Good experience - Architect Stephen Tilly, Architect Employee Review

They do intelligent work that is interesting and engaging. They focus their work on historical preservation and sustainable design, which is an interesting combination. They really like to do projects that help communities, which I really like. The people are very intelligent, to a degree where they're in their own worlds sometimes. They're the typical, progressive liberal office and the principals set the atmosphere. The people are tremendously knowledgeable, especially the principals.

There are small subtlies, like the management doesn't really tell you when tasks are due so you do it in due time and then never tell you that they wanted it faster. The people are a little dreamy, and it takes an extra effort to communicate clearly. I feel like the principal could spend a little more time helping to develop his employers. Like he hired us for a good reason, but the lower half of the heirarchy doesn't always get the experience or opportunities necessary to move up in the firm. Due to this, and the salary compensation, and the lack of communication, there is a very high turnover rate in the firm. The principals have gotten used to it, but I don't think they get it.

Nice physical office. Strong green ethics.

Weak, passive management style. Utterly random design sensibility i.e. "Let's make it an ellipse, it's punchy" "let's use track lighting, the lighting rep suggested it" Some fragile egos among Sr. Staff when combined with passive management style result in extreme conflict avoidance which leads to poor project program development, refusal to seek client input, then schedule upsets due to redesign, then clients refusing to pay, then lawsuits. They're really weak architects, generally. They have few significant or interesting projects. They're probably going out of business within five years. Their priorities are capricious, they are either incapable of communicating a rationale, or they have no rationale. I suspect the latter. They're intellectually and professionally lazy.