From Sporadic to Intentional Mentoring

At SSM we believe in building relationships and nurturing growth. It wasn’t long after the COVID-19 crisis began that SSM team leaders identified a mutual concern: How do we continue to mentor our young engineers?

Sporadic mentoring- it’s those moments in the office when you have a unique project or a complex solution. All it took was a quick yell out the office door to our new team members. Invite them in to “take a look at this” and a learning experience was born.

When SSM offices made the switch to remote work, these opportunities for learning didn’t come with us. Our strategic office placements and deliberate seating arrangements weren’t as effective when we all began to work at home.

We recognized that for this new work environment to be sustainable over the long-term, it was an undeniable priority: these opportunities for sporadic mentoring, needed to become intentional.

Our team quickly adapted, implementing a simple solution: intentional mentoring. In other words intentionally inviting our less-experienced team members to virtual meetings. Allowing these team members to be a fly on the wall - or, a fly on the call. This meant taking deliberate steps to create these very important sporadic moments. So now, instead of yelling down the hallway, we’re texting and dialing someone into a virtual meeting. But the result is the same– learning.

As we continue to work in a hybrid environment, we are strategic about how we mentor our team members to become experts in the field. Every day our teams find new ways to be innovative in getting the job done and creative ways to share the solutions with their peer network.

Welcome Home

For years we have admired the natural beauty of the boomerang. Thrown in the right direction, nurtured with the correct velocity, and trusted to fly, the boomerang will always return. It’s for that reason that we have always opened our arms to welcome our own boomerangs back to their home.

We call them the Boomerang Club. They’ve got a custom SSM boomerang decorating their offices, and currently they make up 18% of our SSM team. They once followed the path of the boomerang: left to fly in a new direction and then returned home to SSM. To those employees, we’re glad you’re home.

We know that sometimes great employees leave. While the reasons why may vary, it’s a part of being in business. We also know that sometimes they come back. Over the years we’ve learned that welcoming boomerang employees adds value to our organization- extending our mission, expanding our expertise, strengthening our capacity, and solidifying our culture.

From a business perspective, rehiring a previous employee reduces the expenses associated with traditional recruiting and onboarding. But more importantly, while they were away they gained new skills and are bringing that learning and experiences with them. As a result, greater opportunities for SSM and our clients.

At SSM, our people are more than just the work they produce. They are the heart, the passion, and the joy that makes SSM home.

Katie worked at SSM from May 2015 to June 2020 and returned to SSM in May 2021.

Welcome Back

Katie Baltzley is a GIS Analyst in our Water Resources Department. Katie graduated from Millersville University with a Bachelor’s in Geography and minor in Meteorology. Katie specializes in developing integrated GIS data management strategies to support a variety of environmental, municipal, and industrial projects. She creates workflows that tie mobile field technologies with web-based office applications to streamline full cycle operations management. 

“I knew returning to SSM was the right choice for me because they’ve got heart. I know, it sounds cheesy. But after working with another company, you realize just how much SSM truly values their work and their people. Each and every project gets the attention it deserves. Personal and professional growth is never stifled. And the people… I can’t say enough good things about all of the amazing people. When I returned, it felt like coming home.”

— Katie Baltzley

Five Things you Should Know about SSM

We are more than a typical engineering firm. If we were just an engineering firm, we’d assess, we’d solve, and then we’d cross it off of our list. But we’re not just an engineering firm; we’re so much more. We’re a firm that believes our people are your people. We’re a firm that believes in innovation; built on a solid foundation. We’re an engineering firm that believes in improving the quality of life for clients, employees, and all of the people touched by the work we do.

 We believe our work is important; our clients’ visions are important; and the passion to make good work happen- is the most important strength that we bring to every table.

 We keep our schools and community buildings safe from environmental hazards. We support growing and expanding businesses and hospitals. We help municipalities prepare and protect their infrastructure and resources. We keep water fresh and we keep air clean. We bring old buildings back to life with cutting-edge technology and leading-edge designs. We evaluate; we collaborate; we innovate. 

With offices in Reading, Lancaster, Lehigh Valley, and West Chester, we want our communities to know that, we don’t believe in just getting the job done. We’re here to help. Because our purpose is to help you stick to yours.

Five Things you Should Know about SSM:

1.  Our purpose is to help you stick to yours.

2.  Because what we do best, is what you don’t.

3. And when we provide seamless, timely solutions - our clients get to focus on the core of their business.

4. So we invest our four core values into everything we do. Pride, Quality, Teamwork, Integrity

5. Because at SSM, we’re in the business of problem solving. Challenge, Service, Solution. We’ve got you covered.