YP Organization of the Year: Empowering Young Professionals at ISG
YP Organization of the Year
A sense of community is vital for any business to grow and thrive. When architecture, engineering, environmental and planning firm ISG opened an office in Greater Des Moines (DSM) back in 2015, the community welcomed the firm with open arms. Since joining ISG’s Des Moines office, we have noticed a community-wide entrepreneurial spirit in the community that has helped ISG flourish from starting with one employee in that first office to more than 40 professionals in two Des Moines offices.
Likewise, Greater Des Moines and ISG have proven to be welcoming to young professionals. Navigating the modern workplace can be difficult for YPs, as people often come with preconceived notions about those entering the workforce being “lazy” or “entitled.” Moreover, young professionals often find it difficult to step up and share ideas with more senior colleagues. These pose real challenges for many YPs, but we are fortunate to say that we have not faced those challenges at ISG. With more than 70% of the firm being 40 and under, employees of all ages are found in each discipline and in all nine of our offices. As an employee-owned firm, everyone has a personal stake in the firm’s success, and this requires a collaborative and collective all-in mentality.
It's this culture of positivity that culminated in the firm receiving the truly humbling honor of the Young Professionals Connection's (YPC's) 2018 Young Professional Organization of the Year award last week.
Building Up Young Professionals
Because the Greater Des Moines community has been so supportive of ISG’s growth in the area, the firm gets to pay that forward to its own young professionals getting started in the industry. Working for ISG has helped us connect with our peers in the area, as firm leadership encourages active participation in organizations like YPC to learn from and share ideas with like-minded individuals. With this kind of backing, there’s really no limit for achievement, and that’s an incredibly important feeling for young professionals.
A culture of empowerment requires top-to-bottom buy-in and yields an environment where employees strive for excellence, and that is demonstrated in how ISG invests in us as young professionals. Internally, we have ISG University, which is a company-wide quarterly in-house education program where selected employee owners present to the rest of the firm about key market and industry insights and how to apply them in our daily work. Helping us become more involved in our community and company is exactly what young professionals need to thrive, and ISG actively demonstrates that personal investment in its employees every day.
We were proud to have represented ISG at the YP of the Year Awards where the firm was named the first recipient of the YPC YP Organization of the Year. We are grateful of the work that the City of Des Moines, Young Professionals Connection, Greater Des Moines Partnership and countless other organizations in Greater Des Moines do to invest in young professionals in the area, and we look forward to supporting tomorrow’s young professionals.
Young Professionals Connection (YPC) aims to attract and retain young professionals in Greater Des Moines (DSM) by connecting emerging leaders to each other and to the community through social, civic, charitable and professional development endeavors. Learn how you can get involved.