Professionalism

As an architect you have professional responsibilities. Your professional status is there to both require and help you to work to a generally high standard. But crucially it should also enable you to act for the greater good of society, including to the benefit of a local community, the environment or for broader social or economic ends. In addition, by acting in an accepted and recognised professional manner, you are partly protected from accusation and threat of legal action.

Although the immediate rules of professional behaviour are set down in the ARB’s The Architects Code: Standards of Conduct and Practice and the RIBA Code of Professional Conduct, the generally understood character of professionalism across society is constantly in development. It has been greatly affected by developments in other areas, such as the cases of Dr Harold Shipman and Alder Hey Hospital, as well as a range of cases brought against built environment professionals. One result of this change is that it is now not enough to behave in a professional manner – it is also necessary to be able to show that you have behaved professionally. Another is the pressure on companies to not just rely on their professional employees to act professionally but also to ensure that they perform as professional entities themselves and that as corporate bodies they act in accordance with codes of ethics, standards and conduct, both institutional and ones of their own devising.

For the full text including the further explanations of requirements associated with each standard see: www.arb.org.uk/professional_standards/regulating_architects/architects_code_2010

Both the ARB and the RIBA have disciplinary procedures to enforce their codes of conduct – for further information see their websites. Such procedures are very time-consuming and potentially highly damaging to an architect’s career and so should be avoided, if at all possible, by proper compliance with both the spirit and the letter of the individual codes. It is also beneficial to take an interest in the development of professional issues and become involved in the activities of the many bodies, such as the RIBA, ARB, government, local authorities and others, who are engaged in ensuring that standards of conduct and practice reflect the challenges of working in an ever-changing world.

Organisation

In order to be able to run jobs while meeting all the requirements of your clients, insurers and the law, as well as complying with professional codes of conduct, you will need to be well organised and have an adequate level of management, to ensure that projects run smoothly and are provided with sufficient resources.

There is plenty of management advice and a wide variety of tools available to help you with this, including the RIBA Plan of Work, the Handbook of Practice Management, the Architect’s Job Book and innumerable other sources of information. The following sections flag up a number of issues that you may wish to plan for as you establish management procedures for your practice.

Project staffing

Ensure that a named senior person in the practice is responsible for each job that the office takes on. If that person is not an architect it may also be necessary to name an architect to take responsibility for work carried out under the heading of ‘Architect’s Services’ or ‘Services to be Performed by an Architect’.

The projected staff resources, time and programme that any job will require can be mapped out and a relatively straightforward set of interlocking matrices produced to show the allocation of staff time to projects and how individuals’ time will be spread over the various projects and other activities in the office. If required this mapping can be more sophisticated and made to link with production schedules, timesheets, job costing and progress reporting. But, if it is to remain useful, it must be kept up to date to reflect the realities of delays, interruptions and overruns that affect all jobs.

Such matrices should allow you to ensure that enough of the time of appropriately skilled and trained staff can be provided for each job, and will help you not only to keep track of resources, but also to plan ahead.

Records

As each job gets underway a system of record keeping will start for it. Most offices have a system of codes, starting with a job number but also encompassing standard drawing references, filing references, etc. The reference system should be based on a standard office model and where appropriate on industry standards, such as Construction Operations Building Information Exchange (COBie) or Uniclass (Unified Classification for the Construction Industry)/the Common Arrangement of Work Sections (CAWS).

Similarly, a number of files will need to be opened to become permanent repositories for the history of each job. The number of these files will depend on a job’s likely complexity. A single file may well be adequate for a simple domestic job, but on more complex projects separate files will typically be required for:

• the client(s) and their affairs
• planning, statutory undertakers and building control
• health and safety and the Planning Supervisor
• the separate consultants
• specification and schedules
• the tender procedure
• the contractor
• subcontractors and suppliers
• minutes of meetings
• architects’ instructions
• valuations and certificates
• programmes, delays, etc.
• schedules of information required, etc.
• drawing issue and received sheets
• drawings (including superseded versions).

As the job progresses some of these files may grow to require several volumes and these should be organised to reflect project phases. Computer records should be organised in a similar fashion and retained. Print out and file key emails in the same way as other correspondence, together with any other relevant memos, notes and information from manufacturers, standards agencies, etc. At the end of each project the records need to be ordered and decisions made about what is to be kept for the medium and long term. It is essential to retain any records that might be needed if a dispute arises at a later date, but no more than that. The RIBA recommends keeping important records for 17 to 20 years from Practical Completion to ensure that you cover the entire period that legal action can be brought.

Quality control

An overall project plan and record should be developed for each job. This should flow from the practice’s overall quality control procedure and become the core text for the project. It is a live document that will be amended and updated as the project proceeds and should describe any particular requirements of the project and how these will be achieved.

Change control

All projects develop and change as they progress through the office, with many of those involved requiring, recommending or making alterations and adjustments to both the brief and the outcomes as the work proceeds. Keeping up to date with these changes, understanding their implications and communicating this to all the parties involved is an important element in the effective handling of projects. Some practices recommend the use of change-control forms or other forms of record-keeping to document each and every change on a project, with a collated version being distributed to the client and to the design and construction teams on a regular (monthly) basis. Such information, useful in itself to help the smooth running of projects, can also assist in explaining delays and with claims for additional fees.

Standard procedures

In order to maintain consistent levels of achievement on a repeat basis, you may wish to develop similar standard methodologies and solutions that can be regularly improved and transferred from project to project. Some standard procedures may be as simple as template forms for schedules or standard phrasing and descriptions; others may be more complex such as a library of standard details or of practice-specific specification clauses.

Standardising your outputs will be costly and time-consuming at the beginning, at just the time when both money and time may be in short supply, but it should pay dividends further down the line, as they build up into an essential resource for effective practice.

Resourcing

Every project will have both intense and quiet times, and the workload will vary considerably over its life. This can put enormous stress on any practice’s ability to cope. With luck a diverse set of projects in the office will permit some balance between projects, but it is just as likely to create simultaneous peaks of activity. Consider strategies for dealing with both busy times and quiet times that do not make excessive demands on staff or their personal lives.

Time management

Part of the job of controlling and managing the resources of the business is ensuring that time is spent usefully. This does not mean that everyone should be constantly and furiously busy, but that time is allocated in a sensible and effective manner that allows work to be done, deadlines met and emergencies handled without resorting to last-minute rushes, late-night working and general panic.

There are some basic, and probably very familiar, tools that help with managing time:

• The diary – the office diary, with everyone’s activities (both regular and one-off) marked in it, is an essential item of any office. Computerised diaries and calendars can help deal with the complexity generated by even a modest number of staff by giving remote access to multiple users.
• Timesheets – already discussed in Stage 4, Part 1 , are valuable for assessing effectiveness against time spent. Detailed logs carried out for short periods of time (eg two weeks) and filled out continuously for every five- or ten-minute slot can also be very revealing of how time is really spent and may help with working out how to use it more productively.
• To do lists – a straightforward but very useful device to remind yourself and others what needs to be done. Tasks on the list should be given priority ratings and allocated both an amount of time and a target completion date or time. If individual tasks are large and unwieldy they should be broken down into smaller achievable tasks, each with their own priorities and timings.
• Work schedules – a plan for both short-term (daily) and medium-term (weekly or monthly) activities that allows activities to be mapped out. Comparison with to do lists will flag up whether it is possible to complete the allocated tasks within the time allowed.
• Delegating – while it is always tempting to do everything yourself, effective time management suggests that delegating, and possibly outsourcing, activities is often far more effective and should allow you more time for doing what you are best at.

In architectural practice, just as in politics, events will do their best to derail your plans – it can be very easy to be led by them and the pressing need to respond to the latest issue or crisis. Usually there is more important work to be done, but as it is not so urgent it is tempting to put it to one side. Take the rational view – if necessary, tell today’s siren voices to wait until the following day, when the crisis will usually have blown over. Set your own priorities and stick by them; you will only be respected for your calmness in the face of hostile fire.

Research and innovation

If your practice is to stay ahead of the competition it has to offer a continuously improving service and product. A ‘continuous improvement’ attitude requires, in turn, both research – including analysing feedback from clients and previous projects and innovation – and putting that research into action. The benchmarking service the RIBA provides as part of its Chartered Practice scheme can be used to measure your performance against other firms, but you should also gather feedback from your clients in a structured way at key stages in the life of projects, ideally using a standard measure such as a recognised key performance indicator (KPI). Knowing what your clients think can only help you to improve your service and being able to point to good user satisfaction levels can also become a powerful marketing tool for the firm.

Each project will have both a research and an innovation agenda, possibly including:

• briefing
• design issues
• products and materials
• specification
• procurement
• construction.

The knowledge gained from each project should be captured and recorded for re-use on future jobs. Much of the research activity for both current and future jobs can be included in required continuous professional development (CPD) programmes.

Risk

Every project carries risk – some would say that architects accept excessive amounts of risk with every commission they take on. Risk should be managed as proactively as possible in order that it is anticipated, understood, minimized and avoided. Someone should be in charge of assessing and reducing the risk on each job. Alternatively, maintain a risk register, recording the possible severity and likelihood of each risk identified and the avoidance and management actions to be taken. You are required to do this for the health and safety risks involved in constructing and maintaining your designs – do it for yourself as well, but make sure it does not turn into just another box-ticking exercise.

Ensure clients, contractors and others are formally and fully informed of any risks they carry and any actions that might be taken to avoid them.

Locums

If you run a single-handed practice or if all responsible staff are away simultaneously, you need to have in place a locum to cover for you during your absence or if you fall sick. The RIBA publishes a standard letter of agreement for locum appointments, available from the members-only area of its website.

Money

Each job has its own financial dynamic from the moment the appointment is agreed. This needs to be closely managed to ensure that:

• the job produces the anticipated income
• any significant additional works are recorded and invoiced for
• the allocated budget is not overspent without being acknowledged and the necessary action taken.

Invoicing should ideally be regular, and at least monthly, although some practices only charge at the completion of work stages or when other project milestones are attained. It is always better, if possible, to be paid in advance rather than after work has been carried out. Alternatively, fees and other monies can be deposited in a client account for withdrawal as agreed. If there is any doubt about a client’s willingness or ability to pay fees, ensure that one of these two latter methods is employed. Consider issuing clients with a programme of likely payments to be made on a job – for you, other consultants and the contractor – so that they are forewarned and are able to plan their finances in advance.

Job costs and disbursements should be charged at regular intervals along with fees. Some practices charge a percentage fee to cover the normal range of job costs while others itemise and charge at cost or with the addition of a handling fee. Remember that paying out money for items in advance almost always has a higher cost than the stated face value, due to bank interest, charges for cheques, etc. If you buy goods for use by the client or for the works, you face increased risk if they are in any way faulty or need to be returned. If, for example, you supply an electrical fitting that malfunctions and causes a fire, it could be very expensive indeed.

Getting invoices paid promptly is an essential part of business practice. File invoices separately from the rest of the project paperwork and keep your records so that you are aware immediately if invoices become overdue. Maintain a robust system on outstanding invoices that includes reminder letters, emails, personal telephone calls and, if necessary, solicitor’s letters and legal action. Some clients are inevitably better than others when it comes to paying bills promptly and it may be necessary to take their payment history into account before bearing down on them with the full force of the law.

Should it be necessary, you can make a claim yourself through a county court (see www.justice.gov.uk) or online via the Courts Service (www.moneyclaim.gov.uk). If the amount claimed is less than £10,000 and the matter is relatively straightforward (eg not many witnesses need to be called) then it can be processed on the ‘small claims track’ and you should not require the services of a solicitor. This can make claiming both worthwhile and cost-effective and is a good argument for keeping invoices small and frequent. Further advice is also available from www.direct.gov.uk and the Citizens Advice self help guide (www.adviceguide.org.uk).

Trouble

Generally it is a lot better, easier and cheaper to avoid trouble than to extricate yourself when you’re in it. See the RIBA Good Practice Guide on Keeping Out of Trouble (2006), which covers both avoiding problems and knowing what to do when they appear. There is also plenty of advice available in professional journals and from insurers.

Should you suspect that a problem has occurred or is likely to arise, take immediate action. Leaving it to sort itself out is immensely risky and the chances are that it will not, and may instead escalate. Seek advice from an appropriate party. If there is any possibility that the problem could result in a claim on your insurance policy, always notify your insurers immediately so that they can help you deal with the problem.

Taking on staff

This book is not the place to look for the legal aspects of employing staff and running an office; there is plenty of help elsewhere.

But as has already been noted, expanding a firm beyond the sole practitioner or original partners marks a gear shift in the nature and responsibility of the firm, one that requires a different approach to management. Employees have a number of needs that you will be responsible for providing, including:

• a decent workplace
• a worthwhile income and other benefits
• an interesting and regular stream of work
• information and communication
• motivation and leadership
• a positive and sociable working environment
• team building
• training and learning
• equipment
• reasonable and flexible hours
• holidays and leave
• job security
• equal opportunities and fairness
• career advancement
• respect, recognition and praise.

Plan to be able to respond positively to these requirements and manage the practice so that it can try to fulfil them.