What Makes a Rising Star?

What the past six years of Rising Stars can tell us about the future. 

By Luke Carothers 

The Leaders Shaping the Future of AEC 

Every year, firms across the AEC industry nominate professionals they believe best represent the future of leadership.  Over the past six years, 135 individuals have been named a Rising Star.  Taken together, their stories reveal something powerful about where the AEC industry is headed. 

Zweig Group’s Rising Stars are engineers, architects, project managers, and technical specialists in the middle of building something bigger.  They are leading complex projects, mentoring younger staff, influencing culture, and shaping client relationships long before they hold form C-suite titles. 

The Rising Stars designation isn’t about potential alone.  It reflects visible impact.  It signals that someone is already changing the trajectory of their firm, their projects, and, in many cases, their local AEC market. 

So, what actually defines a Rising Star in today’s AEC industry? 

The data offers a clear starting point. 

Technical Excellence is the Foundation 

Across 135 honorees, the most common language centers around project delivery, engineering expertise, design leadership, and technical problem-solving.  These emerging leaders are not recognized simply for their enthusiasm or personality.  They are trusted with responsibility.  They are running projects.  They are influencing high-stakes decisions.  They are solving difficult technical challenges. 

In AEC, leadership begins with performance. 

Rising Stars consistently demonstrate deep expertise in their discipline, whether it’s structural engineering, civil design, transportation, environmental services, architecture, or construction management.  Many are leading multidisciplinary teams well before traditional career timelines would predict.  Others are managing complex client relationships while still serving as technical authorities. 

There is a clear pattern: rising leaders earn influence because they deliver results. 

Their work includes major infrastructure projects, innovative design solutions, cost-saving efficiencies, and measurable outcomes.  They are not observers of growth; they are drivers of it. 

Technical excellence builds trust, and trust builds opportunity.  Ultimately, opportunity accelerates leadership. 

But technical mastery along doesn’t explain the full picture.  What distinguishes a strong technical professional from a Rising Star is what they do with that credibility once they have it. 

Multiplying Impact: Mentorship & Culture 

Technical excellence may open the door, but what Rising Stars do next is what truly sets them apart. 

Past Rising Star profiles are filled with words like mentorship, development, team, community, and leadership, which shows us a clear pattern.  These emerging leaders are not focused solely on their own advancement.  They are actively lifting others. 

Many Rising Stars are described as mentors to younger engineers and architects.  They lead internal training initiatives.  They volunteer within professional organizations.  They support recruiting efforts.  In other words, they are culture carriers. 

That matters.  Particularly in a competitive talent market where retention and succession planning are top concerns across the industry.  Firms don’t thrive on technical performance alone.  They thrive when leaders build strong teams, create clarity, and invest in people. 

Rising Stars consistently recognizes professionals who influence the environment around them.  They don’t always wait for a promotion to start leading.  They model accountability and provide guidance.  They create opportunities for others to grow. 

In short, they multiply their impact. 

And, in an industry built on collaboration – across disciplines, across offices, across generations – the ability to elevate others is becoming one of the defining traits of modern AEC leadership. 

Leadership is Emerging in Key Markets 

Another clear trend appears when you step back and look at where Rising Stars are based. 

While honorees come from across the country, certain markets consistently produce visible emerging leaders.  Texas leads representation, followed by strong showings in states like New York, Colorado, California, Georgia, and Illinois.  These are regions with active infrastructure investment, development momentum, and dynamic project pipelines. 

That’s not a coincidence. 

Leadership opportunities often accelerate where growth is happening.  High-demand markets allow professionals to engage with complex projects sooner and gain experience working directly with clients and stakeholders at a faster pace.  Exposure drives experience and experience shapes leaders. 

At the same time, Rising Stars represent both national firms and strong regional players.  This is not a story limited to global brands.  It’s a reflection of leadership development happening inside firms of all sizes across the AEC industry. 

The takeaway is encouraging. 

Emerging leadership in the AEC industry is not isolated to one geography, discipline, or firm type.  It is widespread.  It is active.  And it is visible. 

The next Rising Star is not defined by zip code, but by how they respond to opportunity. 

Firms That Develop Leaders Stand Out 

Another pattern clearly emerges when looking at past Rising Stars recipients.  Certain firms appear more than once. 

That repetition is telling.  

Leadership development rarely happens by accident.  Firms that consistently produce Rising Stars tend to share something in common.  They create environments where emerging leaders are given responsibility, mentorship, and visibility early in their careers. 

These organizations invest in professional development.  They encourage project ownership.  They create space for younger professionals to lead meetings, manage clients, present solutions, and mentor others.  And, importantly, they recognize those contributions. 

In a competitive AEC talent market, that kind of culture is strategic. 

When firms nominate a Rising Star, they are doing more than submitting a name for an award.  They are signaling that leadership development matters.  They are reinforcing a culture excellence and growth.  They are showing their teams that performance and initiative are seen. 

Recognition is not just celebratory.  It is cultural. 

The data suggests firms that prioritize leadership development tend to produce professionals worthy of Rising Stars recognition again and again. 

What This Means for Firms Today 

If the past six years of Rising Stars reveal anything, it is this: leadership in the AEC industry is evolving, and it is evolving earlier. 

Emerging leaders are taking ownership of major projects.  They are mentoring teammates.  They are influencing culture and strengthening client relationships well before they step into executive roles.  The trajectory of a firm increasingly depends on professionals who are willing to lead before they are asked. 

For firms, this presents both opportunity and responsibility. 

Recognizing emerging leaders is not simply about celebrating achievement.  It is about reinforcing the behaviors that drive long-term success.  When firms highlight project leadership, mentorship, initiative, and technical excellence, they clarify what leadership looks like inside their organization. 

The question is not whether these leaders exist inside your firm. 

The question is whether they are being recognized. 

The Next Rising Star is Already There 

Every Rising Star who has been honored over the years has one thing in common: someone took the time to nominate them. 

Behind each Rising Star is a manager, principal, colleague, or mentor who saw their impact and decided it deserved visibility. 

Look around your organization: 

• Who is leading projects beyond expectations? 

• Who is mentoring younger staff? 

• Who is strengthening client relationships, improving processes, and elevating your firm’s culture? 

The future of AEC leadership is not theoretical.  It is already at work inside firms across the country. 

The Rising Stars award exists to recognize those emerging leaders.  The professionals who are shaping what comes next. 

If someone in your firm fits that description, now is the time to act. 

Nominate a Rising Star today.  Celebrate their leadership.  Help define the future of the AEC industry. 

source https://zweiglist.com/what-makes-a-rising-star/