aty Kless has a passion for marketing.

“I have always had a more creative than analytical mind,” the marketing and communications manager for Ahtna Diversified Holdings, says. “I tell people all the time, ‘I do marketing, not math. I make data look good.’”

Her passion for marketing in the architecture, engineering, and construction (A/E/C) industry, though, happened by chance. In 2010, Kless was a client service and marketing support associate at a local investment firm when she was “lured” into a position with KPB Architects.

“I was enlisted to help often with production of proposals, and from that point forward I knew I had found my home,” she says. “There isn’t really anything quite like it.”

Kless held communications and marketing positions at PDC Engineers and Coffman Engineers before joining Ahtna in 2021. Her responsibilities are vast and include graphic design, business development, brand management, event coordination, and internal and external communications.

Outside the office, Kless has been an active member of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) for more than a decade. The national organization, which has local chapters across the country, is the only professional organization for marketing and business development professionals working in the A/E/C industry. She’s currently serving a second term as president of the Alaska Chapter, a do-over of sorts for her first term, which began at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kless also serves as a mentor to junior marketers.

The lifelong Alaskan—Kless is an alum of Bartlett High School and UAA—took some time to talk about the important role marketing plays in a business, what makes marketing in the A/E/C sphere different from other industries, how SMPS helps its members stay at the top of their marketing game, and what’s in store for 2025.

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

Why is it important for a company to have a marketing plan?

Marketing plans provide focus to support the business or strategic plan. Without a plan, we call that the shotgun approach to business. This means while there might be a target, there really isn’t a focus. Without understanding your goals, how can you target your audience?

What is the difference between marketing in the A/E/C industry compared to other industries, especially those that provide tangible goods?

What is unique about this profession is no one really prepares to do services marketing. It’s not a course in college. When most people think of marketing, they think more of product sales or advertising. We are a business-to-business marketing industry. This means instead of selling a product, we sell our experience as a service to our clients.

Visualize this: a client has a need—let’s say in this instance it is to renovate their building to fit their growing company. That client wants to find the best designer or contractor to do [the job], right? So they inquire about services using the Request for Proposal (RFP), which is likely advertised to the public. This RFP spells out their needs—scope, schedule, and budget. Our design and construction firms seek out this work by reviewing the RFP and aligning their company’s services to best meet those needs. The marketing team works hand in hand with the technical staff to write a compelling proposal to sell our firm as the best company to perform the work. We win the work, the technical team does an excellent job, and now the company has this experience to use to land the next job. That’s the cycle.

As a marketer myself, I am of course partial to the answer, “Yes,” although in Alaska we have many small companies that quite literally cannot afford the overhead expense of having a dedicated marketer. Many firms have someone who wears multiple hats, such as administration, accounting, human resources, and marketing, or a technical person doing any or all of the above. If that is the case, it is even more reason to get involved with SMPS. We are the only resource for industry-specific training and trends in marketing.

What should a company consider when looking for a marketing professional, whether they are looking to hire for an in-house position or an outside agency?

A marketer with all the experience you need can certainly feel like a “unicorn” find. While you may not find the perfect fit to just take the ball and run with it, do not overlook the power of the right fit for your firm in a candidate who has good writing skills and is self-driven. Also, you could consider candidates from outside Alaska. This is something positive that COVID has given us. We realize now that remote workers can open all sorts of possibilities.

If your firm is looking for a marketer, SMPS does have a job board to post your open position; it’s free for members, or there’s a small fee for non-members. If you need help crafting a job position, reach out; we can help.

What drew you to become a member of SMPS?

Shortly after starting in this industry, it was suggested that I join and get involved with SMPS. After joining the association, I quickly realized how incredible it was to have a resource that was specific to marketing in the A/E/C world. I joined a committee to get more involved and that was it. Ten years have gone by, and I stay involved because of the people, the education, and the opportunity to give back to the organization that helped build me as a marketer.

How does SMPS keep abreast of best practices and what’s new in the marketing world? How does it share that information with its members?

Well, that is one of the great things about SMPS: we learn from each other. Outside of our local chapter in Alaska, there is a wealth of knowledge and resources nationwide with other chapters. Many of us travel to conferences outside of Alaska for opportunities to pick up new skills and learn trends coming because we all know Alaska is behind a few years in trends. Each year there is a Pacific Regional Conference for SMPS that varies in location. [The 2025 conference took place January 29-31 in Palm Springs, California.] Additionally, there is a national conference called Amplify that many of us attend to learn and grow.

We all strive to bring that knowledge back to our firms and share it with our peers. Often our attendance at these conferences leads to our chapter building programming for our members and eventually bringing up speakers from Outside to invest in our membership growth.

What type of events and training opportunities does SMPS organize for its members?

SMPS Alaska hosts events monthly. All our events have special member pricing but are open to all non-members as well. Generally, we do a business development-focused luncheon that usually offers a panel of client/owner(s) focused on a specific topic with the intent to build business. We also offer a virtual marketing-focused training monthly with varied topics, from proposal development to what tools to use for efficiently doing your job. We send a weekly newsletter on Thursdays. Be on the lookout or reach out if you want to be added to our mailing list.

How do I count the ways? As with any membership, you get out of it what you put into it. There are a large number of benefits that many might not know about or use, like our resource center, MYSMPS, our exclusive SMPS magazine, Marketer, and nationwide resources. I would say that the moment that I joined a committee back in 2013 was pivotal to my career development. So jump right in.

If you are not a member, I encourage you to reach out to membership@smpsak.org to find out more. If you are already a member, you should reach out to me at president@smpsak.org to find out how you can be more involved.

What new events, initiatives, or projects are coming up for SMPS Alaska in 2025?

Coming soon we are planning a signature event on artificial intelligence and how we can use it in this industry to be better at our jobs and stay efficient. Be on the lookout for exciting events in the new year.

If you had one message for our readers, what would it be?

Be curious. Do you have a desire in a specific area, business or personal? Let SMPS help you develop that area.

Be engaged. If you are a member already, use your membership to its fullest.