AIA. Hubbard is an architect and virtual reality (VR) technology leader who joined the firm’s Nashville office in 2011. His passion for next-generation design has helped him spearhead the adoption of visualization tools including Lumion and Enscape. As a go-to VR resource for the firm’s architectural practice, Hubbard is dedicated to maximizing the benefits of immersive technology for GS&P’s clients and design teams.
The annual Sustainability Leadership Award, which recognizes a GS&P employee or employees who excel at fostering the firm’s commitment to a clean, safe and healthy environment, was presented to GS&P’s accounting department and information technology (IT) department. Newell Lawson, a senior manager of finance and accounting who joined GS&P’s Nashville office in 2016, and Fred Bartrom, a client technology manager who joined GS&P’s Nashville office in 1990, accepted the award on behalf of the two departments. Their groups collaborated on a variety of paperless initiatives that significantly improved the firm’s operations, including on-demand printing and electronic distribution of billing packages. The accounting department alone has decreased its paper consumption by 38% since implementing PaperCut five months ago.
The annual Community Impact Award recognizes an employee who has positively impacted his or her community and possesses stand-out leadership, passion, self-motivation and commitment to service. This year’s award was presented to Krystal Reid, AIA, an architect who joined GS&P’s Richmond office in 2017. When Reid recognized that the City of Richmond’s CANstruction program had lost traction, she organized a group of local architecture and engineering communities to restore the program. As a result of her efforts, the city was able to raise more than $19,000. With that money, 16,332 pounds of purchased food and $4,755 was donated to FeedMore, Central Virginia’s core hunger-relief organization.
Additionally, it was announced that 21 projects will be featured in Showcase 11, the firm’s eleventh annual collection of internally-nominated, externally-judged projects highlighting a variety of disciplines and markets. Projects were judged for their complexity, innovation, social and environmental responsibility, and client satisfaction and success. Showcase 11 stories, images and videos will be unveiled later this year.
