Four Growth Priorities Shaping the AEC Industry: Key Takeaways from Growth & Ownership Strategies Conference
The recent ROG + Growth & Ownership Strategies Conference underscored one clear message for the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) community: growth in 2026 will depend on how effectively firms can connect people, knowledge, and technology.
As market conditions tighten and competition increases, firms are rethinking what it means to scale—focusing less on size and more on how to work smarter, faster, and more collaboratively. Based on the discussions throughout the conference, four key priorities are emerging across the industry.
1. Doing More with the Team You Have
In an industry starved for talent, growth now depends on how efficiently teams can operate with the resources already in place. Rather than waiting for the labor market to stabilize, leading AEC firms are turning to technology that amplifies productivity: automating repetitive tasks, reducing manual data entry, and freeing experts to focus on strategy and delivery.
ikaun enables this shift by giving AEC firms a centralized expertise platform designed to streamline every stage of the proposal process. Teams can instantly access people, projects, and past performance data from a single knowledge base—then use AI co-authoring, smart templates, and automated resumes and project sheets to assemble compliant, compelling submissions in hours instead of days.
By eliminating manual formatting and fragmented systems, ikaun allows firms to focus their time where it matters most: creating winning strategies and delivering exceptional work.
2. Connecting Disparate Systems After Growth or Acquisition
Private-equity-backed AEC firms are expanding rapidly, often bringing together organizations that operate on different systems or even multiple instances of the same one. Integrating data across these platforms has become one of the biggest operational challenges facing the industry.
Rather than investing in complex, custom integrations, firms are seeking smarter ways to unify information.
ikaun serves as that connective layer aggregating people, project, and performance data from across systems into a single, searchable source of truth. The result is faster access to the right information, more cohesive collaboration, and a smoother transition as firms continue to grow through acquisition.
3. Expanding into New Regions and Specializations
Across the AEC industry, firms are increasingly seeking growth through geographic expansion and service diversification. Whether entering new markets, pursuing specialized disciplines, or aligning with large-scale infrastructure initiatives, firms recognize that resilience depends on diversification.
This expansion, however, brings new challenges: navigating different procurement standards, building credibility in unfamiliar regions, and ensuring consistency in delivery and client experience. The firms that succeed will be those that can draw on collective expertise and institutional knowledge to demonstrate capability in new areas—making strategic use of data, insights, and collaboration to position themselves effectively in every pursuit.
4. Building a Smarter, More Agile Foundation for Growth
The unifying theme across all these is agility. Firms that can connect data, content, and expertise seamlessly will be best positioned to respond to shifting client needs, new regulations, and evolving delivery models.
ikaun gives AEC organizations that agility — offering a centralized, AI-powered platform that enables pursuit teams to generate proposals in minutes, leverage consistent data across regions, and operate from a shared, governed knowledge base. It’s a foundation designed for firms that want to grow without adding layers of complexity.
Competing Differently in 2026
The AEC industry is entering a new phase of transformation defined by talent constraints, digital integration, and strategic expansion. The firms that thrive will be those that use technology to elevate their people and make smarter, faster decisions at every stage of the pursuit process.
ikaun empowers AEC firms to compete differently — by turning information into intelligence and helping teams win more work with less effort.
Learn More
Explore how ikaun helps AEC firms modernize pursuit and proposal operations — or connect with Brian Powell to see how your team can turn data, expertise, and AI into a measurable competitive advantage.