Featuring the Prairie ESOP A&E Confidence Index®
OAKBROOK TERRACE, IL – November 12, 2026 – Prairie Capital Advisors, Inc. (“Prairie”), a leading middle-market investment bank, has released its 2026 Architecture & Engineering Survey. Prairie works with owners of private A&E businesses across the country, providing advisory services to support their growth and ownership transition strategies. Many of its clients in the A&E industry have decided on an ESOP as part of their ownership transition strategy. Prairie’s goal in surveying ESOP-owned A&E companies was to gather industry perspectives and gain a better understanding of the trends and other meaningful market factors impacting these firms.
Selected Survey Findings
- 47.1% of respondents identified labor/talent availability as a top operational concern.
- 76.5% of respondents expect their employee count to increase in the next 12 months.
- 67.6% of respondents anticipate a positive business outlook for the next 12 months.
- 61.8% of respondents reported that they are investing in AI/technology over the next 12 months.
“Despite strong backlog and a positive outlook for project activity, the continued shortage of qualified talent is putting upward pressure on wages and, in my view, will remain a headwind to profitability for A&E firms. At the same time, while firms are actively investing in AI and other technologies, most are still in the early stages of adoption, and it is likely too soon for those investments to produce meaningful cost reductions,” commented Henry Ventura, Director at Prairie.
About Prairie’s 2026 Architecture & Engineering Survey Results Webinar
This week, Henry Ventura and Nick Dolan led a webinar providing invaluable insights for industry professionals looking to stay ahead of emerging trends. Click here to watch the full recording and gain meaningful takeaways to help you adapt and thrive in a changing landscape.
About Prairie’s ESOP A&E Industry Survey
Prairie’s 4th annual Architecture & Engineering Survey examines the outlook, priorities and challenges of ESOP-owned architecture, engineering and A&E firms. The 2026 survey was conducted online from September 9 through September 22, 2026. More than 530 executives at ESOP-owned A&E firms were invited to participate, including Prairie clients and prospective clients. Approximately 6.8% of those invited completed the survey, representing firms across a range of sizes, specialties and stages of ESOP maturity. The 2026 survey builds on Prairie’s previous A&E research, expanding its focus on employee ownership and introducing the Prairie ESOP A&E Confidence Index, which measures expectations across six areas of business performance.
About Prairie Capital Advisors
Prairie is a leading financial advisory firm specializing in creating and executing ownership transition strategies for middle-market companies nationwide.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact
Wendy Gugora, Chief Marketing Officer
Prairie Capital Advisors, Inc.
630.413.5574
wgugora@prairiecap.com
