24 Oct The Importance of Advocacy in Environmental Consulting
Advocacy is arguably one of the top three most important qualities to look for in an environmental consultant after vetting for scientific knowledge and experience. But what exactly do we mean when we speak of “advocacy” from an environmental perspective?
Size Matters
New Jersey has a robust environmental services industry consisting of more than 150 companies. These companies range from small, one-person operations (typically LSRPs who service clients directly) to mega firms consisting of hundreds to thousands of employees throughout the United States and around the world. In between, you have more moderately sized companies, employing anywhere between two and 200 staff members.
Naturally, every environmental consultant you encounter will boast of their integrity, skill, and experience. And some may even claim to be “advocates.” But finding a true advocate is not easy. So, how can you identify a true advocate from among the many companies that offer environmental services? While it may be tempting to go for the “big guns” who have fleets of equipment and offices around the country, ESA operates on a different philosophy altogether.
ESA falls in that sweet spot between two and 50 employees that allows for personalized attention coupled with flexibility and agility. Once a company grows beyond 50-100 staff members, the dynamics change. There is far less flexibility, far greater overhead, and very strict profitability goals that often dictate strategic decisions to favor the company’s best interests above their clients. Thus, the first thing that suffers in larger companies is personalized service and client advocacy, especially when it comes to putting money back on the table for the client.
An Added Wrinkle: Roll-ups
In the past few years, several local firms that once had fewer than 50 employees have been absorbed by larger, out-of-state environmental companies looking to enter the lucrative New Jersey market. While they may have been true advocates in the past, these formerly independent consultants now have more rigorous profitability goals, with the new owners managing each acquisition to maximize profits because investors demand high returns on their investments. The result is that these previously small, local companies are no longer able to be as flexible with their profit margins or as autonomous in their strategic decisions on how to approach an environmental project. And so, the fact is, there are far fewer small, flexible, local environmental consulting firms in New Jersey than there were just a few short years ago.
Profile of a True Client Advocate
Understandably, clients don’t like to hear that they must spend money on environmental remediation. Add to that the fact that it’s very difficult to predict what the exact cost of remediation will be because of what may be discovered once work begins. This uncertainty makes for a highly stressful and anxiety-inducing situation.
To mitigate the stress, ESA places its focus strictly on the best interests of the client. Every strategy and application applied to the project is tailored to the client’s specific needs with the goal of reducing or eliminating time spent and materials used, saving clients as much time and money as possible while ensuring environmental compliance. To be clear, reducing or eliminating work is not always possible. We are first bound by the laws and regulations that govern environmental remediation on a state and federal level. But, with a little creativity, ESA is often able to apply unique, effective strategies not typically proposed by other consultants for the sole benefit the client. That’s the hallmark of a true client advocate. And ESA has been an unwavering and staunch client advocate since its inception in 1989. It is easiest to describe the benefit of working with ESA by pulling a quote directly from our company’s Mission, Vision, and Values statement:
“Advocacy: ESA’s guiding principle. We will always advocate on behalf of our clients’ best interests in deference to our own by minimizing or eliminating unnecessary work when doing so does not violate the institutional regulations that govern ESA’s procedures.”
A New Era
ESA recently began a new era with the retirement of its Founder, Stephen Fauer, and the purchase of the company by its previous President and now CEO Christopher Martell. Although more lucrative offers could potentially have realized a higher sale price, Stephen insisted that maintaining the core values of the company he founded was paramount. And the solution was obvious — transfer ownership to someone as committed to scientific knowledge, experience, integrity, and local client advocacy as its founder.
Read more about ESA guiding principles here. Or call 732.469.8888 to speak to a client advocate about your current or future projects.