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ARRO is excited to announce the launch of our 2025 Mentorship Program, with applications opening this month!

Whether you're looking to guide others as a mentor or grow personally and professionally as a mentee, this program is open to all staff across all offices. The People Team will share detailed information this week about how to apply, so keep an eye out for further communications from them. All applications will be due by January 31st, with pairings and mentor training to follow shortly after.

Stay tuned for updates and get ready to make meaningful connections through mentorship this year!

AGUSTIN CONESA

TITLE: Senior Engineer

OFFICE LOCATION: Lititz

MANAGER: Matt Warfel

WHAT IS SOMETHING ON YOUR BUCKET LIST? Travel to Spain and Portugal with my family.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST RISK YOU EVER TOOK? Leaving my family behind in Puerto Rico to come to the United States by myself to start my professional career.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE? “Be still and know that I am God.” - Psalm 46:10.

SANPREET GILL

TITLE: Engineer II

OFFICE LOCATION: Remote

MANAGER: Matt Warfel

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST RISK YOU EVER TOOK? Moving back to India in 2020, and then moving back to the US again in 2023 amidst a very different time!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE?

"No mind is thoroughly well organized that is deficient in a sense of humor." - Samuel Taylor Coleridge



DANA RAGSDALE

TITLE: Designer II

OFFICE LOCATION: Lititz

MANAGER: Jami Eller

WHAT ONE THING INSTANTLY MAKES YOUR DAY BETTER? Seeing the smile on my son’s face while I’m coaching.

WHAT IS SOMETHING ON YOUR BUCKET LIST? To visit Japan and eat at the best ramen restaurant. 

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE? "What we do in life echoes an eternity." - Marcus Aurelius

DID YOU HEAR

THE EXCITING NEWS?

Congratulations to Emily Yatron and Liam Allenstein-Lyon from our Castle Valley team on their recent wedding! The two tied the knot in December, and we’re so excited to celebrate this special milestone with them. Wishing you both a lifetime of love, happiness, and success as you embark on this new chapter together!

*EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT*

We're excited to make these spotlights a staple of our monthly newsletter. Each month, we'll introduce you to talented colleagues from across our organization, sharing their unique stories and passions.

January Spotlight: Melissa Welsh

Position: Payroll and Benefits Coordinator

Office: Lititz

Year Started: 2021

What is your favorite part about your job? The variety of tasks - no two days are the same.

What is your favorite thing to do on a day off/on the weekend? Spend time with my family, and crochet. 

What’s your favorite local restaurant? The Carsonville Hotel (in Halifax, PA).

What is something you can't live without? Mean Bean Java Monster 

What’s your most-used emoji? 🤣 (Life is too short not to laugh!)

Can you tell us more about your family? I have three kids (Charles – 24, Brittany – 23, and Cody – 20), four grandbabies (ages 10, 8, 18 months and 6 months), a boxer named Diesel and two grand puppies, Kimber and Colt. I live with my husband of two years, Reggie, in Lykens, PA. I have three older brothers and a younger sister (they live all across the United States) and my parents who are still married after 55 years (they live in Manheim, PA). I have always been very close to and centered my life around my family. I would not be who I am without them. 

What’s the most adventurous thing you’ve ever done? Skydiving.

Do you have a favorite movie, book, or TV show that you recommend to everyone? Misery by Stephen King (the book not the movie).

Two more questions! You've been dubbed the "Most Likely to Save the Day" ... What’s your go-to strategy for staying calm under pressure? Don’t overthink it and just get started! 

And, how do you recharge after a high-stakes day? Grab my yarn and hook ... and work on my latest crochet project! 

Be sure to tune in over the coming months to get to know more of your coworkers!

CORNER OFFICE CONVOS

A monthly column featuring conversations with our CEO, Jim Bishop. Be sure to tune in each month as Jim will be discussing everything from general company updates to strategic planning implementation to important leadership announcements.

So, the Holidays Are Over...

Folks, I hope you had memorable holidays. It seems like the build-up is lengthy, but then the Thanksgiving to Christmas to New Years period flashes by. As the calendar flipped on January 1st, so too did we start a new business year. Let’s take a look at some of the differences from January 2024.

Puzzle Pieces

The break room in the Lititz office has a table devoted to group participation in assembling large, complex puzzles. The Doylestown office has a similar area. I believe there is a similarity between

separate pieces of a puzzle combining to form a

beautiful picture and the various components of a business, that when they work well together, combine to create a well-run enterprise that benefits clients and employees.

In 2023, we as a firm were not profitable. In 2024, due to your efforts, we flipped the results to positive. While we did not deliver our budgeted performance, we made a substantial year-over-year improvement. As we prepared for 2025, we did the following:

• Added an additional holiday, to be taken when the employee and his/her supervisor agree on a date
• Increased the company match on 401(k) accounts from 1.2% to 3%, escalating per the table in the December newsletter
• Negotiated a health insurance package that resulted in very small cost increases, which is against the prevailing trends (the original quote was for an 18% increase; through careful negotiations, the premium increase was 3%)
• Transitioned from a Sick Bank to a Bridge Fund that covers the 2-week waiting period before short-term disability is available
• With full participation from the Office Managers, we developed (and received approval of) a budget that continued to show strengthened financial performance while allowing time for training and staff development
• We changed the primary duties of some members of the executive team to take better advantage of our opportunities to grow the business

The impacts of these “puzzle pieces” will not be fully known until December, but they certainly suggest that ARRO has the opportunity to honor our contractual commitments while continually improving as a firm. Thank you for your efforts at serving our clients in a manner that also allows the firm to be a profitable business.

Performance Evaluations

The process continues to be improved (or at least that is the expectation). Using Paycor for evaluations was a new process and we’d like to hear your feedback, whether positive or areas for potential improvement, so that 11 months from now we will once again have something better than we had. I’d ask that you direct any feedback to our Director of People (Andrew Weiss) at andrew.weiss@arroconsulting.com.

The holidays may have passed, but the memories live on! Take a look back at how your coworkers celebrated the season—from festive gatherings to cozy moments at home.

The ladies from our Doylestown office have taken on an annual holiday tradition of a night out at Peddler's Village together!

Susan D'Amore's precious pup, Harper, decked out in a Santa hat for Christmas!

Ugly Sweater Day at the Birdsboro office! ...Justin Hartz stole the show (and the prize) with his 'Meowy Catmas' masterpiece!

Family time! Rick Getts and his cute kiddos looking super festive over the holidays!

Katie Grogan enjoying some of the snowfall we got the last few weeks and turned her car into a fun canvas!

Couldn't resist snapping a pic of the 400 pounds—yes, 400 pounds!—of toffee we sent to our clients across the region as this year's client holiday gift.

Festive vibes at the Doak household! Mikah Doak's kids were all smiles celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah this year.

Steph Miller enjoying an annual tradition with her family—pictured with her kiddos as they got ready to ride the Polar Bear Express!

The Lititz office's Toys for Tots drive was a success—thrilled to fill the bin to the brim before pick-up!

Leave it to Jim Stokes to turn his fish tank into a holiday masterpiece! Loving the festive vibes and all the cheerful decor!

You know the drill! Study the picture and take your best guess at which mystery employee's desk this is by selecting a name in the poll below. Out of all correct guesses, we'll randomly select one winner to receive a $25 gift card. We'll reveal the correct answer and gift card winner in next month's newsletter.

→The correct answer to December's Guess the Desk feature was Craig Kologie. Heather Montgomery was the selected winner and received a $25 Amazon gift card!

As we continue to grow, we’re looking to expand our team with talented individuals. Here are some of the roles we’re actively recruiting for:

Senior Designer

Engineers-in-Training

Professional Engineers

If you know anyone who would be a great fit, please send them our way! You can either direct them to our Careers Page or let the People team know, and they'll reach out directly.

Don’t forget: ARRO offers a $2,500 referral bonus for successful hires! You’ll receive half when your referral starts and the other half after they’ve been with us for six months.

For a complete list of open roles, visit the ARRO Careers Page.

STAY IN THE KNOW

UPCOMING DATES

January 20

Deadline to Complete January IT Training

January 29

Lunch and Learn: MyHighmark Member Portal Introduction

January 31

Application Deadline for Mentorship Program

BENEFITS REMINDERS

Be sure to tune in to the MyHighmark Member Portal Introduction training on Wednesday, January 29th! This session, hosted by Highmark and Risk Strategies, will guide you through the portal's features, in order to help you navigate it seamlessly and maximize your benefits.

Additionally, the People Team encourages all employees to log into Employee Navigator to confirm that their Open Enrollment elections are accurately reflected in the Enrollment Summary. Please notify the People Team as soon as possible if you see any issues.

C2P2 GRANT APPLICATION WINDOW OPENING SOON

We’ll aim to keep you informed about important grant application deadlines throughout the year.

Mark your calendar: DCNR's Community Conservation Partnerships Program (C2P2) will be accepting grant applications from January 21st to April 2nd. This program offers funding for projects focused on parks, recreation, and conservation. Visit this link for more details.

STAY CONNECTED WITH ARRO ON SOCIAL MEDIA:

STRANGE THINGS ARE HAPPENING...

What has the the Lititz office management team been up to these days? Hard to say... Is that Matt Warfel fine-tuning the HVAC system, or did he channel his inner action hero to break into his locked office? And is that Ed Van Arsdale showcasing the raw power of RIGID products, or is he bravely tackling an unscheduled water failure in the men's bathroom? Guess some mysteries are better left unsolved...