Have you ever wanted a chance to ask an architect about your home? Maybe you’ve got some new idea and want to know what’s involved in making it happen, or maybe there’s just one thing you’d like to change but you don’t know how. Well, if you live near San Francisco and you’re planning on doing the San Francisco Living: Home Tours, then you can also bring your photos, idea books, sketches, and questions to the “Talk to an Architect” booth at the Home Tours headquarters.

The Home Tours headquarters is the Stable Building located at 2128 Folsom Street in San Francisco. Tours are Saturday and Sunday, September 11-12, from 10-4pm.

Last year, eight local designers volunteered: Mark English, Tim Mangan, Andre Rothblatt, Phil Rossington, John Klopf, Jonathan Feldman, Jim Cline, and Kathleen Bost. The Home Tours is only one program in the month-long Architecture and the City festival sponsored by the AIA San Francisco.

“Some people brought drawings or ideas, and we’d have a good exchange of information,” said Andre Rothblatt. “Architects could bring things to show as well, such as their portfolios or a sample drawing set. It’s about architects responding to the people,” he added.

Drawing details can be helpful for clients who want to better understand construction methods.

It’s OK for visitors to admit that they’re beginners, too, if they don’t know anything about the design process. John Klopf, another participant from last year, viewed it as a public service. “It’s helpful to have a knowledgeable practitioner with nothing on the line. Some people came with photos and specific questions, or different potential floor plan layouts that they’d come up with, and they could get honest answers to their questions. It’s also fine for someone to declare themselves a beginner.”

Other popular topics included how to work with a contractor, or exploring the possible costs for a potential renovation. “I didn’t do it in order to get new work. It’s more of a public service,” notes Klopf. “It raises the profile of architects in general when we make ourselves accessible. We know things that can help people. And this year, at the the Talk to an Architect program, we’ll have contractors sitting at the table with us for the first time, so visitors can talk to the whole team.”

An architect can advise on how to make a home more livable. Shown above: before & after photos of a San Francisco renovation by Andre Rothblatt Architecture.

The Talk to an Architect program is free and does not require pre-registration. Just drop by the Home Tours headquarters at 2128 Folsom Street on September 11 or 12, anytime from 10 to 4.

[ This article was written in conjunction with Michael Bernard, our "Ask Michael" columnist, and addresses billing from the standpoint of smaller firms with a focus on custom single-family residential work for private owners. ]

Invoicing and collecting payment are a key element in the designer-client relationship, one which is often overlooked particularly with small firms serving private residential clients. A designer may feel embarrassed to be demanding specific sums of money from his clients. Or she may feel that the relationship that she has with her clients is so personal, so delicate, that even a single invoice would drive them all away. Some designers may try to hold off on invoicing until the client is too emotionally invested in the project to back out. Then they send a huge invoice, and the fight happens anyway, only it’s worse than ever.

Needless to say, these self-deluding habits don’t serve anyone – not you, and not your clients, either. If you don’t know how to ask for money for your services in a way that gets you paid, the consequences are obvious.

Billing should be treated as one of the fundamental business practices of small and large firms alike, rather than an afterthought. Yes, the design work is important because after all, that’s why your clients are coming to you. In terms of cash flow, collecting is one of the biggest challenges especially for small firms – and yet, the AIA Handbook has very little advice to offer on things like what information an invoice should contain, how it should be presented, or what to do if payments are not received in a timely fashion.

Is Billing The Real Problem?

When most of us think of collections, we think of third-party agents calling up deadbeats and threatening them with increasingly scary penalties. That attitude doesn’t go over well with a private design client, even if that client owes tens of thousands of dollars in fees. Some architects end up in a downward spiral of gamesmanship with their clients, each of them trying to hold the other over a barrel – with the bill as the focus of contention. But is that the real problem?

Typically, both client and architect argue about fees when other problems arise. Could it be that we’re fixing the wrong problem here? They say an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. How can we line up all our ducks in a row so that misunderstandings never even have a chance to develop?

For many professionals, client disputes stem from a lack of trust - which in turn arises when the parties have failed to establish shared understandings and common goals from the onset. And, sadly, some people derive more satisfaction from "winning" than from actually accomplishing anything. Art: "The Conjuror" by Hieronymous Bosch shows a crowd fascinated by a street magician. The magician's accomplice steals their purses while they're distracted

That’s essentially the strategy outlined by Michael Bernard, AIA who is not only an architect himself, but also a seasoned management professional specializing in business consulting for design firms. Through his own firm, Virtual Practice, Mr. Bernard works with over 50 clients consisting of firms both small and large, ranging from sole proprietorships to firms of over 30  people with offices in Northern and Southern California cities. I figured if anyone would know the answer to this question, it’d be be him.

Culture of Billing

“You have to create a culture of billing,” says Bernard. “You need to create a structure which will allow you to collect fees. You don’t have to be shy about it. It’s what keeps your business moving forward.”

“Be rigorous in billing every month.” Bernard was emphatic. “Some firms delay up to three months, but they’re losing money by doing that.” It really takes commitment from the principals, not just hiring a bookkeeper and putting the problem in someone else’s hands.

This culture should extend to all of your employees as well. “A typical office might issue something like 20-50 invoices a month. Your staff needs to understand how the work they do supports the well-being of the firm. Part of this is to understand that completing their timesheets accurately and on time is what helps the office to get paid on time.”

The Contract is King

As it turns out, fee disputes are often the first symptom of weaknesses in the architect-client relationship that had gone undetected, and one of the biggest weaknesses is not clarifying relationships and expectations at the very beginning. The early stages of engagement are a delicate time and many architects tread lightly to avoid frightening off a potential client. After all, if the clients are that leery of spelling out commitments on paper, do you REALLY want to work with them?

“Use the contract to convey established billing practice,” advises Bernard. “The contract is the memory of the project, with all parties signatory.” The contract spells out who the parties are, their roles and responsibilities vis a vis one another, the scope of the work to be performed, a proposed timetable, a fee structure, and billing practice as well.

With a good contract, all the other "courtiers" must submit equally to the royal sceptre. These are the who, the what (scope and cost), the when, the where, and the why (program).

“California law stipulates that architects may not perform design or construction services without a signed agreement with the client,” Bernard reminded me. Sometimes a firm will commence work to meet a demanding schedule and simultaneously try to work out the contracting details. This is almost always a risky practice, not only because it’s illegal but because it just postpones little issues until they become big ones. Even in cases where there’s not a moment to lose, get an agreement in place and then work out the contract as quickly as possible. An initial agreement can be as simple as a letter of understanding.

Although Bernard didn’t provide a timetable for finalizing a contract, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that letters of agreement should only hold for the first billing cycle, and if the client can’t agree to a contract after that time, the architect is inviting trouble by letting it slide.

Consider Client Response Times

One issue that I have seen as problematic on other projects are clients who are simultaneously demanding but who are also unavailable half the time for important decisions, or who are so preoccupied with their other affairs that they don’t have the bandwidth to think about things like finalizing and signing their contract agreements. If your clients are overseas for long periods of time, for example, you should get another designated responsible party who is empowered to act on the owners’ behalf, and clearly convey to the client the costs and consequences of project delays. “A simple solution is to include in the agreement the name of the designated project representative. This can be the owner or another party,”advises Bernard.

Even so, there are some decisions that can really only be made by the owner, and if the owners can’t understand the implications of delays, then the architect may have to expend considerable effort to keep the project on track.

Use Examples in the Contract to Illustrate and Convey Expectations

The contract can be used to set expectations by example as well as by description. “If you have third-party sub-consultants who bill to the architect, and the architect then bills that out to the client, you can include an attachment to the contract that sets some rules, including expectations for billing frequency and information – what to expect, and when to expect it.”

One aspect of this is to actually ask your clients what information they would like to have on their invoices. “Sometimes the owner gives us an invoice template,” says Bernard. “I attach this invoice to the sub-consultant agreement so that the sub-consultants can see how the information they provide to me is in turn provided to the client.” You can use this same method to establish the invoicing details that you would like to see on the sub-consultant invoices for your own information. Make sure that the information desired by the client is something that your office can reasonably deliver.

What does your invoice say about how you run your business? Your invoice should be carefully thought out to present relevant information clearly, including any desired actions - such as what to pay and when to pay it.

Define a Billing Timetable

Along with format, the architect must set forth clear invoicing timetables with both the owner and the sub-consultants in a way that allows them to mesh together smoothly. These timetables should be written into the contract which is agreed upon and signed by all parties.

You’ll have to establish clearly with the owner questions such as:

• By what date should the invoice be received?
• Who should receive a copy and do they need it electronically or in paper form?

“If we’re about service, then this attention to detail is part of that service,” says Bernard.

On the other end, you’ll have to set a timetable for the sub-consultants as well, ideally arranging to receive their invoices a few days before you have to invoice the owner. If they miss their deadline, they’ll have to wait another month to get paid, but that’s their problem.

For example, suppose that the owner establishes that he needs to have the invoice by the 7th day of the month in order to send remittance within 30 days. You might determine that your bills need to be done, approved, and sent out by the 5th calendar day. Your sub-consultants, in turn, will need to get their invoices to you by the 2nd or 3rd calendar day of the month. If it’s too much of a hardship for them, then you, the client, and the sub-consultant will need to propose some mutual arrangement that works for everyone.

The chain of dependency spans from contract terms, through hours worked, and finally to payment received. If any one of these links is weak, the remaining transactions may be delayed or absent.

A simpler practice might be to make a point of getting your invoices out within the first 5 calendar days of the month. “By establishing clear timetables for all parties, you won’t be late because of lagging sub-consultants,” notes Bernard. “You don’t want to be held up in your billing and end up holding the bag for everyone else. Every day that you delay will cost you money because you’re essentially giving the client a loan. Don’t do that.”

If you delay billing on your end, but the sub-consultants bill YOU on time, you’ll be on the hook twice.

When people are asking YOU for money, and you don't have the cash, that's known as a negative cash-to-cash cycle. Make sure you can collect from your clients before you have to pay your own vendors and consultants.

What to Tell Your Bookkeeper

“Don’t forget to give your bookkeeper all the information about timetables, roles, and billing formats for each account. You could have different billing arrangements with each client, and it’s very important for the bookkeeper to have that information prior to issuing invoices, especially if your bookkeeper works offsite and only comes in a few days every month.”

You don’t need to give your bookkeeper the full legalese in every contract, but that person does need to know the basic fee structure and billing agreements that are in place. “Make sure your bookkeeper has a project information sheet for every project: name, address, billing address, other contact information, and terms of payment.”

Which Fee Structure is Best?

Before we go into this, one note to make is that the American Institute of Architects does not allow its members to discuss and compare specific fee rates. Even hypothetical examples can be an issue, so we’ll have to be vague on actual numbers here. Having said that, there are several common fee structures for private residential work, and no one method is best in all cases.

Fee as percentage of construction cost. Some architects like this, some don’t. Basically the architect’s total design fee is specified as a percentage (which can vary) of the construction cost. In early design phases, the cost of construction is of course an estimate. Upon project completion, this estimated cost is reconciled with actual construction costs. It’s up to the architect to figure out how to allocate and track this fee across the project so that the design budget doesn’t get consumed too early.

Hourly fee only. For some projects an hourly Time & Materials agreement with a fee schedule for different types of staff is acceptable.

Hourly fee with not-to-exceed limit. The architect is responsible for monitoring fee usage in order not to exceed the budget. Part of this is keeping the project within scope, and informing the client immediately when some requested design change would impact the design fee, or other project costs.

Additional Services

For fixed-fee projects, how do you communicate clearly when a specified service or task is not part of the base fee – PRIOR to its appearance on the bill? It seems to me that this information should be conveyed directly to the clients at the time that they make the request of the architect.

“Get a letter of acknowledgment from the client,” says Bernard. “Either send them an email formally advising them that the task will involve an additional fee of an estimated amount, and request from the client for authorization to proceed. Don’t start until you receive this authorization. Then, on the next invoice, itemize each of these tasks.” For example, an additional shade study or extensive meetings with the neighborhood association above and beyond what might be specified in the base contract could be considered as an additional service.

Use the Invoice as a Communication Tool

I asked Michael Bernard how to keep clients from being unpleasantly surprised by their invoices. How do you prepare them for the fact that different design phases may involve different levels of effort and possibly different fee amounts? Is that something that gets plotted out in monthly billing projections so that private clients can do their own personal budgeting, which may include freeing up needed funds from other sources?

Bernard didn’t recommend using assumed calendar durations to calculate exact fee projections, because the duration of a design phase can be somewhat uncertain, especially if agency approvals are involved. However, projected or non-binding estimates of a monthly range of fee that clients can expect, by phase, is helpful, as long as it’s not tied to the calendar.

Communicating with your clients helps shape their expectations and their understanding of value. Your invoice is one part of an ongoing communication whereby you demonstrate the value of your services.

“Walk the client closer to paying on time by giving good information. We need to increase our value with our clients as service providers, and part of providing good service is to show a clear-headed understanding of money. Sometimes clients can’t understand every design issue, but they CAN understand money, so make that area your common ground.” This includes treating our clients’ money as if it were our own.

Don't view your clients as cash cows to be milked. They'll spot that sooner than you think.

What Should Be Shown On the Invoice?

Getting the right level of detail on an invoice is important. Too much line-item detail just invites a nickel-and-dime approach on the part of the client, who may dispute hours worked without understanding the design need for those hours. Part of this is conveying the principle of design as a service rather than a product. Another part is telling a clear story, so that it’s easy to follow how each subtotal figures into the invoice. And, finally, the invoice should present clear instructions for remittance – how much and when.

“Avoid tying the release of deliverables to your fee,” advises Bernard. “Don’t lose control of the link between services and fees.”

OK, so what should be on the bill, then? “If the fee is set as a lump sum fee billed as a percentage of construction, then it’s just the fee with no detail. If the fee is hourly with a cap, we may want to provide detail, especially regarding project changes that cause us to exceed the fee,” says Bernard. As stated earlier, these additional services should not come as a surprise to the client – get an authorization to proceed by task before billing for additional services. If you need to show fees allocated across design phases, then you might need to include the design phase (or phases) on the invoice for work performed, even for fixed-fee arrangements.

If your fee agreement is straight hourly, your invoice will be a diary of work performed and, as such, can be a useful tool for both you and your client. For the architect, it allows them to communicate the value of their services to the client. In fact, good invoicing is a diary of the project, regardless. The issuing of invoices is a project activity just as are submittals or deliverables to the client. Having clear and consistent invoices is an important part of the project record – what was billed, when, what was paid, etc.

Other details on what information should be presented should have been worked out earlier, in the initial contract. Some architects will show things like fees spent vs. fees remaining, or provide separate summaries on each invoice showing just the total fees billed to date – not including reimbursable expenses.

Details Matter

“Always review every invoice before it goes out,” cautions Bernard. “Your clients will expect you to know what’s on those bills whether you really do or not.” Invoices with too many typos create an unprofessional impression, and if there are any errors in arithmetic, charges, or line items, you’ll have some explaining to do. Even if it was someone else who made the error, like your bookkeeper, the buck still stops with YOU.

Not All Hours Are Billable

If you’ve agreed to a fixed fee but you bill monthly by T&M, you could get a lot of questions from your clients, especially if you don’t do a good job of allocating resources internally, and you are bent on billing out every hour of staff time to “reduce overhead”. The client isn’t responsible for your failure to budget for your own operations.

Visibility Into Your Own Operations

“All firms should have a billing system that is NOT Excel!” Bernard and I discussed the various merits of QuickBooks and ArchiOffice. (I’d used ArchiOffice at my last position and loved it – even for a small firm it paid for itself the first day we ran our bills on it, and it simplified reporting and timekeeping by a magnitude of 100.)

"All firms should have a billing system that is NOT Excel," advises Michael Bernard. Shown here is ArchiOffice, a system that I used at my last firm. Yes, I'm shamelessly promoting a piece of software - for free.

I think my question was about how much information a small firm really needed about its own operations, if they’re not doing Federal work. Is it worth it to do complex profitability analysis or corporate-level financial reporting? “You need to know what your expenses are. Where do you spend money, and what is the profitability at staff level for each project?”

A real billing system simplifies timekeeping and timesheet entry, and it also does something even more important: real-time information on project budget and hours used. “If your project is over budget, you can trim your effort in a timely manner, instead of continuing to put forth the same level of effort only to find out you should have cut back a month ago.”

“In terms of overall billings and expenses, you should know: what your target is per month, what you earn, and what you spend,” says Bernard. Not all billing systems will include full operational features for internal expenses and payroll, so you’ll need a general accounting system to provide and manage this information.

The Cost of Delays

What does it actually cost you when you are late getting your bills out, or when clients are late in paying? “When payment is delayed, you’re essentially lending the client money. How much does it cost you to tap into your line of credit?” Of course if bills don’t go out at all, payments will never come in. Unbilled but billable staff time is not money in the bank, as some people might fondly believe. It’s money OUT of your pocket.

Questioning an Invoice

Sometimes a client will question an invoice. Here again, a clearly written contract that’s signed by everyone is your best ally. You should be able to refer back to the contract to identify how a billing number was arrived at, and where it fits in with the total agreement. New clients may need to understand that a retainer is not part of the fee until the end of the project.

“Use contract language to establish how much detail to provide on the invoice,” reminds Bernard. “If we establish in the contract that we don’t provide detail, then they shouldn’t be demanding this detail as a condition of payment. If we do, then any hours we spend on gathering the reports they need should be billed as T&M as an additional service.”

Can you bill your bookkeeper’s time for additional reporting? Yes, if it’s already in the contract. But do people actually exercise this option? “Probably not. But it gives you leverage. Think of this as a mini-exercise, a strategy to facilitate an ongoing design dialogue… how we manage fee transparency should be the same process as for design discussions.”

It is very hard not to feel put on the defensive, especially with a demanding but uninformed client. It may signal a lack of trust, and that may not necessarily be your fault. But if you really have nothing to hide, then you will be able to respond to even the most irate questions with calmness and courtesy.

"What's this on my bill?" We believe that a calm and courteous demeanor is the best defense, along with scrupulous honesty.

In our next installment, we’ll go into strategies for collecting late payments.

[ This article was written in conjunction with Michael Bernard, our "Ask Michael" columnist, and is the continuation of our previous article on billing for smaller architectural firms. ]

In our previous article, we described a few billing basics: what should be on the bill, and how to use the contract as a vehicle to establish all appropriate relationships and responsibilities. Having good understandings in place from the get-go is the best aid to keeping your accounts current.

Even so, Murphy’s Law is well-known, and you can’t depend on documentation to prevent every mishap. So, how do you handle it when your clients get behind? “They sure don’t teach this in architecture school” is what I found out – but the good news is, all is not lost, as long as you have the will to act on your own behalf.

Traditionally, collections has been viewed as a strong-arm profession, but a real professional can do better.

Collecting Late Payments

If you do a Google search for things like “collections letters” or “collections practices”, you’ll find a wealth of material, mostly advising people in debt how to fend off aggressive and unethical collections agencies. You won’t find too many call scripts or sample letters, at least I didn’t, and none that would be suitable for a professional services firm.

The "soft" portion of collections does not involve legal action.

However, you will need some consistent process to follow, and it should consist of a series of actions and escalations such as calls or letters, that are most likely to yield the results you want. It can be personalized to each client, but don’t let any of your clients off the hook, because the slack you cut others will come back to cut you.

Client is unusually late? “Call them up!” says Bernard. “Keep your voice neutral and unemotional. Rehearse beforehand if you need to. The message is that as a small business, cash flow is vital to your operations, and you’d appreciate them sending an immediate payment.” If you end up leaving a voice message, mention the hardship and then ask the client to call you or send payment immediately.

Should you have your bookkeeper make these calls instead of doing it yourself? “If your client is an institution or other large organization, the bookkeeper or project manager can make the call. If the client writes the checks, the principal should make the call.”

What about a timetable? Most collection action scripts include one or two phone calls and a series of letters from “soft” to “stern”. You might have to consider what works for you and your clients, but whatever you decide, be strict in sticking to timetables. If the client is on 30-day payment terms, you can make your first call on day 31. “Again, just keep it neutral. You’re calling because you haven’t received payment on the last invoice – for small firms, cash flow is vital, your business depends on it, and you would greatly appreciate prompt payment.”

If You’re Not Paid, You Can Cease Work

The next step if a phone call doesn’t work is to cease work and notify the client. Again, the contract is your ally, and it should contain language including fees to resume a project, and the conditions under which a stop-work order can be issued. If you make a second phone call, this can be the “serious” call where you inform them that you will be forced to cease work on their project, that this will affect the entire team and the project schedule, and that both payment in full plus an additional fee to resume work would apply. Sometimes clients don’t realize the true cost of delays in terms of permits that expire, or other factors.

[ This is not the same as a "stop work notification" in a legal sense. Here, ceasing work on a project means re-allocating your staff to other tasks, telling them not to bill any more hours to the project in question, and not spending any more of your own time on the project other than to archive the work as it exists to date. If the client requests the architect to cease work, there's usually a specified number of days that the architect can still legally bill for cleanup. By contrast, a stop work notification is a legal action that obligates the construction lender, if there is one, to withhold funds to cover the outstanding fee. ]

Keep a record of ALL your calls and conversations regarding collections.

Arbitration and Mediation

The design services agreement is a de facto notice of right to place a lien. With the right to lien as leverage, the contract confers the right to mediate and/or arbitrate later on down the road, if it is needed.

Carrots and Sticks

I asked Michael Bernard how well these “soft” calls actually worked. I used to think that collecting was an uphill battle unless there was some immediate leverage – if you don’t pay me, I won’t submit your project at the Building Department – but Bernard again advised on lining things up from the beginning was the best way to avoid adversarial situations.

“A former client felt so guilty about a tardy payment that he paid up even to his current charges that hadn’t been billed yet! But to obtain this outcome, you have to lay the groundwork early, and set up those terms long before.”

Having said that, there are two points in the project that are good times to true up the accounts, and that is right before submittal, and right before construction. You can also pull the permit out of Planning so that construction can’t go forward without you. Choosing to take such a strong measure can be a very nerve-wracking decision, but even if you do end up resorting to it, don’t think of it as a hostility so much as putting your foot down to set some limits on the treatment that you will accept.

Do you ever charge late fees? I asked. “A late fee can be added to the contract as leverage, but I’ve never had to charge one. Usually reminding the client that late payment penalties COULD apply is enough.”

If all your best efforts fail to get results, you can put a lien on the property. Optionally, a stop-work notification can be sent to the construction lender. If you end up going to court, many contracts provide for mediation as an alternative.

Legal Recourse

When we got to this portion, Michael Bernard took the time to share with me a handout that he had received from  Severson & Werson, a law firm that provides legal services for architects here in San Francisco. Much of the information in this section has been distilled from one of their “First Friday” workshops which Michael Bernard attended.

"A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush," meaning that cash received today is better than promises of payment later.

So you’ve called, you’ve written, you’ve pleaded, you’ve not only threatened to cease work but you’ve actually notified everyone and re-assigned your staff. What’s next? A lot of architects go straight into writeoff mode, although some will just leave these debts open in their books for years. Either way, that’s money left on the table.

Some architects don’t want to play hardball because they’re afraid of making their client angry. But then you have to ask yourself: What are you realistically getting out of the situation as it stands today? Are you fantasizing that this one big commission is going to win an award someday? Are you hoping that the client will work with you again? But if you’re not getting paid now, why do you think the client will pay you the next time? Michael Bernard puts it this way: “If you’re not getting paid, what does that say about the value of your services?”

“Architects are professionals licensed by the state along with other professions such as engineers and contractors,” notes Bernard. “This means that they have some legal recourse that is not available to other design professionals such as interior designers.” This recourse consist of liens and stop work notices. A lien applies to the property, and a stop work notice obligates the construction lender, if there is one, to withhold funds to cover the outstanding fee. For design professionals, there are two types of lien, depending on whether construction has started or not.

However, none of this will do you any good without a signed contract. There’s a bunch of fine print here (in 18 point Powerpoint type) about contract fees vs. reasonable value of services, and some important schedule limitations. You have to prove that you’ve delivered the services, that you’ve invoiced for these services, that you haven’t egregiously overcharged for your services, and that you’ve formally demanded payment. Also note that liens only work if the client who owes you money is the actual owner of the property.

After reading the rest of this presentation from Severson & Werson, I’d only say that getting a lien requires a lot of attention to detail, paperwork, process, and timely scheduling. Sometimes you have only 10 days or 20 days to complete an action. So, if you do pursue this route, make sure you allocate appropriate staff resources as well as your own time to keep track of where you are in the process. But, the good news is, you HAVE this recourse, and it has been successfully used by professionals like yourself who have the fortitude to commit to it.

Finally, if none of this works, you can resort to arbitration or take your client to court. Obviously this is something that none of us ever wants to do. Some architects may be afraid that their professional image will suffer, but I’d opine that unless you make a habit of litigation, the only people it will deter are other problem clients. These situations can and do happen to everyone from time to time, and if you let people walk on your bones, all that will happen is you’ll sink deeper into the hole.

Conclusion

But relax, all is not lost. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. Bernard sees the tasks of billing and collections as occurring within the larger context of running a design-centered business.

“We face so many risks in day-to-day architectural practice: liability, design excellence, quality of product and so on. These areas easily command our attention. Compared to these challenges, billing and collections should be a lead-pipe cinch. Yet we sometimes lose sight of the importance of cash flow in the name of pursuing more stimulating design-related activity. If we ignore the importance of a clear, lean and rigorous system of billing and collection, we will slowly but surely compromise the health of the very entity that allows us to pursue the career we love.”

Billing is only one of many tasks in running a design-centered business, but with care and attention, our tranquility won't be disturbed by needless hardship.

Severson & Werson Contact Information

Severson & Werson gives free workshops on the first Friday of every month to interested design professionals. To obtain more information, or to request a copy of the presentation referenced in this article, please contact Pete Molgaard at 415-677-5626.

Recently, I attended “KA Connect 2010”, a conference focused on the growing role and importance of knowledge management and information systems in the Architecture/Engineering/Construction (AEC) industries.

Christopher Parsons, founder of Knowledge Architecture, a San Francisco-based knowledge management and information systems consulting group, organized KA Connect 2010. His premise for doing so is clever and impressive. Chris had many questions and ideas with respect to information technology as an influence and driver of architectural and engineering practice and of the construction industry. Rather than pick up the telephone and, sequentially, call everyone he knew in order to exchange ideas and to obtain data one-on-one, he organized a conference and invited everyone he knew that might help inform the current state of IT.

Can you still expect to use old-school tools to design a twisted glass tower like this one?

KA Connect 2010 was the result of his effort: more than 35 speakers participated in the conference, representing the spectrum of AEC professionals: architects, engineers, software developers, client-side construction managers, business development consultants and outsourcing consultants. All were brought together for two days of 360 degree, highly interactive knowledge sharing, structured in an unusual and effective format. Talks were short and numerous, and were divided into two categories: “Blue Sky” talks focused on new trends now in development but that have not yet been integrated into practice. “Pecha Kucha” talks focused instead on issues relevant to current practice. The gap between these two perspectives on information technology and its role in the world of AEC, presented a rare opportunity to speculate on how to transition from present to future practice.

The Benjamin D. Hall Interdisciplinary Research Building designed by M.A. Mortenson Company was a winner in the Third Annual BIM Awards. In this case, the technology wasn't used so much to create a wild shape. Instead, it was used to facilitate the integration of complex MEP systems within tight zoning constraints.

[Note: I found an interesting in-depth discussion of both the BIM projects shown in this article.]

Part 1: How We Build

Volker Mueller of Bentley Systems and Calvin Kam from Stanford University kicked off first group of presentations. These speakers focused on the relationship between theory supporting software development (Parametric Design Knowledge) and the growing prominence of Building Information Modeling (BIM) in practice. These observations were complemented by a testimonial by John Moebes of Crate and Barrel, whose talk, “Design-Build-Bid” emphasized the need to “design the procurement” at the onset of a project. By doing so, project costs can be closely controlled while assuring high-quality output, consistent with the owner’s expectations.

The Loblolly House by Kieran Timberlake Associates used BIM technologies to facilitate simultaneous offsite fabrication to required tolerances, to spot design problems before they caused delays and waste, and to coordinate schedules and construction more efficiently. This project was also an award-winner in the Third Annual BIM Awards.

Subsequent speakers addressed the practical pitfalls characteristic of the current state of design practice. Paul Coates of Salford University in the U.K. compared open and closed models of person-to-person information sharing between architects in the public and private sectors in Britain. His point of view was that, architects employed in the public sector historically had access to knowledge about the client’s ultimate goals with respect to program and budget. In contrast, the private sector architect works in relative isolation, and seldom has access to the client’s high-level, long-term project goals. In the absence of these goals, Coates proposes, the value of the architect as vision facilitator is compromised. In order to derive the greatest benefit from the architect-client relationship, the client should share the goals of the project openly.

Andrew Arnold of Reed Construction Data addressed the challenge inherent in the inefficiency of finding and organizing elements and objects in the use of Revit and other BIM design software.

Taking a different perspective altogether, Justin Quimby of Quimby Heavy Industries compared the BIM model to the design methodology in his field of game design. Rather than rely on repetitive iteration and construction of data, a condition Quimby refers to as “Friction”, Quimby advocates for the development of “middleware”: software expressly designed to reproduce design elements that are used repeatedly. Quimby advocates for saving brain power for high-level creative endeavors, relegating repetitive tasks to software: “If you can do something by hand, build a tool to do it”.

Even our models of what knowledge "looks" like might have to radically change - after all, a linear or sequential hierarchy is only one of the almost infinite ways in which information can be encoded and accessed.

Josh Lobel (The Josh Lobel Initiative, Philadelphia, PA) addressed the leap that designers have to make in order to create coherent data that translate from design to built structure. His recommendation: “Think about how you talk about what you do.” In contrast to Quimby’s point of view, Lobel advocates the philosophy promoted by Richard Sennett, author of the book, “The Craftsman”:  repetition is actually a means of skill-building. Here, we address the need to remain in control of the software and to continue to treat it as a tool for design, rather than risk letting the software design for us.

These points of view were synthesized into the design approach implemented by Gehry Partners LLP. Michael Kilkelly described the Gehry process of translating hand sketches into physical models and subsequently into digitized models. The resulting data serve as the basis of the final design, such as was the case in the Beekman Place tower in New York. Kilkelly advocated for lots of friction in the design process! Only in that way, the use of friction as a “brake”, can we assure ourselves of authentic engagement with the design process.

Freeform shapes can be challenging to build. BIM is useful for generating the detailed technical renderings necessary for actual construction.

Future Installments

The remaining sections of the conference will be addressed subsequently in posts on Practice, Collaboration, and Learning.

About the Conference Sponsor

Knowledge Architecture, the sponsor of the KA-Connect Conference, is a knowledge management and information systems consultancy based in San Francisco focusing particularly on building dynamic, integrated intranets for small and mid-size architecture and engineering firms in order to provide them with the same strategic and technical resources as larger firms.

Speakers’ contact information from the conference can be found here.

Principals of small design firms face at least two challenges with respect to mentorship:

• Finding the time to do it
• Developing a mentorship network

The overriding question is: What will I gain from spending my time to mentor and train young architects?

Emerging professionals and seasoned architects face similarly daunting challenges, but from opposing points on the continuum of practice. Dismal employment prospects in a competitive job market see their counterpart on the practitioner’s side: the increasing marketing efforts required to land contracts.  Interns face ever-longer and more elaborate internship reporting, at the same time that firms are showing a diminishing interest in hiring licensed architects. Evolving technology requires training even in the absence of employment in order to remain relevant and marketable, and often the new software requires an understanding of building systems that entry-level designers simply do not possess. Firm owners are familiar with building systems but lack facility with rapidly evolving digital media. These conditions suggest that the continuity of professional knowledge is at risk.

If you're alone, who's going to anchor the rope when YOU need it?

Given the unpredictable nature of the economic recovery, firm owners face the daily challenge of maintaining a consistent backlog of work. This potential discontinuity at the firm level is similar to the situation confronting recent graduates and others who attempt to create continuity in their architecture careers. The obvious danger is that, faced with the prospect of long-term unemployment in their chosen profession, many individuals will choose to abandon architecture and to pursue careers in other fields.

Young Architects Are Seeking Non-Traditional Careers, Not Architecture

To preserve continuity, architects must pro-actively seek opportunities to mentor emerging professionals. Recently, I spoke to a group of architecture students. We had just concluded a panel discussion on career alternatives to the traditional practice of architecture. The panel was comprised of architects who had left architectural practice to pursue unique and non-traditional careers: jewelry-making, strategic workplace development, and information design.

I asked the students if they intended to pursue careers outside the familiar realm of traditional practice. Out of 30 students, 25 raised their hands. I asked a second question: how many of the students intended to engage in the effort to obtain their architectural license? In response to this question, eight students raised their hands. As I see it, the future of the architectural profession is in the hands of these eight students – and three of those eight are “on the fence” about whether to pursue a career in architecture or to explore other professional options.

Ways to Provide Mentoring to Young Architects

We need to remind ourselves of the value of strategic, pro-active mentoring, as a tool to provide continuity in our profession. But how and where do we find opportunities to be a mentor? How do we encourage young architects to seek a mentor? And what do I (and my firm) get out of all this voluntary good behavior?

It feels great to be at the top, and the glory is yours alone. But, then what?

Teach. Teaching is a very effective way to pro-actively and strategically mentor the next generation of architects. Of course, each of us is a teacher in everyday practice. But there is a critical need for experienced architects in the academic setting. If you do not hold an academic position, ask an academic colleague to integrate you in desk crits, on juries or on review panels. Investigate whether there are opportunities to teach at a local architecture school, university extension, or community college. Devise a topic of interest to young architects and present it at your local AIA chapter. In these settings, use the course(s) you teach as a means of communicating the importance of finding a mentor – and of fostering a mentorship network. The beauty of teaching is that we get to interact with the next generation of architects, learning what is important to them, how they perceive the profession, and hear what their professional goals are likely to be. Ask yourself, in the presence of the young designer, where they (and you) will be in ten years. In some cases, you will be working for them! So take time now to teach them the importance of rigor in design and management. You might find that the lessons you impart will be the platform for your own interaction with them in several years’ time.

Advise. Another strategy is to offer to serve in an advisory role to the groups or organizations in which interns and young architects participate, such as the Young Architects Forum. In California, the AIA California Council has developed the Academy for Emerging Professionals. Such groups offer the opportunity to mix interns and newly-licensed architects with experienced practitioners in a non-work setting. Advice and insights – from both ends of the experience spectrum – can be shared in a supportive and educational manner. The result can help to maintain continuity between generations of architects, both for those who wish to share a life of professional insight, as well as for those who seek insight into the career ahead of them.

Engage. Yet another approach is to organize career strategy roundtables for unemployed architects at your local AIA chapter. In San Francisco, AIASF hosts such roundtables twice a month. At any given meeting, the roundtable offers the opportunity to assess the current job market and to discuss interview strategies with other professionals who represent the spectrum of experience and age, discussing issues of contemporary practice. In a period where the luxury of a familiar work setting is absent, the roundtable has created a venue in which to discuss the profession.

Mentoring: What’s In It For Me?

What’s in it for me? What’s in mentorship for the seasoned architect? One benefit is the opportunity to see the future through interaction with the generation that will eventually take our places in architecture. Consider this a parametric model for mentorship – a two-way stretch that attempts to bridge the technical enthusiasm and savvy of the young with the design and construction experience of the mid-career architect.

The field itself is so vast that sometimes you need a team just to get back to tell the tale.

In your work, create the context for an exchange of ideas among and between different generations of architects. Our technology-driven profession is dynamic, fluid – and recognizably different from ten (or even five) years ago. The future of the profession, whether we discuss BIM, IPD, Revit, or other prominent trends of the moment, is in the hands of today’s interns and young architects. We have the opportunity to be mindful and present and to listen to the concerns of entry-level architects, to learn how they grasp and master digital technology concurrent with absorbing considerable complex building technology – as much as we offer them our own insights into practice. If we fail to do so, we run the risk of losing precious continuity between successive generations.

The profession’s very future relies on this continuity – and upon successful connection with emerging professionals. If we do not connect effectively with them or fail to provide institutional support, they will likely find creative expression in other fields. The loss of the next generation will be tragic, as it will hinder the architectural profession from developing in responsive new directions.

Michael S. Bernard, AIA
Director, AIA California Council
Architect-at-Large, Academy for Emerging Professionals, AIA California Council
Adjunct Professor, California College of the Arts, San Francisco

Every time we go out to a design event, more and more of our colleagues want to hear about how we use social media, and how well it’s working for us. Mark English of Mark English Architects will be speaking about this at noon on March 4th at the AIA East Bay’s Small Firms Forum, along with Jerry James and John Merlie of FR James Construction. The presenters will explain their marketing strategies and how they have each adopted social media to suit their own specific needs.

The floor will be open for questions afterwards. “There is really no one right way to do it,” says Mark English. “It’s more important to tailor it to the needs and opportunities of your particular business. It’s not that hard to do, once you’ve got the right mindset. Come and find out!”

The AIA East Bay Chapter Office is located at 1405 Clay Street, Oakland, CA 94612. Please contact them directly to register.

Update:

The Panel Discussion on the 4th was very well attended with around 50 architects and contractors in the room. Jerry James and his associate John Merlie began the presentation with a glossary of terms and their vision of Social Media small business applications in the Construction Industry. A very useful followup from their point of view and be found at the following link: http://www.frjames.net/jerrys-blog/2010/3/8/followup-to-frjs-social-media-marketing-presentation-at-the.html

The audience was very engaged and involved, and understandably cautious.  After all, this is all a work in progress!  Some of the most important points that resulted from the interaction include:

1. Twitter is a Broadcasting Tool.

2. Business success using ANY media is a cumulative process using all tools, “Old Media” as well as “New”.

3. Example: We have a new project, images of which were first seen on Houzz.com by a potential client. He then saw an image of the house on the cover of the California Home & Design Sourcebook. He then went to our website and liked the design of the site itself.  The result, a motivated potential client before any actual physical meeting or phone call.

4. Our clients are now often younger successful professionals who EXPECT that we are “with it”. We had better be!

5. Using Google Analytics, we can trace the sources of our main website visitors. Referrals from Houzz.com amount to 15% or more per month, Twitter and Facebook another 15%, our own Blog sites yet another 15%. Direct searches are still the majority, but AIA and Magazine -related sites are minimal sources.

6. Time required:   One has to believe that marketing of any sort is useful.  If that premise is accepted, then every means of communication in business needs to be considered. As architects, we tend to think of “advertising” as a dirty word.

7. Brand: If you walk into a room and don’t say a word, no-one will ever remember who you are. If you walk into a room with a name tag on and don’t say anything, some may remember your name, but not know  who you are.  If you walk into the room with something to say, you will be remembered. SOCIAL MEDIA CREATES AN ENORMOUS ROOM.

8. Content is King!

The Architect’s Take introduces our new special guest columnist, Michael Bernard, AIA, Principal of V-Practice Consulting, a San Francisco-based design practice management firm.

A friend of mine, the director of business development at a national, multi-office AIA Gold Medal firm, recently offered insight into the current protracted economic slump in the design and construction industries. We shared guesses about how much longer the recession would negatively affect our profession. My colleague suggested that we might be facing a situation analogous to “hospital sick” syndrome. In this analogy, a gravely ill person begins, gradually, to feel better. A person who has been gravely ill for a long period of time may, upon feeling the slightest improvement, impatiently exclaim, “Wow, I’m feeling better now!” and begin to engage in activity as full health has returned. However, the convalescent patient is not fully recovered. Instead, the renewed activity taxes the patient’s strength – causing a relapse.

This is not a call to be glum or to moan about gloom and doom. This is a call to develop strategies that look to the future rather than relying on solutions that worked two years ago, or even six months ago. Eventually, the economy will turn around – I truly believe this. I am, and always have been, at the “Pollyanna” end of the optimist continuum. However, chances are that the old economy will not return to the vigor it once exhibited. Our marketing strategies must be “present tense” and adaptable to the idiosyncrasies of short-term economic ups and downs, despite the overall upward direction.

Look to the future for new business strategies.

We have to approach the twelve months ahead of us with thrift and a strong sense of market savvy. We might hear from colleagues about renewed enquiries and auspicious activity suggesting that a contract for design services might be imminent on previously dormant projects. We might see promising indications of a comeback in the residential design/construction industries.

But just because other design firms may appear to be experiencing improved conditions doesn’t mean that the economy will find its way to our doorstep without our persistent personal efforts. Architects who are indefatigable business developers, who have incessantly cultivated their networks, and who are not daunted by the state of the economy, are the scrappy survivors who will benefit from the current gradual increase in residential remodeling. (I put myself in the same philosophical boat. Welcome aboard.)

Clients will have a harder time financing their projects.

Prospective clients who intend to pursue home improvement projects will likely pay for the remodeling – with cash. Those would-be clients who dream of remodeling, and who think they will go to a bank and get a loan – they may well be disappointed to find that they will not be able to obtain financing. This reality thins the client herd substantially. And those who have cash drive hard bargains. (Which is why they have cash)

Clients with cash may bargain more aggressively.

Looking ahead, what does this mean for the small design firm? Here are some thoughts:

• After a two year period of slow (or no) business, we understand all too well that the telephone will not ring if we stare at it.

Countless generations of teenage girls already know that telephones never ring when stared at.

• As a result, you have to market your firm more than ever. Make your value apparent to a prospective client immediately. In fact, remind your entire network of that unique value. If your focus is on residential design, you may never have had to compete with other architects for the one-time residential client. And now you have to do so.
• Devise a business development strategy to reach prospective clients through means other than stating plainly that you want their business. Think of new opportunities to publicize your firm’s work, such as interviews in widely distributed neighborhood newspapers in your market area. Consider mailing or emailing quarterly postcards advertising your work to clients, consultants and contractors. Follow up these valuable communications with links to the firm’s website and telephone calls to prospective clients.
• Think of ways to be the only architect in the room. For example, join boards and organizations that would benefit from your commitment, advice and perspective. Do not join if your interest is false or opportunistic. Benefits to all parties diminish if the contribution is inauthentic.
• Husband your resources and focus on long-lead marketing efforts that result in new business. Make economies where you can in order to subsidize this effort. This is a formidable challenge for small practitioners – and such marketing efforts may require the resources you have set aside for just this purpose. But keep in mind that the lag time between meeting a client and signing a contract may be longer now than it used to be.

Look ahead – way down the road. For the sake of the argument in favor of thrift and long-lead marketing: assume that business will remain flat (or worse) for the first 3 to 6 months of 2010. What marketing and business development efforts can you make that differentiate your firm from other contenders?

On Friday, December 4, from 1:00-2:30 pm, the AIA San Francisco Office is hosting a seminar titled “The 2.0 Practice”. Mark English will be co-presenting at an elite roundtable discussion on the impact of social networking on design practice, including strategies that other firms can use to incorporate social media into their overall business plans.

Featured speakers include:

• Architect Mark English, principal of Mark English Architects and creator of two blogs: The Architect’s Take and Green Compliance Plus
• Interior designer Joel Robare, principal of JR Studio, a boutique firm with offices in San Francisco and Chicago
• Mike Plotnick, corporate communications manager for HOK

Traditional media, shown at top, do not offer the scalability and interactivity of social media.

This post will be published live during the seminar, and we will be inviting people to comment afterwards on what they got out of it.