Small Firm Exchange (SFx) Community Blog

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Small Firm Guide to AIA26

By Scott Busby, AIA posted 8 days ago
WEDNESDAY JUNE 10 First-Timers Orientation: AIA Conference on Architecture and Design 8:30am-9:30am EV100 Practical AI for Every Architect, hosted by Technology in Architectural Practice-SYMPOSIUM 9:00am-5:00pm STM100 Balancing Business, ...
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Letter from the 2026 Small Firm Exchange Chair​ - Darguin Fortuna, AIA

By Darguin Fortuna, AIA posted 01-17-2026
AIA Small Firm Exchange (SFx) Darguin Fortuna, AIA, NCARB I am honored to serve as the 2026 Chair of the AIA Small Firm Exchange (SFx). As one of AIA’s largest and most diverse Member Groups, SFx represents the majority of architectural practices ...
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Current SFx State Representatives

By Kathleen McCormick posted 01-07-2026
State Representative Email Alabama Barrett Penney, AIA barrett@fosheecompanies.com Alaska Tim Whiteley, AIA tim@welshwhiteley.com Arizona Ryan Short, AIA rshort@cottonarchitecture.com Arkansas Tim Maddox, AIA ...
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Current SFx Board

By Kathleen McCormick posted 01-07-2026
2026 SFx Board Table Legend: Bold = Chair / Bold = Executive Committee Board member Email Alyse Makarewicz, AIA Alysem@ambarchitects.com Bart Shaw, FAIA bart@ibanezshaw.com Christopher Hong, AIA chris@whisperarchitects.com ...
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AIA Small Firm Exchange Awards

By Jeremiah Russell, AIA posted 03-24-2025
To all my fellow small firm architects and small firm owners, Over the last several months the Small Firm Exchange Board has been working to craft recommendations to expand AIA National Awards for Small Firms and Small Firm Architects. And earlier today ...
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Small Firm Guide to AIA25

By Scott Busby, AIA posted 03-21-2025
The AIA national Small Firm Exchange board hand-selected the following sessions and events for small firm leaders at AIA25. WEDNESDAY JUNE 4 First-Timers Orientation: AIA Conference on Architecture and Design 8:30am-9:15am EV102 ...
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FAQ: What is a small firm?

By Kathleen McCormick posted 06-12-2024
FAQ: What is a small firm?* Approximately 74% of all firms within the AIA are small firms (less than 10 employees), which equates to 14,895 small firms within the organization. ~27.51% = sole practitioners = 5,505 ~32.39% = 1-5 employees = 6,481 ...
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The AI Age

By Dana Ellis, AIA posted 03-11-2024
William Martin, AIA and Brian Penschow, AIA both of AIA New Jersey are on a mission to get small architecture firms on board the Artificial Intelligence (AI) train. Their motivation for speaking to architects is profound: the best way to move the profession ...
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The small firm guide to AIA24

By Scott Busby, AIA posted 03-05-2024
5 Reasons to attend AIA24 for Small Firm Architects: This year we all meet up in Washington DC for the AIA Conference on Architecture & Design. And just like last year we have come up with the 5 best reasons for you, a small firm architect, to ...
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Welcome from the 2023 SFx Chair

By Janet Bloomberg, FAIA posted 02-14-2023
Welcome to AIA SFx 2023! The year ahead looks very exciting, with an energetic group of board members leading the way. It’s our second year with state representatives as part of our network, and we have quite a few new states joining the fold. This increases ...
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SFx All-Call resources for small firms

By Bruce Fallon, AIA posted 09-16-2022
Each month the SFx Board and SFx State Representatives meet virtually to learn about resources available to help small firms improve their practices. The summaries below describe the topics discussed along with any resources that could be helpful to you ...
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Applying for AIA Fellowship as a Small Firm practitioner

By Janet Bloomberg, FAIA posted 07-26-2022
Fellowship is the highest membership honor you can receive from the AIA, and only approximately 3% of our members are elevated. Therefore, it’s common to feel that your work might not rise to this distinction. As a small firm practitioner, it may seem ...
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My Startup Firm Story: The Outpost Studio

By Dana Ellis, AIA posted 03-18-2022
It was Spring Break 2021 and I had a pile of printed material that I had found and downloaded from the AIA Trust’s website. These included “ Creating and Maintaining a Professional Practice ”, “ Making the Transition to Running Your Own Firm ”, and ...
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Welcome from the 2022 SFx Chair

By Bruce Fallon, AIA posted 03-17-2022
It’s just been a few weeks since we returned from the 2022 Small Firm Exchange (SFx) Annual Board Meeting held in San Diego, California and I couldn’t be more excited about the future and the work of the SFx board for this year. During our meetings, ...
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2021 Letter from the Chair

By Matthew Clapper, AIA posted 01-09-2021
Happy New Year Everyone, 2020 was a crazy and difficult year for everyone, and the AIA’s Small Firm Exchange (SFx) Member Group was no exception. We plan most of our efforts during an annual, in-person, meeting at the beginning of every year. We ...
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Episode 08: Architects Mickey Jacob, FAIA and Mel Price, AIA

By Jason Tapia, AIA posted 11-12-2019
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Episode 07: Architects Chyanne Husar, AIA and Matt Clapper, AIA

By Jason Tapia, AIA posted 11-11-2019
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Using the AIA Trust to Stay Competitive in the Hiring Market

By Jason Tapia, AIA posted 10-08-2019
Small Business Challenges In order for a small firm owner to be competitive in a local hiring market, we often find ourselves needing to keep up with the benefits offered by larger firms. I started my office in 2010 and over the years I found I could ...
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