Staff psychological well-being effect in architecture firm

Staff Psychological Well-being Effect in Architecture Firm is the Ninth article of a series. Articles about design management in architecture practice. I have discussed in the previous articles what is design management, who is the design manager in practice. Also, firm or project design management plan, what are the key functions of a design management plan in practice? In addition, what needs to be managed in architecture firm. And this article is the fifth article on building and writing a design management plan.

A decrease in staff psychological well-being has several negative effects on members of the design team in the firm. First, reduce the concentration while conducting the design work. Whether it’s in the concept stage or in the later final design stage, it affects the productivity quality. Second, it has a direct effect on accomplishing design work as per the time schedule for every task. Also, causing delays in completing the project on time and possible fines, and a reduction in fees. Third, first, and second reduce the confidence in the team member in completing his. In addition, within the group, it creates tension and loss of trust.

Fourth, staff not complying with the performance requirements of the firm’s internal system could cause several problems. Cause the firm to fire the design team member for non-compliance with work procedures and performance qualities. Fifth, removing a design team member puts the firm in an unstable status. That’s due to the complexity of finding alternatives and the time-consuming of the management to find one. Figure 1, shows the shape of the staff member in this status.

I have shown the staff psychological well-being effect in firm design work. Here, I will illustrate what types of criteria for staff psychological well-being.

Stress and Burnout are featured highly in research studies in design management due to rapidly changing conditions, and the demand for work in less time.

Burnout: represents the mental exhaustion resulting from too much work. Working too hard over too long a period will result in individuals becoming tired and less able to function effectively.

Stress: when a firm gives an individual a task to conduct and it lies outside their area of expertise. Also, not given the appropriate time and authority over decision-making. In addition, a firm expects them to deliver too much within the available time.

What does a design manager need to consider when building a design management plan related to staff’s psychological well-being in the firm?

All team leaders must discuss with team members the allocated tasks in detail before the project kickoff. Also, to confirm all tasks of the design program, the team will handle them properly. That’s due to all team members are not at the same level, capacity, and expertise. In addition, to define what to do when a team member passes a stressful situation. A pass in terms of mitigating the stress effect by passing his work to another team member. Otherwise, allocate it to another team member of another project. Design manager to assist when required to allocate the proper team member within the design team for a project based on the analyzed skills, capabilities, and capacity of the team registry in the firm.

He must use good practices in mitigating stress and burnout. That through the project timeline and its design stages, and through open communication. The design manager should conduct occasional follow-ups for every project and meetings with the team to check project progress. Otherwise, meet the team head-on on an occasional basis to confirm work is going as per the design management plan.

To get Staff Psychological Well-being, a team member can use the Gaps between projects to solve burnout and stress. In it, the firm allows design team members to conduct continuous professional development programs. Programs such as upgrading skills using software like Revit or other design toolkits. To take project management programs or design management programs to gain higher-level professional certificates. In practice, the design manager transfers members of the design team to conduct different tasks. Design tasks like graphic work or presentation have proved to increase team members ‘ well-being and reduce his/her stress.

Mistakes in design work or a reduction in work quality, the firm checks procedures and actions. A check to confirm they are aligned with the firm’s internal rules and systems. A design manager runs a detailed analysis once done; he revises all internal rules and systems to prevent future defects.

Staff psychological well-being represents a major element of success in the design management plan. The design management plan must define the project characteristics in terms of: type, complexity, workforce required, time, and occasional follow-up and meetings if required, with the design manager, in the project timeline. Building the project team upon the detailed analysis of the project characteristics and relying on the register of team skills, capabilities, and capacity to do work. A reporting procedure of all technical problems within the project timeline, review, and work quality check-up based on a register of design checklist checkups.

A communication procedure to be defined, whether it is an internal email system or a procedure. A firm to use these to transfer data, work, or documentation from one member of the design team to another. A transfer in a smooth way through an internal electronic system or an external hard system like Flash or hard disks. Meeting schedules or templates prepared in previous projects for use in future projects. The firm to use them within the design team or with the design manager and higher-level management of the firm.

A design manager to build typical bulletin points for the meetings with clients in the early stages. Also, in the subsequent stages of the project design stages till the project completion of the project and design handover to the construction phase. The design manager assists the team in revisiting and checking the company’s archive. Including a directory of projects to use its design templates, report templates, checklist for review and drafting. Also, design components that fit the new project, drafting, and design drawing preparation procedures templates. All of the former for use within the new project at any stage of the project design. More details will be illustrated about every activity in future articles. Other related articles you can find in these links ^{1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8}