Page 14 - 2022 Annual Report 2022 FINAL

and sustaining work to keep everyone busy due to the threat of a looming recession. At the same time,
we have implemented new procedures to find the best candidates we can and grow both our expertise
and our technical abilities as a firm. In many ways, this is not mutually exclusive. We are oftentimes doing
both with the same critical hires.

Early October 2021 our Board of Directors approved a Fiscal Year 2022 Budget projecting a net revenue
of $24 million and an anticipated net profit before bonus, taxes and PPP Loan forgiveness of $1.77
million. I am happy to say we have surpassed that projected budget.

Our focus this past year, beginning with our 2020 Strategic Planning workshops, has been our people. It is
difficult to objectively evaluate our success or failure while we are in the middle of the process. Last year
began with a “Return to the Office” in October 2021. Robert Iger, CEO of Disney may have said it best
when he stated to CNBC; "And in a creative business like ours, nothing can replace the ability to connect,
observe, and create with peers that comes from being physically together, nor the opportunity to grow
professionally by learning from leaders and mentors." Though, as a firm, we have successfully adapted to
a hybrid work policy which allows for both remote work and creative and mentoring time together. And as
a firm, we thank you for the success this policy has brought us so far.

In November 2021, Elizabeth Wojtowicz joined us as our first Chief People Officer (and our first degreed
HR professional in any capacity). Since her hire, Elizabeth has spearheaded many initiatives to help
improve our daily work experience. Developing our People Plan, updating our Employee Handbook,
implementing a new performance review system, streamlining benefit renewals, beginning a staff growth
initiative to provide technical training to recent graduates and advanced career guidance to our more
seasoned people. All of these initiatives are in various stages of implementation – with more to come.
The new year saw Lemay Erickson Willcox
Architects join FGMA. LEWA’s nationally
recognized expertise in the design of
public safety, faith-based and
multifamily/mixed-use projects helps us
move a step closer achieving our strategic
goal of growing revenue outside of Illinois.
We also gained a new practice area in
Multifamily/Mixed-Use, which is especially
helpful as rising interest rates cause a
decrease in single-family home
mortgages, which in turn causes increased
demand for multifamily housing.

Our Austin office received a new home in
February, and we moved into a great,
more spacious abode. This was fortunate
as we had outgrown the previous office
during our covid-time out of the office.
We finally held our often-rescheduled Bi-Annual Holiday Party in May; at which time we were able to
celebrate the retirement of John Jackson and John Ochoa. Both of whom were instrumental in guiding
FGM Architects to become who we are today, and to whom we owe many thanks for steering the ship so
skillfully.

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