We recently caught up with Chris Connell, CEO of Quire, a cloud-based report-writing platform that streamlines workflows for environmental, engineering, and compliance professionals.
Chris Connell of Quire shared insights with CI on how private equity is reshaping the AEC (Architecture, Engineering, and Construction) industry and what it means for technical professionals in environmental consulting, engineering, and compliance.
Private equity now accounts for 40% of all AEC transactions, driving record M&A activity and forcing firms to rethink operations.
Chris talked about the acceleration of M&A activity (35 deals announced in January 2025 alone). He touched on the urgent need for technology adoption to improve standardization, scalability, and reporting efficiency.
For context, Quire is dedicated to helping project-driven companies enhance their business by transforming the way they write and deliver technical reports.
With a mission to enhance technical report management, Quire provides cloud-based solutions that streamline the entire report lifecycle—from creation to final delivery.
By empowering firms with efficient, user-friendly tools, Quire enables them to showcase their expertise, maintain high-quality standards, and produce deliverables efficiently.
Our chat with Chris Connell is shared below.
Crowdfund Insider: In 2024, private equity accounted for about 40% of all AEC transactions and over the last twelve months there have been more than 400 M&A deals in the industry.
From your perspective, what’s fueling this surge in investor activity?
Chris Connell: It’s really a mix of timing, structure, and opportunity. The AEC industry has its strengths: long-term demand, increasing project backlogs, and client relationships that tend to last, but this fragmented industry is also facing several challenges.
Many firms rely on legacy systems and manual processes and can struggle at times to scale, creating significant untapped value that private equity is primed to unlock. They see firms with strong fundamentals and the potential to modernize operations, especially through technology, and that’s a playbook they know how to execute.
Crowdfund Insider: Why is the AEC industry—especially segments like environmental consulting and engineering—so ripe for consolidation right now?
Chris Connell: As I mentioned, it comes down to fragmentation. There are thousands of firms out there, many of them regional or founder-led, each with its own way of doing things. That’s especially true in environmental and engineering spaces, which are built around specialized knowledge.
But that specialization, while valuable, doesn’t always scale easily. So, when PE firms come in, they’re looking to bring those niche capabilities under one roof, roll them up, and drive value through integration, whether that’s shared resources, unified processes, or expanded service lines.
Crowdfund Insider: What are some of the operational challenges firms face in the wake of an acquisition? Where do you see the biggest breakdowns or inefficiencies post-deal?
Chris Connell: Integration is where deals either pay off or start to stall. At Quire, we are focused on a very specific area within these firms, and that is the creation and delivery of their technical report deliverables to customers. With that perspective, the biggest hurdle we see is around varied processes. Two firms may offer similar services, but they’re often using completely different templates, workflows, and review processes or methods.
That makes it hard to deliver a consistent product, especially when technical reports are your core deliverable. Another common issue is visibility. If systems aren’t integrated, leadership can’t get a clear read on project status, quality, or performance across teams. All of this can contribute to the delayed realization of the synergies in a merger. On the other hand, quickly aligning processes can be an accelerant for value.
Crowdfund Insider: One of the themes we’re hearing more often is the need to “standardize to scale.”
How does that play out in AEC firms, especially when they’re trying to merge teams and processes?
Chris Connell: Standardization gets a bad rap sometimes. But in reality, it’s a key ingredient for success in integration efforts. If every team has its own way of writing technical reports, scaling becomes complex.
The goal isn’t to box people in, rather it’s to develop a smooth and repeatable process for delivering for clients. And, with purpose-built tools like TRM (Technical Report Management), firms cannot only leverage a repeatable process but they can also remove much of the pain associated with the report creation process and they can really excel. They give firms a consistent framework to build from, while still leaving room for the nuance each project demands.
Crowdfund Insider: Where does reporting software fit into that conversation? Why is it so important—and often so overlooked—during post-merger integration?
Chris Connell: Most firms don’t think of their reporting process as a strategic asset, but considering the revenue that these deliverables drive, they should. In technical service firms, your reports are the product, and they are a reflection of your firm.
If your delivery process is fragmented or inconsistent, it can impact quality and efficiency. And when report quality drops, even slightly, it can undermine client confidence, erode credibility, and introduce risk.
Post-acquisition, when firms are trying to create cohesion, a solid reporting platform becomes a huge enabler. Efficiency increases, errors decrease and productivity increases – providing an opportunity for revenue synergies. Standardizing how reports are created, reviewed and delivered isn’t just helpful, but it’s essential for integration and long-term growth.
Crowdfund Insider: Can you explain what “Technical Report Management” (TRM) means in practice, and why it’s becoming a focus for firms looking to streamline operations after a merger or acquisition?
Chris Connell: TRM is really the connective tissue between data, expertise, and deliverables. It’s how firms manage the full lifecycle of a technical report from field data collection to final sign-off. When firms are merging,
TRM becomes essential because it gives them a shared system to operate from. You’ve got standardized templates, collaborative editing, built-in review processes, and it’s all in one place.
More importantly, it allows for the free flow of knowledge across the organization and the institutionalization of the knowledge which is a massive lever for most firms.
It enables rapid productivity from new employees and preserves content that can be re-used. This also ensures compliance with industry standards and makes it easier to innovate by giving teams a flexible, collaborative platform. In short, TRM lets firms scale without sacrificing quality.
Crowdfund Insider: What kinds of results are firms seeing when they invest in specialized tools for things like technical reporting? Are there any quantifiable gains you can share?
Chris Connell: Time savings can be as high as 50% for firms based on experience. These savings not only improve the unit economics of deliverables, but they unlock latent capacity for pursuing more work which can grow the top line. Another area is first time approval rates.
We have seen 50% improvements in first time approval rates which means less rework – less waste. It also means happier customers. If you’re a firm that generates hundreds or thousands of reports annually, that’s a massive time and cost savings impact. As importantly, it frees up experienced staff to focus on technical content rather than chasing down formatting issues or missing data. That shift alone can drive meaningful business growth.
Crowdfund Insider: With more firms turning to automation, how do you balance the need for efficiency with the need to preserve technical quality and institutional knowledge?
Chris Connell: That’s a conversation we’re having all the time. Automation isn’t about replacing people. It’s about helping them do more of the work that actually matters. So, we automate things like field data collection entry, formatting, and version control. But when it comes to technical judgment, that stays firmly in the hands of the professionals.
At the same time, we’ve built in features that help preserve institutional knowledge like shared templates, content libraries, comment threads, and audit trails, so expertise doesn’t walk out the door when someone leaves or retires. The benefits extend beyond efficiency. Automation reduces repetitive work, prevents burnout, and helps firms retain top talent by freeing teams to focus on higher-value problems.
Crowdfund Insider: How is the shift toward private equity ownership changing what firms expect from their software partners? Are you seeing new demands or decision-making dynamics emerge?
Chris Connell: Yes, and it’s been pretty clear. PE firms bring a different lens. They have an investment thesis that is predicated on both cost and revenue synergies and systems that can generate that type of scale are viewed as enablers.
That changes the buying process. It’s no longer just a local office decision. It’s a portfolio-level strategy. We’re often working directly with operating partners or CTOs who are looking to standardize across the board. So, software vendors have to come to the table with more than just a feature set.
You’ve got to show how your platform drives enterprise value. And it’s even better when the platform has analytics built in, so you can clearly see how it’s being used and where it’s saving your team time.
Crowdfund Insider: Looking ahead, what advice would you offer to AEC leaders preparing for a sale or acquisition?
What should they be doing now—especially on the technology side—to set themselves up for success?
Chris Connell: Start by tightening up your operations, especially anything that touches deliverables-based revenue. If your reports are still being built in Word with manual formatting and manual reviews, now’s the time to reevaluate that. Buyers are looking for firms that are scalable, not just profitable.
That means clean processes, documented workflows, and systems that support growth. You don’t need to reinvent everything overnight, but investing in the right tools now puts you in a stronger position whether you’re selling, acquiring, or just trying to grow with less friction.
And, obviously, if you can implement technology that improves both your top and bottom line, the value of your firm will increase.