About the Organization

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) seeks an individual to serve as Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer (EVP/CEO). Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA represents more than 75,000 members with an operating budget of more than $50 million and approximately 200 employees. A 21-staff-member Management Council, led by the EVP/CEO, oversees daily operations of the Institute.

The Institute operates under a strategic plan, developed by the membership through the Strategic Planning Committee, and approved by the AIA Board of Directors. The plan focuses on four major strategies with the emphasis on continuity of AIA action:

• Advocacy: to facilitate effective dialogue among members; between the AIA and governmental agencies and legislative bodies, and between AIA members—collectively and individually—and the public to promote a better built environment, expanded influence of the architect in society, and a healthy future for the profession.
• Community: to cultivate internal and external relationships to better engage and support members in strengthening society and the profession.
• Knowledge: to facilitate the sharing of knowledge that inspires and enables members, architects, and the public to engage creatively, credibly, and nimbly in addressing society’s needs and advocating for solutions.
• Value/Resources: to utilize effective management and fiscal responsibility to implement the Institute’s programs and governance in a manner that fosters trust between the members and the organization.

At this juncture in the Institute’s history, opportunities and challenges abound for the organization and the profession to achieve its mission and goals as expressed in the AIA’s Public Policies. An incoming Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer will be in a position to help the organization in the following ways:

• Embrace and coalesce a broad and diverse constituency of architects, emerging professionals, and allied members,
• Capitalize on ever-evolving new technologies that enable the profession to preserve and enhance its ability to achieve an improved built environment,
• Expand the roles architects perform and how they integrate their work into the design and construction processes,
• Promote long-term leadership roles for architects in sustainability, strengthening community, and their impact on society,
• Broaden the influence, appeal, and prestige of the AIA’s programs and products nationally and internationally,
• Increase the value, influence, and distribution of AIA’s publications, including AIArchitect, AIA Angle, and the AIA Web site,
• Improve member access to knowledge through seminars, Web-based tools, and the AIA distance learning systems,
• Build international initiatives directly into the Institute’s planning, budgeting, and scheduling processes to include the roles and responsibilities of key leadership, and
• Harness the talent and energy of all AIA members to achieve its mission and goals with particular attention to creating opportunities for young professionals through the National Associates Committee and the Young Architects Forum.
  

The voice of the profession. Since 1857, the AIA has represented the professional interests of America's architects. Through its members, licensed architects, emerging professionals, and allied partners, the AIA expresses their commitment to excellence in design and livability of the nation's buildings and communities. Members adhere to a code of ethics and professional conduct that assures their clients, the public, and colleagues of an AIA member’s dedication to the highest standards of professional practice. As the voice of the architecture profession, the AIA is dedicated to serving its members, advancing their value to society, and improving the quality of the built environment.

Members, committees, and partnerships. The 75,000-plus members of the AIA national component are also mandatory members of approximately 300 state and local components (i.e., chapters) representing 18 regions on the AIA National Board of Directors. Members belong to and pay dues to three (local, state, and national) or four (local, state, regional, and national) components. Dues comprise approximately 25 percent of AIA national component annual revenues, and the average dues are approximately $700/year, indexed by some components to the cost of living.

The AIA member constituencies include:

• A 50-member AIA National Board of Directors: the member-elected governance body for the organization, responsible for developing and monitoring the organization’s strategic plan and fostering connections between the local, state, and national AIA components.
• The College of Fellows: a group of members who have been recognized by their peers for their exemplary contributions to the profession.
• Associates: represented by the National Associates Committee (NAC), which address the needs of emerging professionals. The NAC is dedicated to advocacy and representation of both mainstream and alternative associate members by providing professional growth opportunities and connections with the local, state, and national AIA communities.
• Young Architects: represented by the Young Architects Forum (YAF), which addresses issues of importance to practitioners licensed 10 years or fewer that specifically relate to the development stage of their professional careers.
• Allied Members/Cornerstone Partners: individuals and/or organizations that are engaged with or associated with the design and construction industry.
• A significant partnership exists between AIA members and the Council of Architectural Component Executives (CACE), the staff members who provide leadership and management for the local and state components. CACE meets regularly in order to address best practices and to share information of value to those involved in managing the AIA components. An opportunity exists to leverage the power of partnerships between national, state, and local components to build a more unified AIA.

Key external relationships include the American Architectural Foundation, the American Institute of Architecture Students, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, the National Architectural Accrediting Board, and the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. In conjunction with these collateral organizations, the EVP/CEO participates in directing the education and regulation of the profession.

Signature programs. The AIA offers a broad range of professional development opportunities, fosters research for the profession, and provides training and networking for the architecture profession. A sampling of the AIA’s signature programs includes

• The AIA National Convention and Design Exposition, bringing together more than 24,000 architects and building industry professionals annually.
• Publications including Architectural Record, the magazine of the AIA, published under contract with McGraw-Hill Construction; AIArchitect, a weekly e-newsletter published by AIA’s Public Advocacy staff; and The Angle, a bi-weekly government advocacy e-newsletter published by AIA’s Government Advocacy staff.
• AIA Mentorship programs, offering a series of mentoring tools, including training and publications for mentors; participation in the ACE (Architecture, Construction, Engineering) Mentor Program for high school students; and a National Mentor Matching Program for emerging and established professionals alike.
• The AIA plays an active role in the continuing education of its members through such programs as the AIA National Convention and Design Expo, AIA/CES Providers Conference, AIA eClassroom (an online distance education curriculum featuring popular convention presentations), the EPIC Project (Education/Practice/Industry Connection, a partnership of schools of architecture, the design profession, and the construction industry to enhance professional education and catalog best practices), and key relationships with state and local components that offer the majority of continuing education classes/seminars to members.
• Approximately twenty-five member-led Knowledge Communities, giving members the opportunity to share knowledge in specific areas ranging from “Architecture for Education” to “Technology in Practice.”
• The Center for Communities by Design is a catalyst, convener, and source of information that helps AIA members work in their local communities with citizens, elected officials, and other stakeholders to envision and create more livable communities.
• A series of award programs recognizing individuals and organizations for outstanding achievements in support of the profession of architecture, including the prestigious AIA Gold Medal, the highest individual honor bestowed by the AIA; the Architecture Firm Award, the highest award to an architecture firm by the AIA; and the Whitney M. Young Jr. Award, awarded to an architect or architecturally oriented organization in recognition of a significant contribution toward current social issues.
• The AIA Contract Documents, an electronic and paper source of 100 standard documents and forms widely recognized as the industry standard in the design and construction industry for establishing the legal context for project delivery.
  

For additional program information and a history of the organization, visit the AIA Web site at www.aia.org.

The Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer Position

The EVP/CEO reports to the AIA President. Performance is formally monitored by the AIA Executive Committee, subject to annual review by the AIA Board of Directors. The EVP/CEO has responsibility for implementation of the Institute’s advocacy, community, knowledge, and value/resource strategies as defined in the member-developed strategic plan and further articulated in the staff-developed annual operating plan and budget. Additional responsibilities include meeting annual goals and management objectives, managing the Institute’s programs and day-to-day operations, managing expenses, sustaining revenue and resource development. The EVP/CEO, in collaboration with the member-elected President, may serve as the external liaison and public image of the AIA, representing the profession and voice of architects in making the world a better place.

The EVP/CEO is expected to actively assist the Board of Directors in identifying key emerging issues and on establishing future direction. The successful candidate will be adept at articulating the AIA’s vision, fostering a collaborative and inclusive organization, and shaping programs and services. The EVP/CEO also ensures that the organization is capably staffed and effectively organized.

An equally important aspect of this position is the role of the EVP/CEO in maintaining strong relationships with a number of external audiences. With this in mind, the position has considerable travel demands both domestically and internationally.

A full position description appears as Appendix A to this document.

Education, Experience, and Essential Skills and Abilities

The successful candidate will have at a minimum a bachelor’s degree, with a master’s degree considered optimal for the position. Also considered optimal for this position is senior-level experience in the corporate sector, association/nonprofit sector, and/or architecture or related industry.

Specific types of management and leadership experience are also considered optimal. The successful candidate will have developed coalitions to advocate on behalf of an organization and its members; implemented a strategic plan; developed multiyear operational plans; provided leadership to a staff of similar size to that of the AIA, overseen expenditure of similar sized budgets, and conducted recognized campaigns to increase public awareness.

Among the skills and experiential knowledge considered most critical to this position are

• Written and oral communication skills
• Ethical business acumen
• Consensus building among diverse constituencies
• Public speaking and serving as a spokesperson
• Providing visionary leadership
• Team building as an ongoing process
• Supporting board member growth and development
• Enhancing the visibility of the organization and its members
• Managing and leading change
• International sensitivity
• Building relationships with related organizations.
• Creative resource development
• Sound financial management
  

Personal Characteristics of the EVP/CEO

• An empathetic leader with a developed world view
• Views the AIA and its members as a profession that uplifts and informs the human spirit and promotes the accomplishments of members
• An ethical, dedicated, and fair-minded leader
• A charismatic individual who is a servant leader and engaging generalist
• A talented consensus builder who is a good listener
• An articulate, diplomatic spokesperson with strong communication skills
• A people person—someone who is outgoing, friendly, energetic, approachable, patient, calm, and considerate
• A motivator of staff and morale builder, who shows good judgment in selecting, managing, and delegating to staff
• A professional with a strong interest in education and lifelong learning
• A big thinker who also has a healthy interest in details and is results oriented
• An organized, efficient, formidable leader with knowledge of multilevel organizational dynamics
• An open-minded, inclusive, perceptive, and adaptive person, with an ability to lead change and articulate its impact on the organization, profession, and society
  

The AIA’s Organizational Culture

The combination of qualities, experiences, and values that help define an organization’s culture can be simultaneously complementary and contradictory in nature. Here are some of the ways in which the AIA is described by leaders, members, and staff:

• like a good neighbor
• committed, caring, nurturing
• passionate, resilient
• sophisticated, competent, intelligent
• familial
• fiscally responsible
• information and knowledge focused
• multifaceted
• optimistic
• member driven
• hardworking and business oriented
  

Characteristics that impede the organization’s ability to succeed in its mission as mentioned by key stakeholders include a culture sometimes described as bureaucratic, conservative, insular, slow moving, and entrenched, complex and not transparent, and not results focused. The successful candidate will appreciate the interplay of an organization’s strengths and vulnerabilities and build on the dynamism and energy embodied in the organization.

Measures of Success

What the successful candidate and the AIA President and Board of Directors ultimately agree on in terms of measures of success is an important matter to be determined and negotiated among the parties. But as another means of elucidating what some consider important benchmarks or dimensions of a successful candidate to achieve during their tenure as EVP/CEO are these issues mentioned by select AIA leaders and members:

• financial health of the organization
• successful budgeting process
• actualization of the strategic plan
• growth of nondues revenue
• member growth and retention
• a unified and clear operating approach, with efficient programs
• level of outreach to other design and construction associations
• visibility on Capitol Hill
• visibility with the public
• involvement with coalition partners
• connection and communication with components
  

While all organizations have ample room for improvement, they also have a multitude of accomplishments of which to be proud. Among those programs, services, initiatives, and products receiving high marks from the AIA’s leaders, members, and staff are the following:

• AIA’s national convention
• Implementation of grassroots initiatives
• Dissemination of information about advocacy and legislative issues
• Development of the profession’s knowledge agenda and growth of AIA’s knowledge communities
• Relationships with related organizations nationally and internationally
• Relationships with outside vendors who provide various resources and services, such as Architectural Record, AIA MasterSpec, Convention Management, and AIA Contract Documents software
• Continuing education programs
• AIA Contract Documents
• Variety of award programs
• Development and support of emerging professionals programs
• Development and implementation of an effective, multiyear national advertising campaign
  

Challenges and Opportunities

For the profession. Technology integration, demographic changes, reducing consumption of natural resources, globalization of business, offshoring of certain business tasks, and a variety of other variables suggest numerous opportunities the profession faces:

• Partnering and alliance building with other organizations, opening the AIA to a broader constituency
• Understanding and articulating the relationship between architecture and neuroscience—that is, understanding and communicating the research to learn how one’s physical surroundings and changes in them affect the brain
• Public relations
• Public awareness
• Realizing the tremendous potential of the e-knowledge network.
• Achieving diversity in the profession and AIA’s leadership to reflect society
• Increasing involvement with development and implementation of a national sustainable energy policy and other smart-growth and sustainable-design programs; taking a forceful stand on community development and environmental sustainability (e.g., green design)
• Adapting and responding to changing technology, such as Building Information Modeling, to enhance project delivery systems
• Eliminating practice impediments across state and national borders
• Nurturing the careers of emerging professionals, beginning in secondary schools and community colleges; facilitating more rapid, seamless transition from architecture education to licensed practice
• Impact of globalization and opportunities for architects to expand internationally
• Establishing the AIA as a prominent voice to government bodies and the public at large
• Leveraging the AIA brand in the political and governmental arena.
• Anticipating and responding to social changes affecting the practice
  

For the AIA. Selection of an EVP/CEO will inevitably create myriad opportunities to strengthen mature programs, terminate ineffective or obsolete programs, create new linkages with related organizations, and in other ways take advantage of the momentum of the organization. Here are some of those identified opportunities:

• Emphasizing the value of strong relationships with the Council of Architectural Component Executives (CACE)
• Streamlining the AIA’s often complex processes
• Enhancing the AIA Web site
• Developing and retaining staff
• Inspiring the profession as a whole to become, in fact, leaders in their communities
• Preventing volunteer and staff burnout
• Serving growing chapters around the world
• Involving members in advocacy
• Becoming a strong voice for public health, safety, and welfare, community, and environment; enhancing the AIA’s cultural relevance
• Understanding the significance of nonlicensed members of the profession and reaching those registered architects who are not members
• Making members and nonmembers aware of all that the AIA does and offers
  

The American Institute of Architects is at an exciting crossroads in promoting the role architects play in the creation of the physical environment and its impact on society both domestically and internationally. The successful Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer candidate will have considered what qualities, skills, and experience he or she brings to this position that will help advance the AIA’s agenda while ably serving the interests and goals of the AIA’s membership and of the profession.

The strategic challenge can be defined in several ways. One survey respondent put it like this: “We need to lead the profession into a culture of sharing—and into a future that rigorously explores and distributes knowledge that is pertinent to everyday practice.” Another emphasized the importance of identifying and reaching out to emerging leaders, because without them the profession falters. Still another recognized the challenge of positioning architects as the key to all phases of building—from design to completion to operation—and key to achieving collaboration with related professionals.

The AIA’s key challenge, said one respondent, is to enhance the diversity of the profession and to “bring together disparate voices” to achieve consensus on key issues where architectural leadership can make a difference. “The world seems to ‘get’ that buildings aren’t just structures, but rather, systems that house the functions that are essential to life (work, play, worship, etc.),” one survey respondent observed. “Those who create those structures are uniquely positioned to influence ‘the way of the world.’”

The successful candidate will be a leader for whom commitment to this kind of vision comes effortlessly.

Position Title: Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer

Department: Executive

Supervisor: The AIA President. Performance is formally monitored by the AIA Executive Committee, subject to annual review by the AIA Board of Directors.

Position Summary
The EVP/CEO is the chief staff executive position in the organization, responsible for successfully executing the Strategic Plan for the American Institute of Architects (AIA, or Institute), and the annual Operating Plan of the AIA national component. Other responsibilities include meeting annual goals, accomplishing management objectives, managing programs and operations, achieving effectiveness in revenue and resource development, ensuring success of the Executive/Board partnership and Board/Staff relationships, and as the external liaison and public image of the American Institute of Architects.



Position Requirements:

Education

• College degree required. Advanced degree preferred, but not required.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated ability and experience in providing organizational leadership, vision, strategic planning and development:
• • Established, strong, motivated, entrepreneurial leader with a minimum of (ten) years of senior management experience
  • Skilled facilitator and consensus builder
  • Demonstrated success at moving a complex organization toward its stated vision and goals
  • A team builder and the ability to motivate others
  • A proven communicator with strong partnership building ability
• Demonstrated ability and experience in managing programs and achievement of objectives
• • Successful at transforming strategic direction into focused, accountable, results-oriented business operations
  • Able to successfully manage a multitiered national organization of “individual” members while maintaining focus on common goals and objectives
• Demonstrated ability and experience in maintaining effective Board, volunteer, and staff relationships
• • Ability to develop, nurture, and motivate staff
  • Ability to contribute meaningfully to the composition and process of agendas for the Board of Directors and Executive Committee meetings
  • Ability to achieve consensus on complex issues with diverse individuals, with differing opinions
  • Ability to serve as a confident liaison between and among volunteer leaders
  • Ability to create an organizational culture of innovation

Responsibilities

• Ensure that the needs of the membership are met
• Communicate with the membership and other external partners on a regular basis, providing an effective flow of information
• Implement the Institute’s Strategic Plan (and Policies) through informed development and execution of annual Operating
• Plans and budgets
• Provide stability and continuity of leadership
• Lead a highly motivated, multidisciplinary staff
• Promote discipline in managing fiscal and programmatic initiatives
• Serves as an active ambassador for the Institute, its members, and the profession at large before various private and public entities and at various functions.
• Communicate with and act as liaison to the Institute’s Board of Directors
• Considerable travel demands, both domestically and internationally
  

Position Relationships:

National AIA Governing Structure: The EVP/CEO is an ex-officio (nonvoting) member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee. As such, the EVP/CEO has frequent and routine interaction with the officers and members of the Board.
Component Officers: The EVP/CEO has considerable interaction with component leadership.
Component Executives: The EVP/CEO is a member of CACE, and a member of the CACE Executive Committee, and has considerable interaction with the members of the Council of Architectural Component Executives (CACE).
Membership: The EVP/CEO has considerable interaction with the general membership.
Government Agencies: The EVP/CEO has limited contact with federal government regulatory agencies.
Congress: The EVP/CEO has some contact with members of Congress and their staff.
Consultants/Vendors: The EVP/CEO has routine and considerable contact with vendors, product manufacturers.
Public: The EVP/CEO has some contact with the public.
Media: The EVP/CEO has routine and considerable contact with the media as deemed necessary by AIA marketing and communication activities and opportunities.
Collateral Organizations: The EVP/CEO is responsible for developing, nurturing, and strengthening relations with collateral organizations such as:

• The American Architectural Foundation (AAF)
• Council of Architectural Component Executives (CACE)
• National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB)
• National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB)
• American Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA)

The EVP/CEO serves as a voting member of the American Architectural Foundation (AAF) Board of Regents and AAF Executive Committee and as a voting member of the National Building Museum Board of Trustees, according to the bylaws of each respective organization.

Allied Organizations: Establishes and maintains contacts and relationships with related, and allied members and organizations and other public and private groups concerned with the design and construction industry and the issues of concern to the architecture profession.

Position Authority:

Policy Formulation: As a member of the national Board of Directors and Executive Committee, the EVP/CEO directly participates in deliberations and establishment of AIA Policies and Positions
Management Authority: The EVP/CEO has full authority for the management of the affairs of the Institute, subject to the Bylaws, Rules of the Board, Governance Policies, and other governance documents, and subject as well to the direction of the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee, and/or the President.
Authority Regarding Staff: Subject to the limitations stated in the governance documents, the EVP/CEO has sole and exclusive authority for the engagement and discharge of employees of the Institute.

Other Characteristics

• An empathetic leader with a developed world view
• Views the AIA and its members as a profession that uplifts and informs the human spirit and promotes the accomplishments of members
• An ethical, dedicated, and fair-minded leader who is transformative
• A charismatic individual who is a servant leader and engaging generalist
• A talented consensus builder who is a good listener
• An articulate, diplomatic spokesperson with strong communication skills
• A people person—someone who is outgoing, friendly, energetic, approachable, patient, calm, and considerate
• A motivator of staff and morale builder, who shows good judgment in selecting, managing, and delegating to staff
• A professional with a strong interest in education and lifelong learning
• A big thinker who also has a healthy interest in details and is results oriented
• An organized, efficient, formidable leader with knowledge of multilevel organizational dynamics
• An open-minded, inclusive, perceptive, and adaptive person, with an ability to lead change and articulate its impact on the organization, the profession, and society.
  

The American Institute of Architects is the voice of the architecture profession dedicated to

• Serving its members
• Advancing their value
• Improving the quality of the built environment
  

The American Institute of Architects Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer Position Profile was developed using organizational data, specific feedback from personal interviews, and survey data from key stakeholders that included the AIA Executive Committee, Board Committee or other committee members, the CACE (Council of Architectural Component Executives) Executive Committee, representatives of collateral organizations, component leaders, and staff.
The interviews and survey were conducted to identify and prioritize the skills, knowledge, and background qualifications desired in an EVP/CEO. Information on organizational and cultural factors as well as current challenges and opportunities facing the Institute were also gathered.





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