Industry leaders rate the performance of the nation’s economy as the biggest challenge they face in the coming year, according to a new survey of firms in the architecture, engineering and environmental consulting fields.

In late 2007, overall economic performance wasn’t among the top 10 challenges listed, according to the survey conducted by Natick architecture and construction consulting firm ZweigWhite.

Two years ago, top executives said their biggest challenge was finding qualified staff. This year, firm leaders list a lack of talent as the ninth most important challenge they will face in 2010, according to ZweigWhite’s 2010 AEC Industry Outlook, an annual report based on a survey of top firms in the industry.

A year ago, following the credit meltdown and bank bailouts, the economy emerged as the top challenge listed by firm leaders, but finding qualified staff remained the third most important challenge listed (with the cost of health care listed as the second most pressing concern).

However, as business slowed and thousands of architects and engineers joined the ranks of the unemployed, "the dynamics of staff recruitment and retention has become less pressing of an issue," said Steven Smith, president and managing director of WSP Sells in New York, a design, engineering, and management consultancy service firm.

"With that said, all firms are focusing on retaining their key staff and, as a result, highly qualified star employees are still hard to come by," Smith said.

Executives forecast the economy will eclipse other challenges for some time to come, as firms come to grips with increased competition in the industry, their second-most cited challenge.