| My Design/Build Coach Articles for Remodleing and Design/Build Professionals | |||
| Finding a Design Professional | |||
| When building staff for your company, you probably seek the most experienced, professional and reliable workers you can find. They must have all the correct credentials (CR, CLC, etc.) and appropriate licenses (electrical and plumbing) that give you and ultimately the client peace of mind and confidence in their work product. Even with your knowledge of the remodeling industry and your local job market, finding those individuals, particularly in this booming economy, can be a difficult endeavor indeed. Now imagine trying to find a design professional to work with in your remodeling business. It can be a daunting task to enter the "artsy" world of architecture and design when your world has revolved around bricks and mortar or shingles and nails. One of the first questions you want to ask yourself is "Do I want to have a designer on staff or do I want to hire a designer as a sub-contractor?" If you are just starting out in design/build, you may want to start by using a sub-contractor designer. That is, the designer is not an employee and therefore not subject to the same employer guidelines regarding wages, benefits and taxes. Your accountant should be able to assist you with information regarding what tax and professional liability you will incur with your design sub-contractor. (He/she will look at the designer's form of business, S Corp, C Corp, etc. to determine this information.) Further, you have a chance to try out a particular designer without committing to a long term relationship. The second thing you want to think about is working style and rapport. Whomever you hire for design will have a direct impact on your business and your image as they will be communicating with the client directly. He/she will be working alongside you in the design process asking probing questions of the client about needs. That person will also be responsible for communicating design ideas and listening for clues from the client about what the real agenda is for the project. You want to have a competent and articulate professional whose ego will not get in the way of completing the project. There it is, I've said it: EGO. We designers tend to have pretty substantial ones when it comes to our work. Having worked with approximately forty remodeling contractors over the past five years I have come to a better appreciation of how much construction costs and where the value is in a project. While it would be wrong to say that I have abandoned all design for the sake of beauty, I have definitely adapted my vision to be more pragmatic in relation to function and cost. So even some of what I consider my most inspired ideas have ended on the scrap heap of reality because they just didn't suit either the client, the budget or the contractor. The designer has to be able to put their own tastes aside and offer creative solutions, not dogmatic design. Besides, most clients have finite budgets and can become irritated when the design outpaces their wallets. So where and how do you find the right designer to work with you and your company? Word of mouth is always a good starting point. The problem is, if they are that good, they probably have a full plate and may not be able to bring another contractor on board. Your local professional associations including NARI and NAHB probably have members who are architects and designers. By attending those meetings and speaking to the membership you have the opportunity to assess which designers may have a compatible work style. You can also get a clue as to how they handle working with remodelers and whether they are capable of deferring to your judgement in terms of practical matters. You may also be able to garner some leads from professional design associations such as the American Institute of Building Design (AIBD). Their membership is made up of residential designers almost exclusively. Some of the questions to ask yourself are: Do you understand each other? Is this person someone you could see yourself working with? Who else has this person worked with and are they satisfied with the relationship? If the designer has worked with other remodeling contractors in the area, is there a conflict of interest or concern of confidentiality? Think of it in terms of other sub-contractors that you hire. That is, must your plumber be a "One Contractor Plumber" or are you OK with him working for various contractors? The reality for most remodelers is that they cannot provide a consistent flow of work for their subs and therefore cannot hold them to exclusivity. So it is with their designer. The primary thing to keep in mind about working with a designer is who is driving the engine. It is important that you find a design professional who can be subordinate to you and therefore assist in bringing about successful completion. Their goal should be your goal: Building the project, not just designing it. |
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FINDING A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL By Joseph Dellanno Remodeling News |
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