Architecture 645: Architectural Practice in Canada

Study Guide

Unit 4: Architects as Leaders in the Construction Industry

Commentary

Unit 4 illustrates the leadership role of the architect in a project from inception to completion and how the architect must relate to a wide range of stakeholders in the design and construction industry. It is also important to distinguish between the respective roles that an architect and a professional engineer play in the design of buildings. An understanding of these roles not only affects the level of services and fees in the delivery of a project, it also helps in communicating and interacting with various participants in the design and construction industry while striving for excellence in a building project.

CHOP addresses how architects engage with other participants in building projects: with consultants (CHOP 1.2.3, p. 1); with builders, owners, designers, and others (CHOP 1.2.1, pp. 1–2); and, of course, with clients (CHOP 1.2.2, p. 1).

CHOP does not cover relationships the architect has with media; therefore, media is discussed only briefly here. As part of the project-planning process, architects should take the time to plan how they want to communicate ideas to influence the way the public interprets projects and initiatives, their impact on the community, and the effect of their design on citizens. To raise interest, architects may need to find the key design feature that offers a unique story—or angle—for the media.

Today, the term press is passé and inaccurate. Information gathering and distribution is referred to as media. There are numerous digital formats of media, each with a different access to information. Newspapers are becoming less important in the distribution of information. The importance of the Internet and social media in the twenty-first century cannot be overstated. Architects regularly use social media, both professional and public, to connect with their community and other professionals. Well-designed websites are critical to a successful practice in order to illustrate a firm’s expertise to potential clients.

Architects should also think of themselves as advocates for the profession and spokespeople for the value of design excellence in terms of the following:

  • public and professional leadership
  • skillful professional service
    • the ability to design projects that contribute to a responsible and positively built environment
    • addressing the environmental challenges of global warming

Learning Outcomes

After completing Unit 4, you should be able to

  1. Define what is meant by leadership and explain how an architect can or should become a leader.
  2. Discuss the role of the client and the architect in finding, selecting, and engaging an architect, including a strategy to respond to Requests for Proposals (RFPs).
  3. Discuss what is meant, implicitly and contractually, by the term management and coordination of consultants.
  4. Use various communications tools and techniques (such as processing change orders, RFIs, negotiation techniques, etc.) when interacting with builders and others involved in the construction of a building.
  5. Describe the expectations of the Internship in Architecture Program regarding experience.

Required Readings

  1. Read the following in CHOP (2009):
  2. Architectural leadership articles and websites:

Resources

  1. The Integrated Design Process
  2. Engage the Integrated Design Process
  3. Integrated Design Charrette for a Sustainable UniverCity Community
  4. Integrated Project Delivery: Building Our Future
  5. Contracts/Documents:
  6. Internship in Architecture Program manual (3rd ed.), 2012 (available from provincial/territorial associations and on the RAIC homepage)

Self-Study Questions

Work through the following self-study questions. Use the Course Discussion Forum to post comments/questions.

  1. Describe the purpose and workings of the Integrated Design Process (IDP). How do you see the architect’s role in the IDP? Should an architect aspire to be the leader of the IDP?
  2. Investigate how the IDP has evolved into the Integrated Project Delivery (IPD). How does it differ from the IDP?
  3. The architect-client relationship is crucial to the success of a project. How should this relationship be nurtured?
  4. What communication tools are critical in dealing with the various stakeholders in a building project? Why?
  5. What are the recommended contracts between architects and clients and between architects and consultants? What is the role of the RAIC?
  6. What are the typical contracts used between owners and builders. Investigate the role and services of the Canadian Construction Documents Committee (CCDC).
  7. Describe at least five different types of construction project procurement methods.
  8. What are some leadership techniques and roles that can assist an architect in practice?
  9. Identify some qualities of leadership you admire and have witnessed as an architectural graduate working in an architect’s office. What qualities have you witnessed that are not particularly desirable?

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