ISG

What ISG does

ISG (legal name I & S Group, Inc.) is a 100% employee-owned multidisciplinary design and engineering firm headquartered in Minnesota and founded in 1973. The firm delivers architecture, engineering, environmental, and planning services organized across 12 vertical business units: Commercial, Education, Energy, Food + Industrial, Government + Cultural, Healthcare, Public Works, Residential + Mixed-Use, Sports + Recreation, Telecommunications + Utilities, Transportation, and Water. ISG serves clients across the U.S. Midwest and beyond, supported by 20+ office locations and a relationship-driven, sales-led go-to-market model that emphasizes direct client engagement and project partnerships.

ISG's service delivery is differentiated by an embedded "Applied Technologies" stack that includes FAA-certified drone operations, 3D scanning, 360° tours, thermal drone imaging, the HyDrone unmanned surface vehicle for hydrographic surveying, the Pipecrawler for non-invasive pipe inspection, visualization, videography, and GIS integrated with Esri software. These technologies are deployed across all 12 business units to support surveying, inspection, and stakeholder engagement. The firm is 100% employee-owned via an ESOP (recognized as 2023 ESOP Company of the Year by the Minnesota/Dakotas ESOP Association), and its workforce includes 200+ employees with a structured internship program servicing 50+ interns annually across 20+ university partners.

ISG generates revenue through project-based professional services contracts billed on multi-year cadences, with custom pricing tied to project scope, complexity, and market segment. The customer base spans government entities (e.g., City of La Crosse, Blue Earth County, U.S. Forest Service, Hartford Water Resource Recovery Facility), educational institutions (Le Mars Community School District, Mankato Area Public Schools), healthcare organizations (Hannahville Indian Community, Orthopaedic & Fracture Clinic), and commercial/industrial clients (SCHEELS, Bel Brands USA). The firm has earned multiple industry recognitions including Zweig Group Hot Firm #65 (2026), ENR Top Design Firms #230 (2026), and Best Firm to Work For designations.

Name

ISG

Legal name

I & S Group, Inc.

Website

https://is-grp.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

ISG is a 100% employee-owned multidisciplinary design and engineering firm, founded in 1973, that delivers architecture, engineering, environmental, and planning services across 12 business units and 20+ U.S. offices serving government, education, healthcare, and commercial clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architecture & Engineering Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Engineering Services (541330), Engineering Services (54133)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainability & ESG Consulting (BPAHACAK)

Keywords

• Architecture engineering services
• Multidisciplinary design firm
• Civil engineering consulting
• Environmental planning services
• Infrastructure design services

Headquarters

HQ city

Mankato

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Professional Services - Architecture and Engineering: Project-based professional services revenue from architecture, engineering, environmental, and planning services delivered across 12 business units to diverse market segments including commercial, education, energy, government, healthcare, residential, sports, transportation, water, and industrial sectors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

ISG is a multidisciplinary design and engineering firm providing architecture, engineering, environmental, and planning services across 12 business units serving commercial, education, energy, food + industrial, government + cultural, healthcare, public works, residential + mixed-use, sports + recreation, telecommunications + utilities, transportation, and water market sectors. The firm leverages applied technologies including drones, 3D scanning, GIS, visualization, and hydrographic surveying to deliver integrated project solutions from concept through completion for government, institutional, commercial, and industrial clients.

Product overview

ISG is a multidisciplinary design and engineering firm offering Architecture, Engineering, Environmental, and Planning services organized across 12 business units: Commercial, Education, Energy, Food + Industrial, Government + Cultural, Healthcare, Public Works, Residential + Mixed-Use, Sports + Recreation, Telecommunications + Utilities, Transportation, and Water. The firm differentiates through Applied Technologies including HyDrone Boat (hydrographic surveying), Thermal Drone Technology, 3D Scanning, 360° Tours, Pipecrawler, Drone Services, Visualization, GIS (integrated with Esri software), and Videography. These technology offerings are embedded within their core service delivery across all market sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architecture Services Comprehensive architectural design services across multiple market sectors including commercial, education, healthcare, government, residential, and sports + recreation. Includes facility programming, schematic design, design development, construction documentation, and construction administration.
• Engineering Services Engineering services across multiple disciplines including civil, structural, electrical, mechanical, transportation, traffic, water resources, and environmental engineering supporting infrastructure and facility projects.
• Environmental Services Environmental scientists and experts providing comprehensive services for restoration and protection of environmental assets, from assessments and planning through post-project monitoring. Includes environmental studies, GIS services, grant assistance, inventory analysis, modeling, permitting, and wetland banking/delineation.
• Planning Services Project planning services ranging from large community development plans that establish municipal funding priorities to needs assessments and site evaluations for industrial, educational, and commercial clients. Includes development, engagement, funding, marketing, project evaluation, referendum assistance, and urban design.

Quantifiable outcome

• Completed 536,000 sq ft mixed-use project (Maeve)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments12 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Mankato Area Public Schools (MAPS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026ISG partners with Mankato Area Public Schools for a career exploration program reaching high school students. The program provides hands-on experiences, site visits, job shadows, and exposure to architecture, engineering, and construction careers. This partnership supports workforce development and builds the future talent pipeline.
• Minnesota State University, MankatocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMinnesota State University, Mankato is a key university partner for recruiting interns and full-time employees. The university is featured in site visits and career exploration activities, with students from the university progressing to become ISG employee owners.
• South Dakota State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Dakota State University participates in ISG's student design competition and recruits students for internships. Architecture student Rajesh Sarker placed 2nd in the 2026 design competition.
• North Dakota State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorth Dakota State University is a university partner with landscape architecture student Devin Johnson winning the 2026 ISG Design Competition. Student Shima Goodarzi placed 3rd.
• The Ohio State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerISG participates in Ohio State University career fairs as part of recruitment efforts for the growing Columbus, Ohio office. Design executive Ochuko Evwaraye has prior teaching experience at the university.
• South Central CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Central College is featured in MAPS career exploration program site visits, exposing students to educational pathways and career opportunities in architecture and engineering.
• North Carolina State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorth Carolina State University is featured in MAPS career exploration program activities, providing students exposure to educational opportunities beyond the regional market.
• University of Wisconsin-StoutminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity represented in student career pathways, with students from ISG programs pursuing construction management degrees at the university.
• Norwich UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity where MAPS program student Arianna Smith plans to study architecture, indicating partnership pathway for future recruitment.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Stantec: Global design and engineering firm spanning water, infrastructure, environmental services, buildings, and energy. Overlaps with ISG in environmental, water, transportation, and community development practices at a much larger scale.
• Kimley-Horn: National planning, engineering, and design consulting firm with strong practices in transportation, land development, and environmental services. Competes with ISG across many of its commercial, residential, and public-sector segments.
• HDR: Global architecture, engineering, and consulting firm with deep practice in transportation, water, healthcare, and energy — many of the same segments as ISG. A much larger incumbent that competes with ISG on larger municipal and infrastructure pursuits.
• Burns & McDonnell: Employee-owned engineering, architecture, and consulting firm with major practices in energy, transmission, water, and industrial facilities. Comparable to ISG in ESOP culture and energy/water focus, but at materially larger scale.

Direct peers

• MSA Professional Services: Midwest-rooted A&E firm serving municipal, transportation, water, and land development clients from multiple regional offices. Comparable to ISG in scale, ESOP-style culture, and segment mix.
• Foth: Employee-owned engineering, science, and architecture firm focused on infrastructure, environmental, water, and industrial clients in the Midwest. Closely comparable to ISG in ownership model, segment mix, and regional concentration.
• Bolton & Menk: Employee-owned Midwest A&E firm providing planning, design, and surveying across municipal, transportation, water, and land development markets. Directly comparable to ISG in ESOP ownership structure, Midwest focus, and 12+ business unit breadth.
• WSB: Minnesota-headquartered engineering and consulting firm with strong public-sector practice in transportation, water, and municipal infrastructure. Closely matches ISG's Midwest base, municipal client mix, and rapid-growth trajectory.
• SEH (Short Elliott Hendrickson): Midwest-based multidisciplinary architecture, engineering, and planning firm with a similar mix of public-sector and private clients across water, transportation, and community development. Closely comparable to ISG in size, geographic footprint, and service portfolio.
• Ayres Associates: Employee-owned Midwest A&E firm offering transportation, water, environmental, and geospatial services. Similar in size, ownership philosophy, and reliance on municipal and state DOT clients.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/isginc1973
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/ISGInc
• Facebookfacebook.com/ISGInc1973
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/isginc
• Instagraminstagram.com/isginc1973

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ISG