I AM [actually] AN ARCHITECT

[Founding new firm update #3]

By working on Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) for the past two years, I’d made a number of professional contacts throughout the U.S.  I called a few of them to ask for leads on finding partners who might be interested in founding a firm that specializes in “radical collaboration,” as I call it.

One of them is James Salmon, who runs Collaborative Construction LLC.  He did give me a name to pursue, but he also offered himself as a partner.  He’s an attorney by training, and now runs a consultation firm helping to facilitate IPD and other forms of highly collaborative projects.

He said he’d love to be general representative to an architecture firm such as the one I’m envisioning, and he offered his help.  In return for some equity, he would help me get things set up (which requires quite a bit of legal stuff), and connect me with advice and networking along the way.

I thought this sounded like a great idea, and James and I are now partners.

Shortly after that, another professional I know approached me about partnership.  He has a small general contracting firm that specializes in BIM.  His business model usually involves working under a larger General Contractor, and taking on a distinct scope of work (like steel detailing and erection). 

He was interested in expanding his operation to offer design services, as well.  Because we share a number of core values, including openness, collaboration, and a love of efficiency, he thought we might have some synergy.

I hosted him and his two partners and discussed these possibilities for a couple of hours, over coffee and cookies.  I found all three of them to be fiercely intelligent and upstanding people I felt I could trust.  By the end of the discussion, I felt good about that group of people and our collective approach to pursuing some work.  I agreed to enter into a network partnership with them, while retaining the autonomy of my own firm.

Our market segment: Large general contractors pursuing federal government projects, via Design-Build and IPD delivery models

Our service: Architectural and BIM services, supplemental to the lead architects, while offering disadvantaged business status

As with any startup, our business model will change because no battle plan survives contact with the enemy.  But at least I had a direction to go.  Now it was time to get some architects.  As I said in my earlier entry, I certainly will not be doing all the business stuff and all the architecture stuff.

It was time to revisit a partnership with the architect with whom I was already partnered on a separate and totally awesome venture called Opening Design.  I mentioned him in my previous entry.  I had previously been nervous to cement a partnership with him on this particular venture because 1) he was far away, 2) he is the prime on Opening Design, and 3) I didn’t know what kind of projects I wanted to pursue, so I couldn’t be sure he would be a good fit for them.

After getting my head together about a direction for the practice, at least for now, I looked again at the set of facts surrounding Ryan.  Now that I’d be pursuing federal jobs through large general contractors, this model was no longer geographic-centric.  In other words, these projects could be anywhere in the U.S.  So no matter what, my architects would have to be flying.

Ryan indicated that he wants to balance Opening Design with the practice of architecture.  After all, Opening Design is meant to serve the architecture community, so he wants to stay active as an architect.

And as for the project types, Ryan has experience in several of the project types that we are likely to encounter.

So I pitched the idea that I hire him as a “consultant” (as opposed to employee or partner), to see how that goes.  If we both like the arrangement and things look solid, we look at a partnership from there. I have partners! This rocket is a go.