USKH.

• Position: Unwin Scheben Korynta and Huettl Inc. - Corporate 100 - Company Profile

After more than 20 years, USKH has learned one thing: Change is never easy. However, it is necessary for any company looking to do business in the '90s and beyond. USKH has taken this basic business principle to heart, learning valuable lessons along the way, building its reputation as a modern success story. What started as a one-man engineering firm in 1972 has today grown into an impressive company, boasting more than $1 billion in construction projects in Alaska since it first opened its doors.

When company founder Gordon Unwin decided to try his luck at opening an engineering firm in the early '70s, he knew success would not come overnight. Joined by partner and friend Leo von Scheben, today CEO and Chairman of the Board for USKH, the two opened Unwin and Scheben Consulting. In the next three years, the ranks of leadership would be filled out with two more partners, Earl Korynta and James Huettl, and the fledgling company became know as Unwin Scheben Korynta & Huettl, Inc. (USKH), providing architecture, engineering, planning and land surveying services to Alaska.

In 1986, Unwin died in a helicopter crash, and while the substantial firm that still bears his initial holds little resemblance to the small office he first opened, the same pioneering spirit is still a driving force behind USKH, now employing more than 85 Alaskans. "When I think of it now, we were two young guys with a great idea. We made it work and here were are 20 years later," Scheben says.

Going through a transformation, years of hardship during the '80s downturn, and later expansion as business rebounded, USKH has emerged as a leader in the field of architecture and engineering in Alaska. Today, Scheben describes USKH as a modern "people company. I say that because I believe now more than ever it's our people who got us here.

"When the slump hit in the '80s it was bad around here. We had to layoff most of our work force. Morale was very low," Scheben continues. "We took a long hard look at ourselves. Then did what we had to, to change things for better. We got smarter."

Those changes culminated in a company pride rivaled by few in the engineering field. "Our people are excited about this company," says Scheben. "They have a stake in it. At USKH, our employees come first. They are our most important resource. USKH's commitment to...