Insights to Action Webinar Blog

Key takeaways from Deltek, ACEC Research Institute, and AIA's annual industry data webinar

Every year, Deltek teams up with industry experts from the ACEC Research Institute and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) for a webinar that gets real about where the A&E industry actually stands — pairing the latest Deltek Clarity A&E Industry data with their research to provide a fuller picture. This year, Deltek’s Megan Miller chatted with ACEC’s Daphne Bryant and AIA’s Michele Russo to dig into four areas firm leaders should have on their radar for 2027. Here’s what stood out.

1. The State of the Industry: What the Data is Telling Us

The 47th Annual Deltek Clarity Architecture & Engineering Industry Study showed firms forecasting nearly 10% year-over-year net revenue growth. But backlogs were softening (down nearly three months from the same point the year before) and utilization, operating profit, and staff growth declined as well, with turnover hitting its highest level in a decade. Megan was quick to point out these are median numbers: some firms were projecting 20%-plus growth, others were bracing for declines. Her advice? Treat the number as “just a point of reference” and check it against your own pipeline and backlog trends.

Nine months into the year, ACEC Research Institute and AIA’s research tells a slightly different story. Daphne pointed out that the Institute’s own forecast from October 2025 had projected just 2.7% growth for engineering; however, the Institute’s sentiment data study is running strong as firms rate their own finances at plus 79 out of 100, and the 12-month outlook sits at plus 41, up from plus 29 a year ago. And backlogs, according to the Institute, remain “strong and steady,” a somewhat different signal from the softening reported by the Deltek Clarity A&E Study.

For architecture firms, Michele calls it “sort of a mixed bag.” The Architecture Billings Index has been flat. Michelle provided a sneak peek at AIA’s biennial firm survey: billings up 8% over two years and profitability up six points over that same stretch. However, small and midsize firms are feeling more pressure than larger firms, which have a greater backlog cushion to lean on. AIA’s new quarterly sentiment tracking backs that up with two quarters of positive expectations, though the latest reading is edging toward break-even.

2. AI: From Exploration to Operation

The Deltek Clarity A&E study shows firms shifting from exploring AI to actually defining how technology is driving operational value. Daphne shared findings from the Institute’s July study on AI risk in engineering, which reported that most firms are still testing the waters, and only the very largest have reached widespread integration, mostly in back-office work such as marketing, HR, finance, and proposals. Her bigger point: “AI is not going to replace engineers; however, it might replace engineers who don’t know how to use AI.” That said, the judgment behind stamping a set of plans isn’t going anywhere. As she put it, “Someone still has to make that final decision.”

AIA’s not-yet-released member survey found architects rating their own AI knowledge as 42% basic, 37% practical, and just 16% “advanced” or an “authority.” About three-quarters are using AI on projects, mostly for things like RFPs and product research, not design itself, Michele noted. She cautions, “AI only thinks back. It’s only as creative as what’s been put into it, not what is to come.” In addition, there is a gap that varies by firm size, as 63% of very large architecture firms (250+ employees) have a formal AI strategy, staff, and training in place. Most of the rest of the profession doesn’t.

Marketing keeps coming up, in both Deltek Clarity and ACEC Research Institute data, as the function furthest along with AI. Megan calls it a “rising tide raises all ships” moment. And when it comes to the fear that AI simply eliminates jobs, both Daphne and Michele push back: the technology changes how work gets done, much like the shift from hand drafting to CAD, but the human judgment at the center of engineering and architecture isn’t going anywhere.

3. Business Development & Project Delivery Under Pressure

Deltek Clarity data showed proposal volume was up 32% compared to the previous year, which raises a couple of good questions: Are firms submitting more because AI expanded their capacity, and are firms making the right pursuit decisions? Another point of data from the Deltek Clarity Study showed that one of the top initiatives was to get project managers better educated on financial metrics, not just schedule and design.

Daphne’s take from ACEC’s Business Development Forum: it’s “a clear return to pre-COVID proposal environment.” Engineering firms are submitting far more proposals than expected, largely AI-enabled, casting a wider net to protect roughly 12 months of backlog.

Michele says architecture firms’ business development varies. Healthcare has remained solid, but public work is opening up to more competition now that projects must be publicly posted. And a potential federal redefinition of “small business” could allow more midsize architecture firms to qualify for small-business incentives, which is good news for that group, but tougher news for the smallest firms that relied on that edge. On the delivery side, Michele expects AI to eventually push models like integrated project delivery (IPD) further, as firms rethink how risk gets allocated.

 Megan flagged another pressure point worth watching: hot M&A activity in architecture, often tied to firms that never built an intentional leadership transition plan.

4. Applying the Data: Building the 2027 Plan

Megan’s advice for firms in 2027 is to use data to build a more disciplined business execution plan – one that covers staffing, pricing, hiring, and tech investment, not just a revenue target. Her bigger point is that the industry is moving from looking backward at data to a “data-centric, strategic mindset” that tracks leading indicators right alongside the lagging ones.

Michele explained that no single metric tells the whole story and “no indicator is good on its own.” She says to benchmark your own billings and win rate against your own history, not just industry averages, and then actually act on what you find: if you’re ahead of the market, protect your backlog and go explore new sectors; if you’re lagging, double down on proposals and tighten expenses. And profitability isn’t the only number worth watching. Megan pointed out that a firm investing in AI training now might see utilization dip in the short term in exchange for a longer-term payoff.

Daphne’s advice for engineering firms centers on AI. She recommends designating an AI champion (doesn’t have to be a technologist), building a firm-wide team focused on risk mitigation, putting policies in place, and giving the “citizen developers” already experimenting on their own a way to share what they’re learning. Michele agrees that AI leadership shouldn’t sit solely with IT.

On the fear that AI is really just a path to headcount reduction, Megan stated, “cutting positions to push more proposals through with fewer people is probably shortsighted, and firms that go that route may find it doesn't hold up".

All this data is sending firms plenty of signals, some reassuring, some not, but the real work is turning those signals into a plan built around what the data says about your firm.

As firms look ahead to 2027, the message from Deltek, ACEC Research Institute, and AIA is clear: uncertainty remains, but so does opportunity. Whether the challenge is navigating shifting backlogs, adopting AI responsibly, strengthening business development strategies, or preparing the next generation of leaders, firms that pair industry benchmarks with their own performance data will be best positioned to respond. The most successful firms won't simply react to market conditions. They'll use data to make informed decisions, invest strategically, and adapt with confidence. In a year defined by mixed signals, a disciplined, data-driven approach may be the most valuable competitive advantage of all.