Architectural Designer

At House & Robertson Architects, Inc., which was established in 1996, it is our objective to be responsive to current trends in design and construction. Shorter schedules, tighter budgets, advancing technologies, arduous entitlements, skilled trades gap, and the blurring of building uses have increased the demand for specialization. This specialization not only requires effective documentation but also responsive team management. At the same time, software has made it possible to churn out greater amounts of information, but not all information is beneficial. Effective documentation is clear, concise, and coordinated. The mission of our firm, as executive architects, is to cultivate and maintain an organization that facilitates this type of undertaking, providing added value for our clients and collaboration partners while making significant contributions to the success of each project. We are looking for candidates who share the same passion. This is a full-time, on-site Architectural Staff role located in the San Francisco Bay Area and or Los Angeles. TEAM LEAD FOR ARCHITECTURE STAFF Fully competent in conventional aspects of architecture. Independently performs a variety of assignments requiring skills in conventional aspects of architectural designs and administration. Provides support for project kick-off information and creation of initial project setup and workflow. Reviews Newforma setup with Project Administration and confirms Project Team in the Project Directory. Reviews staffing plan and Project schedule with management and finalizes plan with architectural staff. Establishes task tracking tool and reviews expectations with each staff member. Establishes minimum weekly check-ins with team to track tasks are being met to deliver documents at scheduled milestones. Reviews Project with architectural staff, clarifying Project schedule, OPR, and consultant team. Becomes familiar with the Project Contract with oversight by the PM and Principal and distills key contractual items to the team as pertains to scope, fee, and terms. Reviews Project with PM weekly (at minimum) and tracks internal team progress. Is generally familiar with the project’s financial performance and can step in for the Project Manager during any given billing cycle. Is the team making anticipated progress? Are any team members struggling? What needs to be done to help the team be productive? What aspects of the Project are teachable moments, and how can these be used to increase individual staff development? RESPONSIBLE FOR PROJECT DOCUMENTS Develops and coordinates technical drawing solutions and strategies and provides guidance to less experienced staff. Mentors and trains staff and provides proactive team support for Revit best practices and drawing standards. Oversees BIM Execution Plan and maintain adherence to the plan by architectural staff and the Project Team. Monitors model management administration and maintenance and contributes to the creation of content and integration of digital design technology products across applications. Reviews BIM Plan with architectural staff and directs BIM/digital design logistics. Develops preliminary cartoon set based on AHJ requirements, office standards, and specific project requirements. Prepares sheet index from cartoon set, develops preliminary consultant sheet naming/numbering convention, and reviews with management. Distributes approved cartoon set and sheet index and upholds that staff adheres to approved index. Reviews office standards and expectations with the team, including graphic expectations, dimensioning standards, annotation standards, and work product. Strives toward documenting not just modeling. Gives guidance on architectural issues providing sketches as needed, and reviews drawings and verifies conformance with standards. Monitors drawing progress of the Consultants and reviews their work. Verifies Consultants are accommodating the architectural design. Coordinates drawings with owner’s program, building codes, and material specifications. Performs quality control of document progress at key Project milestones utilizing the QA/QC checklist with the team, and reviews findings with the Project Manager. Addresses coordination conflicts with the Project Manager. OVERSEE CONSTRUCTION ADMINISTRATION Reviews CA procedure with all team members and initiates Newforma setup with the Project Admin confirming proper configuration for the Project. Illustrates RFI and Submittal review process with the team and project admin. Coordinates with GC on their project management software and negotiates efficient workflow. Reviews GC’s construction schedule and develops a milestone schedule for internal tracking with the team. Anticipates shop drawing sequence and is prepared for time-critical submissions. Plans out field observation report cadence based on construction schedule and establishes expected level of quality of content for reports. Reviews any field observation reports completed by staff before sending to GC and consults with PM and Principal on initial reports for content, tone, and items to include at key intervals. Notes dates of anticipated substantial completion and tracks construction progress. Reviews progress with the PM and if construction appears to exceed duration in our agreement with the Client, assists PM in determining needs for additional services. Assigns individuals to perform basic screening of incoming RFIs and Submittals and establishes clear guidelines to obtain answers to questions. Reviews RFIs and Submittals before returning to GC and seeks advice from PM and Principal on complex RFIs or Submittals. Assesses CA logs weekly and monitors Consultant and internal response times and takes immediate action for overdue items. COMPLETES PROFESSIONAL REGISTRATION (IF UNLICENSED) Reviews aspects of the Project that can have a measurable impact in meeting goals for professional growth. Tracks hours toward completion of professional registration requirements and seeks hours from PM and Principal where lacking experience. Institutes an exam regimen and schedules exams per a timeline goal for completion. QUALIFICATIONS Professional Registration Highly Preferred 4 Years Industry ExperienceMinimum B. Arch Degree or Master's of Architecture Degree SALARY 80K-110K Depending on experience level BENEFITS 401k discretionary matching Health Insurance ESOP #J-18808-Ljbffr Facade Today