Firm Communication

Transparency builds trust.

In building firm culture, trust between employees and leadership is cited repeatedly as the key to a culture that results in greater job satisfaction and commitment to the organization. This trust is built in many ways, perhaps one of the most important is through communication. Transparency can be thought of as being open and honest, directness, and expressing opinions. When consistent, it builds connections between leadership and employees so that leadership is seen as approachable and builds respect.

Transparency is an act that builds upon itself. It can spread to become part of the firm culture, which leads both leaders and employees to feel safe in expressing honest opinions and be open with communication. It is rooted in communication that is consistent, offers reasoning, is open to feedback, is shared openly, and broadly. The implementation of communication that meets these objectives can grow to become something that spreads across project teams at all levels creating a cultural shift.

Marketing Communication

High-level understandings of the marketing efforts of the firm helps employees feel vested in the efforts to succeed and provides the opportunity to offer help.

Business Communication

High-level understandings of the health of the firm helps employees feel vested in the efforts to succeed and provides the opportunity to offer help.

Goal

Establish

• Provide a marketing report, which includes all pursuits regardless of success in obtaining the project, to staff on a regular basis.

• Inform all team members involved in a pursuit of the outcome and any relevant feedback.

• Provide debrief or lessons learned sessions based on marketing pursuits for all staff members

Goal

Establish or enhance regular communication practices to include employees in understanding the well-being of the firm.

• Improve upon the principal reports at Monday Lunch, including update on basic business topics.

• Provide end of year staff update on the financial health of the firm.

• Establish regular benefits information opportunities. Clarify resources are for particular topics.

• Improve communication around staffing changes (new and departing employees).

Staffing/ Professional Development Communication

Clear pathways for career development offer employees motivation, boosts engagement, and supports staff independence and agency as they pursue personal growth. This, in tirn, bolsters potential for increased diversity at all levels, especially leadership.

GOAL Clarify and communicate pathways to leadership and project roles and titles.

• Develop training aligned with the competencies identified in the annual review form.

• Create list of competencies associated with each role as described in the AIA salary positions, as used at AMD.

• Review and update the handbook narrative for Senior Associates and Associates to ensure alignment with EDI initiatives

Quotes from Listening Sessions

External Values

We recognize diversity as a moral and ethical imperative and acknowledge there are layers of historic and institutional action and intent that underpin the inequities within our society and profession. We also understand and embrace the value of supporting the communities we serve, as a way of building stronger more diverse and equitable community.

In order to construct pathways towards access and opportunity within the architectural profession and beyond, we must make a concerted effort and investment in architects, firms, businesses and vendors from a wide range of historically disadvantaged and underutilized communities. As a mediumsized practice, we have some capacity to make time, energy and financial investments to support BIPOC communities and businesses as part of the day-to-day operations of our studio.

Anderson Mason Dale Architects will make a commitment to invest in the following ways within the communities we serve, work, and live within:

Financial Support to Others

Volunteer Service

Professional Collaboration

Voice/Solidarity

Design Impact

Industry

Engagement