What are the key functions of a design management plan? Is the fourth 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, and what a project or firm’s design management plan. In this article, I am going to discuss that, in practice, before building a design management plan, I am going to stand on the key functions of a design management plan in practice before going through the process of building and writing a management plan for a firm and a project.
The announcement of an award of a project represents the first step of every project in practice. It’s either through direct assignment from a client or through a bidding process for consultancy services. The second step is the design manager meeting with the client.
Client relations represent one of the most important key functions of a design management plan that should include the method to handle client relations. Firms categorize Clients by their specialization, whether they are private sector or the public sector. The private sector has a lot of sub-categories, I will come to that in later articles. In fact, a design manager should understand and study the client in terms of his knowledge in the field of architecture and involvement in construction. How is the client involved or motivated to participate in the development of the project design? Or rely totally on the consultant to do so? Understanding his concerns about the project design and other phases of the process and responding positively.
Another important factor in practice a firm defines what type of expertise, knowledge, and skills to deal with a client. Also, to gain his cooperation, understanding, approval, and motivation to push the project design forward. What is the best way to communicate in this manner with him to gain his positive input?
Human resources management is one of the main key functions of a design management plan of a consultancy firm. Having a professional human resources team accounts as one of the major success factors in running a consultancy firm. The five core areas of human resources include recruiting and staffing, compensation, and benefits. Also, training and development, talent management, and safety and compliance. A design manager in the design management plan identifies staff needed for future work. Similarly, as in the human resource team operations and work. He intersects with the human resource team in their areas of concern when building a design management plan.
The areas of intersection include what type of staff is required for the architecture team. That in terms of expertise, knowledge, and academic qualifications. Also, training and development acquired, skills, and certificates gained. On the other hand, continuously update the internal agenda for staff training and development. This serves the firm’s development plans and goals. For example, in a European firm I worked with, they continuously focus on authority requirements of staff expertise, knowledge, and skills. In addition, they requested all firms to upgrade all their submittals and drawings to Revit software. This software includes BIM 360 to ease the construction work, but not all firms are applying this procedure.
Design process analysis, assessment, and improvement is another key function of the design management plan in practice. A design team analyzes the project program and components. Thus, they analyze and assess the full process of the design. The design manager lays out the structural flow of the architectural design activities. The architectural design process is divided into five stages. Every stage requires a specific type of staff, expertise, knowledge, and skills.
For example, the concept design phase needs a concept senior architect for several reasons. To produce innovative designs, prepare or coordinate presentation work. Also, attend and talk in presentations with clients. The last phase of the design process needs other types of senior architects and engineers. They should have expertise in the construction process, building systems. In addition, building specs and construction drawings.
A register includes a record of every project and staff performance, regardless of the size of the areas of defects. The improvements required for staff, processes, and software that could improve the efficiency of work and production. This register is an identification for future work of who and what to include in the coming projects. Another important factor is to include design methods that are used in practice and that are feasible to use and fit the project design and team context. Every method in use needs a special type of staff that possesses knowledge, expertise, and skills. They should understand how to apply it in practice to maximize efficiency and increase project revenue. See Figure 1, the last architectural design phase in practice.
Communication and interpersonal behavior is another key function. It has a great effect on staff performance and firm work efficiency, and revenue. A design manager writes and identifies the consultancy firm’s hierarchy of communication plan. For example, a junior-level draughtsman should not email or contact the director level. Even if it’s about internal personal problems, but to the HR staff. An increment of salary request is handed over to the HR manager rather than the director. Contacting a higher level will increase time waste and work cost.
Other than that, firms have internal systems or use software. For example, SharePoint to communicate many matters related directly to the project design phases. Other firms design manager do communicate verbally when specified and required. For instance, registry and communicating internal meetings for projects, and design review meetings. Also, project design reports and project design progress reports. The IT staff handles and maintains the software firm’s use, and any failures happen.
Firms document the Internal behavior and well-being of staff needed and hand them over to staff upon employment. These specific behavioral attitudes are informed to staff in meetings. One of the major factors that firms focus on is the performance review. Due to the review direct relation to interpersonal behavior and skills that are used in staff development plans. The review will benefit both staff and firms in identifying staff competence. They include how staff adjust, develop, implement, and understand the firm’s behavior needed.
Skills/experience evaluation and development is an important function due to its direct link to the architectural design process and production. Every staff employed goes through an evaluation of skills/expertise. Initially evaluated at the time of joining, where a design manager takes a direct role in it. But in later stages, many show a lack of expertise and knowledge in some critical areas. Like the direct relationship between the structural system and the architecture concept preparation, and how it contributes to innovative work production. Lack of this critical expertise leads to many adjustments in the concept design in later stages. This increases rework and affects revenue and decreases client satisfaction. Every staff member, after several years of work, finds a register of the areas of needed development they must do.
Firms provide some assistance in some areas by providing training for subjects like project management. Because it is only provided and requires a couple of days. Development in areas like software usage, like BIM 360, requires more time. It takes months to do, and that is left to the staff member to decide to acquire in the future.
Design production assessment and improvement function is conducted by the design team senior level, supervised by the design manager. A function to increase efficiency and contribute to project revenue. Firms, though it is personal views and taste, rely on the senior level to judge production, which we call in practice expert judgment. Some firms build their judgment criteria for the assessment of production work. Others rely on software or methods built by others, like firms and individuals like DQI. firms use this method in the facility management and construction field. Though this is not very useful in design production assessment, it is a reference for some firms.
If you are looking to build an indicator of assessment in architecture, you can download my book . My book describes my method of building an indicator when you subscribe to my newsletter. When a firm has an indicator to gauge production areas, defects, and areas that need improvement, thus defines future further action. See Figure 2, the DQI method of assessment.
Authorities’ liaison and coordination is one of the most important functions in the Middle East architecture firms’ work. Firms here define a specific person for this task. He has sufficient knowledge and expertise of the application process and requirements. Also, ways to ease the project planning and permit approval, which have a direct link to the design manager. In one country like the UAE, different cities have their specific rules that are different from other cities. The approval process varies from city to city. In some cities, it consumes more time than the design time limit allocated for a project. Cities combine the planning and building permits in one organization. In other cities, every part of the approval process is located in different departments. For example, planning, municipality, water and electricity, drainage and infrastructure, and security approvals. Other related articles you can find in these links 1,2,3
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