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MoA's missions are to help architects, designers and engineers with the business knowledge and skills to become more entrepreneurial and to engage public with events and exhibitions about architecture.
We have invited our experts to share their Thoughts and Advice to help practices emerge stronger from this period of change. |
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Future Focused Leadership: Culture, Marketing, Inclusion And Strategy
by Russell Pollard
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Russell develops bespoke leadership and marketing training programmes for London architecture practices to support them in their objectives related to people & culture, business development, and change management.
Here he shares with MoA his thoughts and recommendations for practice leaders during the current transitioning period. As practices navigate the disruption, there are a few key points leaders must keep in mind. These relate to how the practice’s business strategy, culture and brand will transition into the evolving and uncertain construction industry.
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Business Strategy
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Over the past two decades, business strategy has moved from long-term plans to five-year plans, to three-year plans. This reflects the speed of which industries and markets have experienced change and disruption. Instead of managing a business strategy, think of leading a strategic business.
A strategic business focuses on building its internal capabilities to be proactive and future-focused, yet responsive to the inevitability of change and uncertainty. Although a business strategy is useful as a guide and as a tangible reference point for practice owners, the strength of a business is in its resiliency. In the era of crisis management, the success of practices will depend on how leaders are able to establish resiliency as a core attribute of their practice’s people and culture, marketing and brand, and business systems. |
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People and Culture
©Arlington Research
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Architecture practices often pride themselves in their workplace culture. Creative, collaborative, innovative. These are themes that many practices have valued in their studios.
Workplace culture is an outcome of a practice’s history, leadership, remuneration, communication, values and routines. Practice leaders need to recognise that these attributes that contributed to their practice’s culture before the lockdown may not be suitable for what the future world of work will require and some may not be possible with the increased remote-working. In terms of values, these may have changed for their people, practice and clients. To maintain and strengthen commitment, practice leaders need to engage staff and clients to understand which values remain strong, which are no longer relevant, and which will be shared moving forward. This period has emphasised the importance of culture, highlighting both strengths and weaknesses that existed before the lockdown began. Leaders can treat this as an opportunity to identify which values, behaviours and results should be rewarded. Engage your people in this process. |
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Marketing and Brand
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Practices that have appropriately invested in and managed marketing, business development and brand-building are reaping the rewards now. Although practices can adjust internally to meet market and project demands, brand is established and strengthened over time.
If your practice has done this consistently, it is in a stronger position to weather this storm. If it has not, then it will require more resources to compete in what has become an even more crowded marketing space. This reinforces the need for practices to adopt marketing as a strategic function rather than simply bids and proposals. In either category, focus on what relationships your practice has now. Strengthen these by learning what clients need and what clients see the impact of this situation will be on their work. Debrief with clients on how the relationship has changed and how their organisation has changed and use this learning to improve how your practice offers values. Decide if your marketing objective is to build or maintain brand equity. |
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Diversity and Inclusion
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If your practice does not have the resources to craft thought leadership pieces, develop new services or cut through the “noise” to strengthen brand equity, focus on protecting the reputation your practice has established for itself over time. At some point your practice can return to establishing a position, but for now a conservative approach may be better suited.
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Senior Leadership
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Colleagues have a greater knowledge of each other now more than ever before. This is an opportunity to promote inclusive conversations and relationships between colleagues and leadership. An inclusive mindset in a world of remote-working can help inform leaders’ decisions and practices’ cultures now and into the future.
Be empathetic in your communications and encourage empathy in how your team members relate to each other and clients. |
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Future Focused
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As a Principal, Partner or Director, your leadership behaviours inform how well people operate during this period of intense change and uncertainty. Be transparent with communication to build trust and reduce anxiety of the unknown. Encourage optimism by focusing on the future of the practice. Beyond firefighting, adopt a mindset of future-building. Remember the importance of connection, feedback and positive recognition in the motivation and productivity of your employees.
Finally, take care of yourself. This is a stressful situation and responding within it requires mental wellness and clarity. If you have too much on your desk, delegate and trust people in your team. If you need support, personal or professional, seek it. |
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At the heart of this transition period, certain leadership attitudes and behaviours are required. These include transparency, communication, trust, empathy, and accountability. This time also requires creativity, collaboration and innovation. All of these will serve your practice well now and will help you in leading a resilient, strategic business into the future. |
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Russell Pollard is the Principal of Framework Leadership. He has a bachelor of interdisciplinary leadership, a Certificate in Leadership and Inclusion
and an MBA. Find out more about Russell and Framework Leadership at www.frameworkleads.com |
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