Director for Residential & Housing - Small Architecture Studio

Curio Careers; London; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

An established, employee-owned firm is seeking a Director for Residential & Housing. This role offers a unique opportunity to step into leadership within a collaborative and design-led practice. The ideal candidate will have a strong architectural background, excellent client management skills, and a proven track record in business development. You will co-lead a talented team, shaping the future of the practice while fostering a culture of design excellence. If you're ready to take the next step in your career and influence the direction of a respected firm, this opportunity is for you.

Benefits

Employee Ownership

Collaborative Environment

Leadership Opportunities

Qualifications

• Qualified Architect with UK registration and experience in leading projects.
• Strong knowledge of all RIBA stages and design processes.

Responsibilities

• Lead teams through all project stages with a focus on early RIBA stages.
• Develop a network of clients and analyze client briefs.

Skills

Architectural Design

Client Management

Business Development

RIBA Stages Knowledge

Team Leadership

Strategic Thinking

Education

UK Registered Architect

Job description

• Director For Residential & Housing - Small Arc...

Director for Residential & Housing - Small Architecture Studio

24.04.2025

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Full Job Description

The client is looking to appoint an Director with a strongresidential architectural background. The practice has a legacy ofover 40 years and is currently undergoing an EOT process. This is astrategic hire for the future of the practice and the first role ofits kind within the company. The studio has a diverse residentialportfolio of projects and small to large-scale schemes across Londonand the Home Counties. The company culture is hands-on anddown-to-earth, with a flat hierarchy, fostering a highly collaborativeenvironment.

This role is suited to an architectwith a strong design focus who enjoys client-facing responsibilitiesand can co-lead an office of 20 architects. You may currently be atDirector level in your current practice but feel you’ve hit a glassceiling in your career progression.

The successfulcandidate will initially focus on front-end design, playing a pivotalrole in pitches, client interactions, and fostering strong designstandards within the team. Those who not only excel in design but canencourage, mentor, and elevate design quality within a team will bebest suited to this opportunity. This position offers the potential totake on a leadership role, shaping the design direction, clientrelationships, and strategic growth of the practice. It is an idealopportunity for an architect seeking greater responsibility in teammanagement and the eventual leadership of a studio.

Over time, this role will take on business developmentresponsibilities, so architects applying should be comfortable withbusiness strategy, leadership, and work-winning. While this is not atargeted sales role, there is an expectation to bring in projects andcontribute to the studio’s long-term growth. Eventually, this will bea residential role; therefore, the client only wants to hear fromprofiles who have experience winning work and possess the necessaryskill set.

Candidates should already be activelynetworking, attending industry events such as MIPIM, UKREiiF, orparticipating in design panels or maintaining long-standing industryrelationships in their practice. A business plan will be developed incollaboration with the existing director, with a key measure ofsuccess being the ability to generate new projects.

The Director will be supported by four associates, who are allproject runners but are not yet work-winning architects. A candidatewho can instil confidence in business development within the teamwould be highly beneficial and is comfortable with the responsibilityof a team and the leadership of a practice.

KeyResponsibilities

• Fee-earning responsibilities.
• Develop a network of clients in a complementary sector to thestudio.
• Analyze and refine client briefs as part ofproject-team assembly.
• Lead teams through all project stages,with a focus on early RIBA stages.
• Encourage and nurturedesign excellence within the studio.
• Develop compellingvisual and graphic content for pitches and presentations.
• Participate in strategic decision-making alongside thedirector and founder.
• Refine and improve business processesto support growth and efficiency.
• Create a successionbusiness plan in collaboration with the current director.

Experience & Skills

• QualifiedArchitect with UK registration.
• Strong knowledge of all RIBAstages and design processes.
• Experience leading multipleprojects through all RIBA stages, ideally in the UK.
• Acreative, strategic thinker who can improve processes and projectoutcomes.
• A hands-on approach with strong attention todetail.
• Experience in business leadership, practice strategy,and team management.
• A strong, confident communicator able toarticulate ideas clearly to clients, directors, and teams.
• Agility to work in fast-paced project stages.
• Previous experience working at a senior management level.
• Experience winning work, leading competitions, or developinga client network.

Why Join?

• Stepinto leadership with an stablished, employee-owned firm.
• Collaborate closely with the founder and director to shapethe practice’s future.
• Opportunity to build a client networkand lead business development.
• Lead a talented team ofarchitects and associates in an ambitious and design-led practice.
• Co-lead a practice

If you are anexperienced Director looking for your next step into practiceleadership, this role offers a unique opportunity to grow within arespected, long-established firm.

The office isbased in Shoreditch, the team are 4/5 days in the office and have astrong team culture