Archive Library

Collective Design for a Changing Climate

December 17, 2019 | Adrian Parr
Dr. Adrian Parr is a philosopher and cultural critic that works at the intersection of environmental, social and political activism. She is a UNESCO Chair of Water and Human Settlements and Dean of the College of Architecture, Planning, and Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Arlington. We spoke with Adrian about climate change, problems of representation, cooperative design and the impact the A/E/C industry might have on sustainability. READ MORE...

Designing Against Extinction with Terreform ONE

December 10, 2019 |  Mitchell Joachim and Vivian Kuan
Terreform ONE was founded more than a decade ago to find solutions to cities’ environmental challenges by merging education, design, research, public outreach and science, with a concentration on socio-ecological design. Mitchell Joachim and Vivian Kuan spoke with DesignIntelligence about their organization’s focus and how we can all make a difference in designing a future that protects our planet’s living species. READ MORE...

Stop Going Round in Circles About the Circular Economy

November 26, 2019 | Joël Onorato
As people around the world increasingly question our impact on and relationship to the physical environment, so too should those who design how we live and work within it. With thoughtful planning, collective efforts and careful attention to the life cycle of materials, sustainability in the A/E/C industry could be closer than we think. READ MORE...

The Way of Authentic Leadership — Part 2

November 19, 2019 | Dave Gilmore
A curiosity of sorts is in the natural behavior of people placed into leadership when neither their skillset nor experience warrants the placement. Over the past 5+ years I’ve been witness to multiple misplacements into senior leadership roles only to see their organizations swirl into a choreography of confusion and misaligned activities. READ MORE...

The Way of Authentic Leadership – Part 1

November 12, 2019 | Dave Gilmore
Over the past twenty-nine years, I’ve been an intentional observer, writer and speaker regarding leadership. The journey has taken me to large and small places, large and small personalities, and large and small thinkers. READ MORE...

Advocacy: The Impact of Architects

October 22, 2019 | Dick Thomas
The need for great architecture has never been more urgent, the challenge to creating it never more complex. At SHP we believe our mission is informed by three things: design, research and advocacy. For most of us, the value of design is where we were born. Research underpins the way we solve problems. Advocacy is the new kid on the block... READ MORE...

Designing the Future: Priorities in Technology Investment

August 27, 2019 | Roberta Kowalishin
Our clients hire us for creativity and ideas that improve the way people work, live, and interact. Design decisions affect every component of the environments we invent through the creative process, whether it’s the massing of a building, the façade, the landscape, the interior, the overall structure the mechanical or electrical energy... READ MORE...

Convention Meets Invention: Change, Technology, and the A/E/C Industries

August 6, 2019 | Julian Anderson
Change does not come easy to the A/E/C industries, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t challenge our thinking about the best ways to do business. The needs of the present (and the future) are unlike any we have previously faced. READ MORE...

Sustainable Design: A Worthy Investment

June 18, 2019 | Jesse Devitte

As a venture capitalist, I believe creating a more sustainable environment is an investment opportunity that is not only profitable, but necessary for our future. Our physical world is under increasing pressure, and not living sustainably now will perpetuate future problems. READ MORE...

Increasing Industry Vitality Through Innovation

May 28, 2019 | Ray Daddazio
Thornton Tomasetti is a 1,500-person E/A firm with the audacious goal to be the global driver of change and innovation in our industry. To accomplish this, we need to be ambidextrous. What that means is we need to focus on our current business and results while at the same time, make relevant bets to insure our future. READ MORE...

Do You Need a New Vision?

May 16, 2019 | Jim Cramer
2019 marks the 25th Anniversary of the Design Futures Council! Over the years, the DFC has grown a very strong legacy of leadership and transformational change. DFC’s leadership in key trends includes sustainable design, technology, process innovation, management and design, and international practice... READ MORE...

A Vision for the Future

May 9, 2019 | Dave Gilmore
2019 is the 25th Anniversary of DesignIntelligence/Design Futures Council. To celebrate this milestone, we wanted to honor Jim Cramer, the organization’s founder, and Dave Gilmore, the organization’s president and CEO. In this piece, we’re talking with Dave about what drew him to DesignIntelligence, how he got involved, his vision for the... READ MORE...

Diversity & Inclusion: The New Approach Needed to Avoid Cultural Irrelevance

January 3, 2019 |  Chris Stulpin
Discussions of diversity and inclusion have been taking place in our industry for years. But the question remains: are we making any progress? READ MORE...

The Ghost Curriculum

September 29, 2017 | Scott Simpson
What Schools Don’t Teach, but Should. READ MORE...

The Convergence of Interaction Design and Architecture

September 27, 2017 | James Patten
The rapid development of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies is propelling us toward a world where an ever-increasing amount of our experiences are mediated by digital interactivity. As this trend continues, the task of designing our built environment will be as much about designing the interactive experiences that happen in that space as it will be about form, program, materiality and so on. The fields of interaction design and architecture will become one and the same, and we’ll need to work across disciplines and cultivate new skill sets to design new buildings.  READ MORE...

Nine Characteristics for Leadership in Sustainability

September 25, 2017 | Phil Harrison

These thoughts derive from a presentation I delivered a few years ago at the Design Futures Council Leadership Summit on Sustainable Design.
Are design firms doing enough ... READ MORE...

New Questions, Different Thinking, Positive Impact: Start at Zero?

September 19, 2017 | Patrick Thibaudeau
Think about this for a moment. When the kindergarten students of 2017 are college freshmen in 2030, what will the world be like? Will they have a bright, clean energy well and a health-focused world? Will we have done anything substantially different so that they have a better future? READ MORE...

Anticipate the Future: Executing a Successful Leadership Transition (Part 2)

September 13, 2017 | Carl Roehling and Troy Thompson
SmithGroupJJR recently completed a successful transition of the firm’s senior leadership. Two key participants in that process continue the story, addressing the details of moving forward into the implementation phase and some lessons learned along the way. READ MORE...

Creating Competitive Advantage

September 5, 2017 | Scott Simpson
Every design firm suffers from the illusion that it is unique. While each one certainly has distinguishing characteristics, there are far more similarities than differences. READ MORE...

The Next Generation: Designing a Successful Leadership Transition (Part 1)

August 29, 2017 | Carl Roehling and Troy Thompson
Editor’s note: Leadership transition/succession is one of the most important issues facing firms today. This article is the first of a two-part series on succession planning.

SmithGroupJJR recently completed a successful transition of the firm’s senior leadership. Two key participants in that process tell the story of how they executed the smoothest transition in the firm’s storied history. READ MORE...