Your Architecture Career: How to Build a Successful Professional Life
Description
Master the business side of architecture with advice from an expert—deciding on a career, building a repudiation, RFPs and proposals, and more.
In Your Architecture Career, Gary Unger provides tips and guidance to students, interns, architects, and firm owners to help them understand and master the business side of architecture and interior design. Students in school are not taught to manage process, projects, and clients—the emphasis is on design. However, most graduates will not finish their careers as designers. Rather, their focus will be on marketing, programming, project management, cost estimating, rendering, virtual reality, drawing documentation, specifications, workplace strategy, and construction administration. Gary Unger expertly describes the creative aspects of these disciplines and the considerable value they bring to a firm.
In order to accurately represent how an architecture firm successfully operates, Gary stresses the importance of teamwork. With project teams made up of architects, engineers, realtors, building owners, contractors, furniture dealers, and more, it is important to note that a project's success is measured by how well handoffs of information are executed both inside a firm as well as from firm to firm. Spanning a wide variety of topics, chapters include:
- Completing architectural school
- Deciding on a career path
- Landing your first job
- Building your reputation
- Managing handoffs
- RFPs and proposals
- Reassessing your career
- Starting your own firm
Whether you're a student about to graduate or a seasoned professional, Your Architecture Career is an invaluable resource for the business side of architecture.
Praise for Your Architecture Career: How to Build a Successful Professional Life
“Gary Unger has had a career that can be a model for others hoping for a successful life in architecture and interior design. His new book, Your Architecture Career, is a very useful addition to the very limited bibliography of books on this important subject. It should be on every young architect’s and interior designer’s personal bookshelf.” —Bradford Perkins, FAIA, chairman and CEO of Perkins Eastman Architects, coauthor of Architect’s Essentials of Starting, Assessing, and Transitioning a Design Firm
“Gary Unger’s book, Your Architecture Career, is an insightful look into the past, present, and future of the profession. Gary puts his finger on the flaws and opportunities in the profession and provides a clear, broad view of its scope, complexities, and differences. He skillfully examines the tension in the profession between art, technology, and business. The book is a good splash of realism for young minds beginning in the profession and will give them a jump-start on their career. It will fill how-to-do-it gaps for a seasoned practitioner. It’s a fun read for anyone with the faintest interest in the design and construction industry.” —Chuck Thomsen, FAIA, former chairman of 3DI, creator of “fast track construction scheduling” concept, and author of Program Management 2.0 and Managing Brainpower
“This exceptionally comprehensive, well-written book does more than just describe—lucidly and in great detail—the practice and business of architecture. By sharing with readers his diverse professional experiences, personal knowledge, and extensive management expertise, Gary Unger has created a richly textured narrative about all aspects of an architectural career as well as a highly practical, detailed guide for aspiring architects and architectural firms.” —Roger K. Lewis, FAIA, professor emeritus, University of Maryland, and author of Architect? A Candid Guide to the Profession
“Your Architecture Career provides important information and helpful tips for those launching a career in architecture, emerging professionals, and experienced architects. Topics include starting and progressing in a career in architecture, excelling in a career position, and the process of starting a firm with much detail. —Lee W. Waldrep, PhD, author of Becoming an Architect: A Guide to Careers in Design
“Many times, I have sat at a table opposite Gary Unger as he led a team through an innovative design, beginning with a goal. In Your Architecture Career, Gary leads you through your most important design to your most important goal—your career as an architect.” —Joel Rollins, AV technologist and futurist, host of The Week on rAVe Radio
“In Your Architecture Career, Gary Unger presents unique insights collected from a successful career as the founder and leader of Stamford-based architecture firm CPG. The practical guidelines within this manual would be invaluable to anyone hoping to follow Gary’s lead in having a successful and fulfilling professional life.” —Doug Winshall, founder of ClearRock Properties