Associate Director – Architect

Building Design Partnership Limited; West of England, Cardiff; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Profit sharing

Private medical insurance

Life insurance

Health screening

Enhanced maternity/paternity provision

Holiday buy/swap

Job summary

Building Design Partnership Limited is seeking an accomplished architect to lead and grow its housing team across the South West and Wales. You will combine design excellence with strategic leadership to win work, shape projects, and develop a robust housing portfolio.

Working with the Studio Lead and Directors, you will nurture talent, foster collaboration, and deliver high-quality, sustainable housing and housing-led mixed-use schemes while maintaining strong client relationships.

Qualifications

• Proven experience delivering housing and housing-led mixed-use projects.
• Track record in winning work and developing client relationships.
• Ability to identify opportunities and grow a robust project pipeline.
• Experience leading and developing established teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead and inspire the housing team and develop talent.
• Champion design and technical excellence in projects.
• Drive high-quality, sustainable design solutions.
• Grow the housing portfolio with strategic opportunities.
• Collaborate with senior leadership to support growth.
• Build and maintain strong client relationships.

Skills

Housing leadership

Client relationship building

Strategic growth planning

Team leadership

Design leadership

Commercial awareness

Job description

Looking for a fresh challenge in 2027? Join an established, global multidisciplinary design practice with a strong local presence and the opportunity to shape the future of our housing team across the South West and Wales, supported by our wider global housing expertise.

You are an accomplished architect with a strong track record in housing and housing-led mixed-use projects. You combine design excellence and technical expertise with commercial awareness, strategic thinking and the ability to lead successful project teams.

You will lead and develop our established, experienced housing team, building on its strengths and creating opportunities for growth. With a proven ability to win work, build lasting client relationships and identify emerging opportunities, you will play a key role in strengthening our housing portfolio and securing a sustainable pipeline of future projects.

Commercially astute and forward-thinking, you understand the housing market and anticipate emerging trends, client needs and opportunities for growth. You bring people together to deliver outstanding projects, champion innovative and sustainable design, and support the development of colleagues.

Working closely with the Studio Lead and Directors in the South West and Wales, you will contribute to the wider success of the practice through your sector expertise, client relationships and commitment to design excellence.

About us

BDP is a leading, global, multidisciplinary design practice united by a shared purpose: to design a world that is built for good. For more than 60 years, we've been solving problems, creating innovative spaces, and pushing the boundaries of what's possible. From the start, we've been pioneers in the world of design, and our legacy is built on the meaningful, people-centred places we've brought to life.

We are a diverse, international practice of architects, engineers, designers, and urbanists. We work closely with our clients, users, and communities to craft spaces for living, working, learning, and enjoying life across the globe. With studios spanning the UK, Ireland, Europe, Asia, and North America, our reach is as broad as our expertise. And since joining forces with Japan's Nippon Koei in 2016, our ability to deliver integrated, impactful design has only grown stronger.

Our work is rooted in creativity, quality, and collaboration. We believe that great design removes barriers and opens new possibilities, all while meeting the demands of a constantly evolving world. Whether we're designing homes, workplaces, or public spaces, we always put people at the heart of our thinking, ensuring that the environments we create are not just functional, but also inclusive, beautiful, and socially and environmentally responsible.

We're proud of the places we've shaped and the lives we've touched, and we are committed to continuing our mission of designing a better, more connected world—one that leaves every place better than we found it.

About you

• Proven experience delivering high-quality housing and housing-led mixed-use projects.
• A strong track record of winning work, developing client relationships and contributing to business development.
• The ability to anticipate market trends, identify emerging opportunities and develop a robust pipeline of future projects.
• Experience leading and developing established teams, encouraging collaboration, sharing expertise and nurturing talent.
• Strong design leadership, technical knowledge, project delivery and commercial management skills.
• The ability to collaborate with senior leadership to support the growth and success of the housing team.

Key Responsibilities

• Invest in Our People: Lead and inspire the housing team, develop talent, delegate effectively and foster a culture of collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement.
• Invest in Our Ideas: Champion design and technical excellence, uphold professional standards and build trusted relationships with clients and key decision-makers.
• Design with Impact: Drive innovative, high-quality design solutions that balance creativity, functionality and sustainability. Inspire fresh thinking and bring the right expertise together to deliver exceptional outcomes.
• Grow Strategically: Take ownership of complex challenges, make confident decisions and translate the practice's strategic ambitions into meaningful action, identifying opportunities to grow our housing portfolio.
• Be Sustainable: Embed sustainable thinking into design and delivery, champion responsible practice and promote positive social and environmental impact.
• Attract the Best Clients: Build lasting client relationships, win new work and strengthen the practice’s reputation through collaboration, sector expertise and exemplary leadership.

BDP offers

In return, BDP can offer you a wide range of learning opportunities to encourage personal and professional career development. From sponsorship to profession led CPD events, we also offer annual appraisals and a mentoring scheme that is supported by our internal online learning platform.

We are committed to being an employer of choice and offer a competitive remuneration and benefits package that includes an employee profit share scheme, tax efficient smart benefits, private medical insurance, life insurance, long term sickness insurance, interest free season ticket loans, health screening, opportunity to buy/swap holidays and enhanced maternity and paternity provision, plus many more.

We offer regular international, and studio based social, sporting and charitable events. Some recent events include month-end socials, a hiking club, wellbeing webinars and toolbox talks. Our variety of employee forums gives everyone the platform to have a voice and be heard which drives cultural changes and helps to create an engaged, inclusive organisation.

To find out on more detail about what BDP can offer you, please visit: https://www.bdp.com/en/careers-at-bdp/why-join-bdp/.

To apply

BDP is actively fostering an inclusive organisation where people can be themselves and everyone has a sense of belonging. We want our teams to be diverse at every level, reflecting the communities we design for. As designers, we will create spaces for all that promote equity, wellbeing and participation within the built environment. We actively encourage people from a variety of backgrounds with different skills, professional and life experiences, to join us and help us to achieve our aspirations. We also welcome applications from candidates who wish to work flexibly. BDP also operates a hybrid working policy which is usually three days in the office and two days working from home.

No agency or third-party applications please.