How Firms Succeed: A Field Guide to Design Management is a hands-on guide to running any design related business from a two-person graphics team to mid-sized and global firms. The authors combine practical solutions with business theory, providing insight into the art of inspirational management and strategic thinking.

Sections address such critical topics as marketing, operations, professional services and finances as well as new perspectives on design leadership. The concluding questions at the end of each chapter give the reader points of reflection for their own goals and experiences.

How Firms Succeed is widely used at firm retreats and is also part of the professional practice curriculum at many of the top architecture schools. It is a popular selection of the Architects and Designers Book Club.

About the Authors
James P. Cramer, Hon. AIA, Hon. IIDA, is the Chairman/CEO of Greenway Group, a leading strategic consultancy for the design professions. He conducts extensive research, gives seminars and provides consulting services to leading professional firms around the world. He also serves as co-chair of the Design Futures Council. Cramer is the former chief executive of The American Institute of Architects and the former president of the American Architectural Foundation.

Scott Simpson, FAIA, is the President/CEO of The Stubbins Associates in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is also a frequent speaker at seminars and conferences and has published more than 70 articles about innovation in the design professions. He has served as a design critic at Yale University and the University of Wisconsin as well as a guest lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

"How Firms Succeed is a fountainhead of great ideas for firms looking to not just survive, but thrive in today's challenging marketplace. I highly recommend it to any architect and designer as a thought-provoking guide to success."
- Thompson E. Penney, FAIA, President/CEO LS3P and President, The American Institute of Architects, 2003

"Prophetic...and the truest, freshest, and best written management book for firms of all sizes."
- Ambassador Richard Swett, FAIA

"Jim Cramer and Scott Simpson have created a a terrific touchstone for the design professions. By systematically expanding the definition of design to include all the elements of practice, they present a unified vision of success for the 21st century."
- Phil Bernstein, FAIA, Vice President, Autodesk, Lecturer in Professional Practice, Yale University