Architects and the art of being happy

How do you define a great employee? The answer is most likely dependent on who is attempting to respond: the employee or the employer. Life of an Architect's Bob Borson, FAIA, and Andrew Hawkins, AIA, talk about the traits and characteristics of great employees.

I get asked a lot about how much money an architect makes. Without understanding a few parameters, that’s like trying to buy a car by the pound. I spend a fair amount of my time discussing the architectural marketplace, where we can find value, what’s the going salary rate based on skill set and experience, and how badly we need this spot or that spot filled.

You’re about to graduate from architecture school, or maybe you already have a job, and you’re just simply looking for a change. Going through the interviews in an architecture firm is just part of a sequence of activities toward getting a new job. There are some things that are worth knowing before you step into the room. Welcome to Life of an Architect Episode 123: Interviews Just Aren’t that Hard. 

When you think of a building – whatever scale or project type – the items that go into creating that building are most frequently associated with the materials that are selected that define the appearance of the building. Brick, glass, wood, and metal are all great choices. But the decision on what to clad your project in goes a long way toward deciding things beyond the appearance.