I have had just under 17 years of working experience in the architectural industry and 8 of those have been actively involved in project and office management. Below I have broken down this experience and current responsibilities. Client Meetings I have attended and run numerous meetings with clients this year. With new projects, the scope of work always needs to be clearly understood. This usually entails a brief site analysis and conceptual drawing to ascertain firstly if the brief is clear, and secondly if the project can successfully be undertaken. This would then follow with a client/architect agreement/contract. Our preferred contract is still the PROCSA agreement, however, I have recently had to sign an NEC3 Professional Service Contract. Both clearly break down the scope, budget and deliverables, and many other necessary points which need to be laid out upfront according to the SACAP code of conduct. It also gives the opportunity to have the same contract between consultants once the professional team is understood. With every meeting, it is important to follow up with minutes or an email breaking down what was discussed/agreed upon. This is to make sure there is a record in writing which has many benefits, namely eliminating confusion or settling possible disputes. Office Management I currently manage company marketing, finances, HR, General office management and environment. In addition, I manage my department which consists of 12 employees. Marketing Marketing is an extremely important aspect of owning a business. It increases your reach and sets you among the better-known architectural firms. It communicates your company’s philosophy; character and it can bring a sense of pride to the staff. I currently manage the following under the marketing heading,
Finance I have taken over the company’s financial management. This has been a huge learning curve for me. Up to mid-last year, my exposure to fees or finances was minimal. However, since mid-last year I have actively been involved in every aspect of finances within the company. I have had to quickly learn Microsoft Excel, which I have thoroughly enjoyed. Management of finances includes the following,
Office Management and Environment Our company vision is "creating award-winning architecture from a vibrant environment." We have come to call this vibrant environment our ‘envibrament’. These are the aspects I look at to make sure we have a good ‘envibrament’,
Staff Management I have taken over our Studio 3 department which tackles all work for WCED, Pepkor and other projects. Due to having nearly 200 school projects running concurrently, with a staff base of 12, I have had to bring in some structuring and task management tools. I have created a reporting system for each school using Microsoft Planner which has been incredibly helpful. Human Resources I have taken over managing human resources in the company. We do have an HR consultant, however, there are high-level decisions required which do not fall within the consultant’s scope. These include,
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Seth AlfinoProfessional Architectural Technologist working in Cape Town, South Africa Blogs |