Disorganized Management, Poor Work Culture, and Unsustainable Expectations
Pros
• Opportunity to work on a variety of house projects as they don't have right to work on class 2 projects and not sure if they will have any architect in the future • Small team environment (though this comes with its own challenges)
Cons
• Leadership lacks architectural expertise and relies heavily on Pinterest-style references, often encouraging imitation over original design thinking • Design process is limited to producing attractive front façade renders, with little to no attention to detail, building code compliance, or proper documentation — it’s surprising they’ve remained under AIA’s radar • Construction documentation is incomplete and substandard, misleadingly referred to as “partial construction” • Regular overtime is expected without compensation, recognition, or support • Project management is disorganized and last-minute, frequently resulting in unhappy clients and lost projects — yet the blame is always placed on employees • Feedback and direction are often delayed, but you’re still expected to work late to meet unrealistic timelines created by poor planning • Constant micromanagement, including mandatory daily reports and monitoring by a staff member whose role appears mainly to revolve around reporting on colleagues • Extremely high turnover for such a small office, largely due to the toxic and unsustainable work culture
