To: John Anastasi, AIA, and to the discussion thread in general:
I enjoyed your post, Mr. Anastasi, and have been thrilled at the variety of great ideas coming forth from this discussion. I'd like to respond to what you've said:
///The concept of a one or two man show is becoming impossible. Between the Codes Zoning Leed, Sustainability etc. and the constant and continuous flow of changes to codes it is becoming a full time job just to keep up with the changes much less run an office and chase new work.///
Well stated. You've answered the thread's title in a nutshell.
///As far as Donald Trump goes if we follow his advice and do away with the Chinese work, the unemployed list of Architects will increase 10 times over. ///
I think this is a very complex subject; I'm sure Donald Trump is not suggesting that American architects refuse to accept any further projects in China. Rather, I think his point was in support of the average American worker's livelihood. Mainly: why was it okay for so many of our manufacturing plants to be shipped overseas or down to Mexico or to whichever countries they went to? Whether it was for cheap labor or to pollute their skies instead of ours, the end result is that we have obliterated our own middle class with moves like this and on top of that, the same dwindling American middle class supports the Chinese new middle class by purchasing "made in China" goods from drywall to housewares. Additionally, our country's national debt is largely owned by China, so we are beholding to them on many levels.
Still, I understand your point- especially after reading the November issue of Architectural Record where they disclose just how much work the top architectural firms are getting from China and other countries (in most cases, it is more than 50% of their projected billings for the next year). So, I was short-sighted to say that "I don't care about buildings in China when our own infrastructure is falling apart due to age." My point was, however, that I think our government needs to focus on rebuilding our own country rather than rebuilding other nations (Iraq and Afghanistan, for example) which are chaotic regimes who can't or won't organize themselves anyway. But that's getting into politics.
///My take on all this is that Architects hold themselves above all others and do not want to get involved in the nitty gritty like politics, interaction with others to learn how to protect themselves and how to charge fees.
Maybe they should learn that the objective is not just to get the job but to get it at the right fee. Can anyone explain how Doctors, insurance companies, federal agencies get together and set a fee for a hip replacement but Architects cannot even talk to each other about fees? -------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------///
You've said a lot about our profession in the above paragraph and I'll leave it to others to chime in about that. Your most salient point, in my opinion, is what I highlighted: "Maybe they (we) should learn that the objective is not just to get the job but to get it at the right fee."
GET IT AT THE RIGHT FEE. <=== Amen to that! If I had to say what is the AIA's priority (besides marketing our services better- once we define who we are as a profession)- top priority #1, #2, and #3, for me, would be to educate architects on how to calculate appropriate fees based on various project types. I cannot say how many firms I have worked for- including myself- that struggled with this problem-- either due to client-directed changes or underestimating the time it would take or simply taking too long ourselves to get the drawings complete due to coordination, learning curves, and communication time eating into the allotted time.
While it is essentially "against the law" to discuss proper fees, as doing so is considered collusion, it seems that we should be able to construct proper fee schedules for ourselves based on what we know it takes to get the job done. But so many factors are at play here. There's a constant learning curve as you mentioned and also our field is so competitive that we are really forced- or at least think we are- to downgrade our fees because someone else will be willing to provide the same drawings/services in a down and dirty manner for far less of a fee than what we think we should charge.
In contrast, in the medical field, for example, I'm not sure how doctors arrive at their fees, but as for running a home health care agency, I can say that we could charge whatever reasonable rate made sense in the market, based on our overhead and the going pay rates for nursing staff. However, the insurance companies would reimburse based on their allowable rates which varied per geographic area. That is the difference. In architecture, we don't have a large payor source like Medicare or mega private insurance companies- instead, projects are done on an individual basis, for the most part, and every project is so unique due to numerous factors: site, varying codes, client needs, etc.
On a very personal note, I'd like to share an example of how a sole practitioner's fees can dwindle midway through the project: I once offered to pay for the shipping freight for a palette of toilets, sinks and tiles just to see *my* design of the client's Master Bath remodel project be realized. Otherwise, after a month and a half of design, visiting showrooms, and selecting just the right items, all that was going to be flushed away because the client was upset (rightly so) that the tile/fixture company decided to charge freight over and above the cost of the items (this was during the huge increase in gasoline prices). The estimated freight was to be about $130.00; when I received the bill, it was $473.00. Yes, this ate into my fee and I was not too happy about it. But, I would do it again just to see the project built. I know this is small potatoes. I just thought to share this story in case someone else might relate to it.
Well, I am enjoying this discussion and I look forward to it continuing. I think corporate AIA will be able to take away much insight from the great ideas being shared here. Thank you to everyone for your intelligent contributions and insight.
Best regards to all,
Tara Imani AIA
Principal
Tara Imani Designs, LLC
Houston TX
-------------------------------------------