Administrative positions are almost unrecognizable from what they entailed fifty years ago. We are now tasked with a wide variety of responsibilities across all aspects of the business, allowing others within a company to focus on their area of expertise while trusting that “the ship” is being steered by a competent crew of professionals.

Did you miss our May business practice event? Chapter members Carrie Thompson, CDFA and Gretchen Renz, CDFA shared what it means to be an administrative professional in an A/E office. Along with that, we also heard from an associate principal at Bernardo|Wills Architects, Mike Stanicar, AIA, and from Kurt Wong, CDFA, project controller at Studio Meng Strazzara. Here’s what they had to say:

It’s hard to express the value of your admin. team – like describing the value of the air you breath.  They are the lifeblood of the company that keeps the body of the technical staff working.   Since our training is primarily in our chosen field, not many technical professionals have operational knowledge in benefits, HIPPA, payroll, etc.  We tend to focus, as we should, on the client, the design, and the next project.  We can only concentrate on these aspects of the business secure in the confidence that all the other facets of the business are being well managed.  The admin. team brings this balance through their considerable skills in organization, judgment, and leadership. — Mike Stanicar, AIA 

I began my career on the architect side, doing the design, and realized that I liked the industry but wasn’t liking the role I was in, so after taking some time off to rethink things, I decided to come back on the administration side.

I started at a small 9-person firm as the only admin person on staff, which meant I was responsible for everything. That’s where I learned to be a jack-of-all-trades – between general office administration to handling HR to dealing with the finances, and even getting into some of the marketing. It was a great introduction to how an architecture firm operates.

I learned over time what I enjoyed more and have since started on a different, more specialized position within the administration side. I’m always looking for learning opportunities, ways to do my job better, and chances to contribute to making my firm better on the administration side. I love hearing from other admins at other firms to share knowledge and to be resources and support for each other. — Kurt Wong, CDFA

Thank you Carrie, Gretchen, Mike, and Kurt for sharing your knowledge and comments at our chapter’s business practice event!