Recently, I was interviewed for Columns, the magazine of the Dallas Chapter of the AIA. One of the themes running through the interview was resilience, particularly for design firms.  It got me thinking about what resilience really is, where it comes from, and who has it. As with many words I come across, even those in common usage, I head for the dictionary.  (I’m one of those old-fashioned people with a large hard-bound dictionary sitting on its own stand.) (more…)

Firm leaders are like fathers. Or like parents, at least, as I include firm leaders who are women. We may not all be as extraordinary as Atticus Finch, but this Father's Day seems like a good time to make my analogy between firm leadership and fatherhood. To me, there are five areas in which they are similar. 1. Teaching & Coaching Certainly, our younger staff need to be taught the basic skills of competence in the field.  Just as important is that they be taught the less tangible, less-easily-learned "life" skills of teamwork, relationship building, seeing the bigger picture beyond the work at hand, and exercising good judgment and foresight. We must also recognize and promote talent and leadership in our staff, and delegate increasing responsibilities to them.  Our ...