Preparing for an interview at Thorson Baker & Associates requires a balanced focus on your technical engineering foundation and your project delivery capabilities. Because this is a client-facing leadership role, the hiring team wants to see that you can represent the firm professionally while keeping complex engineering projects on track.

Technical Competency & Code Knowledge – You must demonstrate a robust understanding of engineering principles relative to your discipline (Electrical, Mechanical, Structural, or Technology). Be prepared to discuss specific building systems, code compliance (such as NEC, IBC, or ASHRAE), and modern design tools like AutoCAD and Revit.

Financial & Scope Management – Project managers at TBA are directly responsible for project profitability. You should be ready to explain how you track design hours, identify scope creep, and draft additional services proposals. Interviewers will look for candidates who treat the project as a business.

Client Relations & Communication – Excellent oral and written communication skills are non-negotiable. You will be evaluated on your ability to articulate technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders, lead design coordination meetings, and resolve construction-phase conflicts in a positive, collaborative manner.

Leadership & Mentorship – As a project manager, you will guide project engineers and BIM technicians. You need to show that you can foster a friendly, productive work environment, manage resource allocation efficiently, and maintain high standards of quality control.

The interview process at Thorson Baker & Associates is designed to evaluate both your technical proficiency and your cultural alignment with the firm’s collaborative, family-friendly environment. The process is streamlined, professional, and structured to give you a clear understanding of the expectations of the role.

The initial stage typically begins with a conversational screening call with a recruiter or human resources representative. This conversation focuses on your professional background, your experience in building systems design, your career goals, and alignment on compensation and location. It is also an opportunity to discuss the firm's flexible scheduling options and unique culture.

Following a successful screen, you will progress to a more detailed technical and managerial interview, which is often conducted by a Principal or Department Director. This interview deep-dives into your project portfolio, your technical design philosophy, and your experience managing budgets, clients, and design teams. You should expect to discuss specific projects you have led from schematic design through construction administration.

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The visual timeline above outlines the standard progression from your initial contact through to the final decision. Candidates should use this timeline to pace their preparation, ensuring they spend adequate time reviewing past project financials and technical challenges before the in-depth hiring manager and panel discussions. The entire process is highly collaborative, reflecting TBA's flat organizational structure and emphasis on teamwork.

Technical Leadership & Quality Control

Technical oversight is a cornerstone of the Project Manager role at Thorson Baker & Associates. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that all calculations, drawings, and specifications are technically sound, cost-effective, and highly constructible.

Be ready to go over:

• QA/QC Processes – Your systematic approach to reviewing construction documents to catch coordination errors before they reach the field.
• BIM/Revit Workflows – How you leverage design technology to improve multidisciplinary coordination and reduce RFIs.
• Code Compliance – Your familiarity with national and local building codes, energy codes, and life safety regulations.
• Advanced concepts (less common) – Sustainable design practices, LEED certification processes, and integrating renewable energy systems into commercial building designs.

Example questions or scenarios:

• Walk me through your checklist when performing a final quality control review on a set of electrical or mechanical construction documents.
• How do you handle a situation where a junior designer has made a fundamental calculation error that impacts the entire building layout?

Scope & Budget Management

At TBA, project managers act as business owners for their respective projects. You must demonstrate a strong grasp of project financials, including design fee allocation, labor tracking, and scope boundary management.

Be ready to go over:

• Labor Tracking – How you monitor internal design hours against the established project fee.
• Scope Creep Identification – Recognizing when client or architect requests exceed the contract's original scope of work.
• Additional Service Proposals – Crafting clear, professional quotes for additional engineering services for Principal review.

Example questions or scenarios:

• An architect asks you to completely redesign a system late in the construction document phase due to a change in their layout. How do you handle this from a scope and contract perspective?
• Describe how you manage your team's hours to prevent budget overruns on a project with an aggressively tight design fee.

Construction Administration & Field Coordination

A significant portion of a project's success is determined during the construction phase. You must show that you can effectively manage the flow of information between the design office and the active construction site.

Be ready to go over:

• RFI & Submittal Turnaround – Strategies for processing shop drawings and requests for information efficiently to keep construction on schedule.
• Site Observations – Conducting physical site visits, identifying construction defects, and writing professional technical narrative reports.
• Contractor Relations – Resolving field conflicts and addressing proposed change orders productively.

Example questions or scenarios:

• You conduct a site visit and notice that the contractor has installed equipment that does not match the approved submittals. What steps do you take to resolve this?
• How do you prioritize a sudden influx of urgent RFIs from the field while trying to meet a design deadline for another project?

Client & Multidisciplinary Coordination

Successful project delivery relies heavily on your ability to collaborate with external stakeholders and coordinate across internal engineering disciplines (structural, mechanical, electrical, and technology).

Be ready to go over:

• Architect & Owner Communication – Managing expectations, presenting design options, and participating in design workshops.
• Cross-Discipline Clash Detection – Coordinating physical and operational interfaces between structural, MEP, and technology systems.
• Conflict Resolution – Navigating disagreements between project stakeholders regarding design choices or budget constraints.

Example questions or scenarios:

• Describe a time when you had to coordinate a highly complex utility service connection with local municipal officials and the building owner.
• How do you ensure seamless communication and coordination when working with an external architectural team located in a different time zone?

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