Design Director - Commercial & Mixed Use

Gensler; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 4,000,000 - 8,000,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Profit sharing

Well-being programs

Tuition reimbursement

Job summary

Gensler seeks a Design Director to lead Commercial Office and Mixed-Use design efforts. You will mentor design teams, guide concept development, and coordinate across offices to elevate design quality.

Ideal candidates bring 18+ years of experience, strong client leadership, and a passion for sustainable, award-winning architecture.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from an accredited program; Masters from a reputed University preferred.
• 18+ years of related experience with strong background in commercial office buildings and some Mixed Use design; international project experience >8 years is a plus.
• Understanding of master planning concepts and site planning for all architectural projects.
• Strong communication skills with clients and leadership experience managing multi-disciplinary teams.
• Proven track record of growing client relationships and delivering design excellence.

Responsibilities

• Develop and provide mentorship to design teams.
• Lead the creative efforts on client architecture projects, developing overall design concepts and strategies from marketing through construction.
• Lead the orchestration and strategy of design presentations.
• Collaborate with practice leaders to enhance design excellence and realize recognition for clients and the firm.
• Improve quality of work, delivery, and design processes.
• Build and sustain client relationships; act as primary design interface with clients, team members, and consultants.
• Participate in business development and marketing efforts.
• Work with Design Directors and Regional Directors to promote interdisciplinary design across offices.

Skills

Design leadership

Stakeholder management

Team mentorship

Visual communication

Client relationship building

Storytelling

Architectural design

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Architecture

Masters preferred

Tools

Revit

Rhino

Grasshopper

BIM360

Navisworks

V-Ray

Job description

Description

Your Role

Gensler is seeking a Design Director for our Commercial Office/Mixed-Use Office Building practice areas. Gensler Design Directors are a select group of designers who provide creative and design process leadership to multiple design teams through all phases of client projects. If you are someone who enjoys leading design teams, developing next-generation talent, and helping clients redesign what’s possible, then this role is for you. Bring your unique design perspective to Gensler and work alongside industry trendsetters!

As a Design Director, you will have had experience in leading design efforts for Commercial Office/ Mixed Use /Architectural environments. The ideal candidate will have proven skills in establishing and developing design schemes and leading/coordinating design teams for architectural projects.

You will possess a mix of strategic and creative skills, with the ability to create great form while embracing sound business strategy. Use your unique design perspective to lead design teams, develop next-generation talent, bring new approaches to the design process, and help our clients redesign what’s possible. You must have significant knowledge of commercial office buildings and should have extensive experience leading design teams on multiple projects.

What You Will Do

• Develop and provide mentorship to design teams.
• Lead the creative efforts on client architecture projects, developing overall design concepts and design presentation strategies from the initial marketing stages through construction and installation.
• Lead the orchestration and strategy of design presentations.
• As a member of a studio’s leadership team, collaborate with practice leaders and colleagues to enhance Gensler’s culture for design excellence, elevate the quality of design, and achieve recognition for clients and the firm.
• Continually improve the quality of our work, the manner in which we deliver it and the process we employ to attain it.
• Build, nurture and foster new relationships with a broad client base.
• Work closely with other Design Directors and Regional Design Directors across the firm to promote an inter-disciplinary design approach and philosophy and facilitate its advancement in respective offices and across the firm.
• Be an integral part in the growth and success of architectural projects.
• Participate in business development and marketing efforts.
• Build and sustain client relationships; act as the primary design interface with clients, team members, and a wide range of consultants and collaborators, both internal and external.

Your Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from an accredited program. Masters from a reputed University preferred.
• 18+ years of related experience, with a strong background in commercial office building projects and some experience in Mixed Use design; international project experience of more than 8 years will be a plus.
• Understanding of master planning concepts and expertise with handling site planning for all architectural projects is a must.
• Ability to handle a variety of project types and complexities.
• Strong, persuasive communicator with excellent storytelling skills and the ability to communicate complex design concepts to clients.
• Proven track record of success in maintaining and growing client relationships.
• Strong graphic skills to communicate design ideas.
• Leadership experience, including managing client expectations, multi-disciplinary teams, and meeting scope/schedule/budget.
• Skilled at developing, inspiring and motivating teams of people both internally and externally, along with a desire to mentor team members.
• Experience leading design teams through all phases of the design process.
• Knowledge of finishes, materials and specifications.
• Knowledge in sustainable design principles required.
• LEED, WELL, Fitwel, LFA or other rating systems accreditation preferable.
• Understand key principles for leading and achieving net zero projects.
• Capacity to drive sustainability focused discussions with clients and teams.
• Demonstrated commitment to sustainability and sustainable building practices required.
• Previous experience in sustainable design projects preferred. At least one project of the candidate portfolio should showcase this focus. Especially built projects with LEED, Living Building Challenge, WELL Building Standard, Fitwel and/or Net Zero Building certification.
• Understanding of local codes / regulations is a plus.
• Portfolio of ‘built’ work to use in pitching/winning work.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Service oriented and willing to foster a respectful, creative, and inspiring environment.

Your Design Technology Qualifications

Essential:

• Experience in managing design teams with Revit/Rhino/Grasshopper skills.
• Good knowledge and experience with collaboration within the BIM context, including cloud-based markups, consultant coordination and clash detection.
• Basic understanding and familiarity with real-time rendering processes, and material creation & management within the context of integrated BIM and parametric workflows.
• Familiarity with the BIM project lifecycle through design, construction and operational phases.
• Understanding of BIM deliverables and terminology in contracts

Desirable

• Experience in managing design teams with Revit/Rhino/Grasshopper skills.
• Experience in establishing and managing BIM teams for project design and delivery.

Applications we work with:

• Design Authoring - Revit, Rhino, Autocad, Navisworks
• Collaboration - BIM360
• Computational Design - Grasshopper, Dynamo
• Building Performance Simulation - Insight, Sefaira, Diva, Ladybug tools
• Visualisation–Vray, Enscape, Twinmotion, 3DSMax
• Graphics & Productivity - Adobe Creative Suite, Microsoft Office Suite
• Experiential – Unreal Engine, Unity
• Development – C#, Python

Life at Gensler

As a people-first organization, we are as committed to enjoying life as we are to delivering best-in-class design. From internal design competitions to research grants to “Well-being Week,” our offices reflect our people’s diverse interests.

We encourage every person at Gensler to lead a healthy and balanced life. Our comprehensive benefits include medical, dental, vision, disability and wellness programs. We also offer profit sharing and twice annual bonus opportunities.

As part of the firm’s commitment to licensure and professional development, Gensler offers reimbursement for certain professional licenses and associated renewals and exam fees. In addition, we reimburse tuition for certain eligible programs or classes. We view our professional development programs as strategic investments in our future.

NOTICE TO APPLICANTS

We are proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affiliation employer of choice. All aspects of employment decisions will be based on merit, performance, and business needs. We do not discriminate on the basis of any status protected under applicable regulatory laws.

Individuals with disabilities and protected veterans are encouraged to apply. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with applicable regulatory laws.

Gensler endeavors to make gensler.com/careers accessible to all applicants. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us.

Regarding Gensler’s approach to recruiting new talent, we will never ask an applicant for sensitive or personal financial information during the recruitment process. We advise all applicants seeking employment with Gensler to review available information on recruitment fraud. Anyone who suspects that they have been contacted by someone falsely representing Gensler should email [e-mail].