Principal

Redpath Partners; Canterbury; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Phone allowance

Parking

Shareholding opportunities

Bonuses

Job summary

Chow:Hill is a well-established New Zealand design practice with studios in Auckland, Hamilton and Christchurch. We seek a studio leader who can identify new opportunities, nurture client relationships and drive high‑quality design across healthcare, education and public projects.

You will lead projects from conception through delivery, mentor the Christchurch team and maintain BIM/VDC standards. A NZ Architect registration and strong commercial acumen are essential.

Qualifications

• Significant architectural project leadership and delivery experience.
• Established Christchurch or South Island market credibility and relationships.
• Proven track record in developing client relationships and winning work.
• Experience mentoring architectural teams and leading studios.

Responsibilities

• Lead architectural projects with active involvement in client management, design, documentation, coordination and construction delivery.
• Provide visible leadership and build a collaborative studio culture.
• Mentor Christchurch team and support retention, recruitment and succession planning.
• Oversee project quality, resourcing, fees, programme and profitability.
• Maintain working knowledge of Revit and BIM delivery and contribute where required.

Skills

Leadership

Client relationships

Mentoring

Design judgement

Team management

Education

NZ Architect registration

Tools

Revit

BIM

Job description

Company

Chow:Hill is an established, award winning New Zealand design practice with more than 30 years of experience and studios across Auckland, Hamilton and Christchurch. The practice brings together architects, architectural technicians, interior designers, landscape architects and urban designers.

Known for its collaborative and people focused approach, Chow:Hill works closely with clients and communities to create thoughtful, sustainable and future-focused environments. The practice has a strong portfolio of nationally significant projects, including major healthcare, public, education, commercial and community developments.

Role

• Identify, develop and convert new project opportunities, while growing existing client relationships.
• Provide visible, day to day leadership and build a positive, accountable and collaborative studio culture.
• Mentor and develop the Christchurch team, supporting retention, recruitment and succession planning.
• Bring strong design judgement and provide clear direction, critique and review to help teams deliver well resolved, client focused design outcomes.
• Lead architectural projects and remain actively involved in client management, design, documentation, coordination and construction delivery.
• Maintain current working knowledge of Revit and BIM based delivery, with the ability to review and contribute directly when required.
• Oversee project quality, resourcing, fees, programme, profitability and risk, and contribute to studio forecasting and workload planning.

Requirements

• Significant architectural project leadership and delivery experience.
• Established Christchurch or South Island market credibility and relationships.
• Demonstrated success in developing client relationships and winning work.
• Strong design judgement and a track record of guiding teams toward high-quality, well resolved design outcomes.
• Experience leading and mentoring architectural teams.
• New Zealand Architect registration, or clear eligibility to obtain it.
• Strong commercial judgement and understanding of practice and project performance.
• Current working knowledge of Revit and BIM based delivery.
• A collaborative leadership style
• Previous experience as a Studio Leader, Principal, Associate Principal or Senior Associate would be advantageous.

Benefits

• Competitive salary + Bonuses.
• Future shareholding opportunities for the right person.
• Work for a well known national architectural business who produce high levels of work.
• Good team culture with exceptional projects.
• Phone allowance and potential of parking.