Honored to Serve
As we came together at the 30th Architectural Exchange East, I realized my tenure as president was coming to an end. I thank you for the privilege of serving AIA Virginia in this capacity. Looking back, we have accomplished much with the creation of our
strategic plan in 2016, aligning our governance around that living document, bringing in our new Executive Vice President Corey Clayborne, AIA, initiating the inaugural Art of Practice and focusing on the member experience. These, among other accomplishments, are all thanks to our amazing AIA Virginia staff and engaged board of directors.
A few new initiatives that were shared at our annual membership meeting at ArchEx included the following;
Meeting of the Roundtables
The Large Firm Roundtable has been in existence for three years at AIA Virginia which commenced under the leadership of Nick Vlattas, AIA. In March of 2017, AIA Virginia extended these discussions to include Small Firm and Mid-Size Firms at the Art of Practice and called it the Meeting of the Roundtables. The second Meeting of the Roundtables occurred November 1 at The Branch with 40 current and emerging firm leaders representing 27 different Virginia firms. Ed Gillikin, AIA chaired the SFRT, Maggie Schubert, AIA chaired the MFRT and the Art of Practice (that was held this past spring), and Paul Battaglia chaired the LFRT. AIA Virginia Officer-in-Charge was President-Elect Eric Keplinger, AIA. Facilitated discussions and valuable ideas were exchanged regarding the following:
- Attracting and retaining talent during economic prosperity
- Coping with not having the “Missing Middle” in the profession
- Approaches to getting new work and building backlog, efficiently executing current work profitably, and then collection of earned revenue
- Other emerging topics of relevance
We will encourage members to continue to engage in these worthwhile firm roundtable discussions with peers in the profession.
Emerging Leaders in Architecture
We thank Brian Frickie, AIA for pursuing his vision of creating a leadership program for Virginia. The profession of architecture and the communities in Virginia have reaped tremendous benefits because of this program. The inaugural class was in 2009 and we are embarking on the 10th year! A focus group of ELA alumni and stakeholders are currently evaluating how a new leadership structure will be organized. As he steps down from leading this program, Brian has agreed to help with the transition process which will be vital to the continued success of the program. The transition process started with a Visioning Session that was held at The Branch on September 15. A follow-on professionally facilitated planning meeting will be held at The Branch on November 10. Applications for the 2018 ELA class must be submitted by November 16. Please consider investing in emerging talent within your firm through applying for this exceptional program
Resiliency
Natural disasters have been occurring with increased frequency in the United States. After Hurricane Harvey pummeled Houston, our hearts went out to the flood victims. AIA Virginia Board of Directors donated a total of $1,000 divided amongst several organizations as recommended and supported by AIA National. Our colleagues in AIA Houston took a severe blow as its new office space and center that was under construction was flooded and carries a $100,000 deductible for the contractor’s risk policy.
The AIA Virginia board of directors is supporting Paula Loomis, FAIA in reinvigorating AIA Virginia’s disaster assistance program that would partner with the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Department of Emergency Management. This key initiative is in the beginning stages and Paula Loomis conducted a presentation at this conference at ArchEx. Keep an ear out for developing news on this important front.
In closing, since we elected the new slate of officers for 2018 at our annual membership meeting, I see the future of our organization as healthy, sustainable and led by passionate individuals who are committed to fulfilling our strategic plan. Know that I will stay engaged as past president to assist our organization to accomplish the initiatives that further enhance our members in the practice of architecture in the Commonwealth.
Thank you,
Bill Brown, AIA
2017 President