Principal

ROUSSOS RECRUITMENT; Adelaide; On-site; AUD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

ROUSSOS Recruitment in Adelaide is partnering with an established architectural practice to appoint a Principal Architect - Education Lead. This senior role focuses on building lasting relationships with education clients across South Australia and leading projects from strategy through design and delivery.

You will mentor architects, shape sector strategy with the Directors, and represent the studio within the K-12 education market.

Qualifications

• Registered Architect with 10+ years of industry experience.
• Strong client leadership and stakeholder engagement capability.
• Experience leading complex architectural projects and project teams.
• Exposure to K-12 education, tertiary, community or similarly stakeholder-led environments.
• Strong communication, presentation and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to mentor and develop architects within a collaborative studio.
• Approachable, credible and relationship-led leadership style.

Responsibilities

• Lead key client relationships across South Australia’s K-12 education sector
• Develop new relationships and identifying future project opportunities
• Lead client presentations, workshops and stakeholder engagement
• Helping shape sector strategy alongside the Directors and senior leadership team
• Providing senior project and design leadership across education projects
• Guiding multidisciplinary teams from early strategy through design and delivery
• Mentoring architects and supporting the development of emerging leaders

Skills

Client leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Project leadership

Mentoring

Communication

Leadership

Education

Architectural registration

Job description

Principal Architect - Education Lead

Take a leading role in shaping client relationships and the future of an established Adelaide studio's education portfolio.

• Lead key client relationships across South Australia's K-12 education sector
• Rare opportunity to shape the role around your strengths and career drivers
• Join an established, collaborative studio with an approachable leadership team

The Opportunity

ROUSSOS Recruitment is partnering with an established architectural practice to appoint a Principal Architect - Education Lead within its Adelaide studio.

This is a genuine senior leadership opportunity for a Registered Architect who is passionate about education and understands the value of strong, long-term client relationships.

The Adelaide studio is supported by an established multidisciplinary team and a diverse portfolio of work across South Australia. Within education, the practice has delivered a range of significant learning environments and has established relationships across the sector.

This appointment will build on that foundation, with a particular focus on client leadership. You will become a trusted senior point of contact for education clients, strengthening existing relationships while helping identify and develop future opportunities.

The Role

As Principal Architect - Education Lead, you will take a senior position within the studio, working closely with the Directors and broader leadership team to strengthen its presence across the South Australian K-12 education market.

You will build genuine partnerships with clients and stakeholders, understand their broader strategic objectives and become someone they trust to guide conversations beyond an individual project.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Leading and strengthening relationships with key K-12 education clients
• Developing new relationships and identifying future project opportunities
• Leading client presentations, workshops and stakeholder engagement
• Helping shape sector strategy alongside the Directors and senior leadership team
• Providing senior project and design leadership across education projects
• Guiding multidisciplinary teams from early strategy through design and delivery
• Mentoring architects and supporting the development of emerging leaders

You will also represent the practice within South Australia's architecture and education communities, building connections and contributing to the studio's continued growth and reputation.

The Like Mind

We are looking for a Registered Architect with 10+ years' industry experience who combines strong architectural capability with the confidence and interpersonal skills to lead senior client relationships.

Above all, you will genuinely enjoy working with clients. You know how to build rapport, listen, ask the right questions and develop relationships that extend beyond the delivery of a single project.

Ideally, you will bring:

• Architectural registration and 10+ years' industry experience
• Strong client leadership and stakeholder engagement capability
• Experience leading complex architectural projects and project teams
• Exposure to K-12 education, tertiary, community or similarly stakeholder-led environments
• Strong communication, presentation and relationship-building skills
• The ability to mentor and develop architects within a collaborative studio
• An approachable, credible and relationship-led leadership style

Strong education-sector experience will be highly regarded, particularly where you have developed and maintained client relationships over time. The studio is also open to established senior architects from aligned sectors who bring exceptional client leadership capability and a genuine desire to build their career within K-12 education.