Garver

Last year, Garver celebrated its centennial anniversary and a rich history that began in 1919 with the opening of a one-man engineering shop in downtown Little Rock by Neal Garver. Internal growth and geographic expansion transformed the local venture into a statewide concern and later into a regional player.

Today, the footprint of the employee-owned engineering, planning, architectural and environmental services firm encompasses 33 offices spread across 13 states supported by a staff of 675.

The Arkansas headcount numbers 290 at the North Little Rock headquarters combined with Conway and Fayetteville operations. Infrastructure jobs for federal, state, county and municipal clientele are a mainstay for Garver.

A project sampling from its fat portfolio includes work on the Big Dam Bridge spanning Murray Lock & Dam on the Arkansas River, Little Rock’s Central High School, the Bobby Hopper Tunnel in northwest Arkansas and a string of improvements at the Bill & Hillary Clinton National Airport.

During the last four years, Garver has become a routine recipient of a “Best Firm to Work For” designation awarded by the Zweig Group. Helping make that happen is the company’s focus on promoting employee health and corporate giving.

Its wellness program is backed with a certified nutritionist and wellness coordinator, and more than $300,000 has flowed through GarverGives to more than 130 Arkansas organizations that make communities better.

“Our people are No. 1,” said Brock Hoskins, president of Garver. “Our priority is to invest in our people and provide them with the absolute best employee experience. As a result, our people have the passion to be our clients’ most trusted adviser.

“When that happens, we are profitable, which leads to growth. In turn, our growth leads to providing even greater opportunities for our people. Garver’s employee-focused culture creates a positive self-perpetuating cycle, which is truly the key to our success.”