Design Manager

An AvroKO Design Manager is the most senior project-specific staff position in the company before graduating to a directorial position. The role requires a balance of directing our work, while also doing the work. The role assumes responsibility for the performance of projects in totality – not just in terms of the creativity and functionality of the design, quality, and efficacy of work product, or execution in delivery – but also for its fiscal and schedule performance. It’s a big job.

The Design Manager serves as the primary day-to-day interface with clients and the broader project team and will work across multiple projects, some of greater complexity or scale, yet always with the support of multiple teams of designers.

REPORTING STRUCTURE

The Design Manager reports to the Project, Studio, or Design Director and depending on project scale and complexity, may on occasion report directly to a Managing Director. This is a project-specific role.

LEADERSHIP

• Practiced representing the firm before clients and project partners.

• Responsible for the project team’s performance in the design, documentation, and delivery on multiple projects.

• Serves as the primary point of contact on a project maintaining client and broader project team relationships and communications and acting as the client’s advocate within our design team.

• Support studio leadership engendering culture and collaborative work environment within project teams, with other internal departments, and our sister companies – Brand Bureau, Goodshop & AHG – as well as other project partners such as consultants, vendors, and contractors.

DESIGN

• Lead, manage, and moderate the design work of the various team members ensuring the design efforts are organized, coordinated, meet the project brief, are consistent with AvroKO’s concept for the project, and yield a design that meets AvroKO’s design philosophy, quality, and procedural standards.

• Create design work directly on projects.

• Liaise between studio leadership and the design team to ensure presentations to studio leadership and obtain feedback, incorporate directives and obtain AvroKO approvals.

• Facilitate design meetings and obtain necessary client, brand operations, and regulatory feedback and approvals.

PRODUCTION

• Responsible for the team’s delivery of quality, timely services and deliverables, in accordance with our contractual obligations, and AvroKO’s quality and procedural standards.

• Coordinate with the Technical Director and FF&E Manager in ensuring quality assurance reviews, and feedback is incorporated into our designs and deliverables.

• Monitoring the team’s production of presentations, and contract documents: working drawings, FF&E technical drawings, specifications, budgets, and art features or styling packages, for quality, completeness, coordination, and punctuality.

• From time to time, actively prepare project deliverables with the team where extra support and expertise are required.

COORDINATION

Manage AvroKO’s coordination work with engineering services and operating systems consultants, to ensure complete integration with our design, proper communication, and record keeping.

• Attend coordination meetings as required.

• Review our team’s coordination activities to ensure proper incorporation of program elements, operator brand standards, OS&E, and regulatory compliance.

• Manage project design coordination within AvroKO i.e. between interior architecture, FF&E, and industrial design.

• Manage coordination with our brand / F&B strategists and graphic designers at our sister studio – Brand Bureau and our procurement team at Goodshop Manufacturers, when applicable.

EXECUTION

Responsible for and managing complete, accurate, and timely delivery of our teams’ services and deliverables during the construction stage of our projects.

• Troubleshoot issues arising in the team’s responses to RFI’s or submittal reviews and cross-check work to ensure conformance with the design intent, project cost, and schedule.

• Oversee resolution of complex field issues with a focus on preserving design intent and maintaining project cost and schedule.

• Manage AvroKO’s representation on the job site as contractually obligated and to safeguard the design, and where necessary join meetings or attend design critical mockups and site visits.

• Direct and monitor the team in preparing field observation reports.

• Lead punch list walkthrough and review project staff’s preparation of the punch list.

• Point of contact with our sister division – Goodshop Manufacturies (GSM), ensuring support from the design teams as GSM facilitates a seamless process of collaboration and product delivery.

• Leading on-site styling near project conclusion.

• Manage AvroKO’s project close-out process including final document issue, archiving, and completion of public relations information documents.

MANAGEMENT & ADMINISTRATION

Provide overall project management on multiple projects to AvroKO’s standard operating procedures and quality standards including;

• Contract management – working with the NBD director to ensure contract execution, and project setup with accounting. Coordinate with Studio and Managing Directors

• Collaborating with clients to avoid unnecessary, excluded, or additional services. When directed by the client, collaborate with studio management to prepare additional service agreements.

• Managing project schedules and tasks and ensuring quality and timely delivery of services and deliverables.

• Conduct recurring team meetings across multiple projects, with assigned staff, and other project collaborators such as F&L Designers, Brand Bureau, and Quality Assurance staff.

• Monitoring & reporting on financial performance, invoicing and collections, and accurate and prompt time and expense reporting towards projects. Manage project budgets through the recalibration of resource allocations to keep projects within assigned fees.

• Scheduling important project meetings such as

– Client, consultant, contractor, or vendor meetings

– Design director and/or partner In Charge reviews.

– Quality assurance checks.

• Assist QA staff in conducting quality assurance reviews of the project deliverables.

• Ensure notes and other records of important communications are prepared by staff and are accurate, issued, properly filed, and augmented as required.

• Manages and monitors overall construction and FF&E budget to ensure the design is within Owner’s specified budget and their minimal value engineering tasks on the project.

• Reporting weekly to Studio or Managing Directors on project schedules and resourcing.

DESIGN MANAGER QUALIFICATIONS

Creative

Professionally seasoned advanced proficiency in;

• Narrative-driven conceptual ideation and design, with a strong emphasis on hospitality, honed through extensive professional practice and advanced technical understanding.

• Advanced proficiency in the interior architectural design process, including space planning, volumetric design, materials, finishes, color palettes, FF&E, art features, and styling.

• Demonstrated professional presentation skills – graphic, written, and spoken. Ability to articulate design thinking to the broader project team and client.

Technical

Professionally demonstrated advanced proficiency in:

• Industry-leading interior architecture design processes, and the practical and technical aspects of each step through project start-up, programming, ideation, space planning, design, client and project management, coordination, documentation and specification, cost evaluations & value engineering, custom FF&E design, construction administration, and project closeout.

• Understanding and application of codes and regulations commonly governing interior architectural design.

• Proficient in relevant ergonomic, operational, and environmental health and safety issues related to hospitality design.

Teamwork

• Able to collaborate manage a team and support one’s colleagues. Fair-minded and respectful.

• Effective communicator setting goals and priorities.

• Very well organized and able to step back to see the whole.

• Open to asking questions, learning, and acting on critical feedback. Adaptable.

Management & Leadership

• Very competent and highly experienced in the delivery of professional design presentations and collaborating with Clients, Operators, end users, and consultants.

• Demonstrated ability to manage and oversee the activities of multiple teams on complex project types. Well-versed in setting priorities.

Tools

Advanced Professional proficiency in:

• AutoCAD – Current edition. Revit is a plus but not required

• Adobe Creative suite.

• MS Office Suite.

Basic working proficiency in:

• Sketch Up and VRay. Rhino or 3DS Max a plus but not required.

• Specification writing software such as Spexx or Specsource is a plus, but not required.

• Understanding of the principles of common accounting applications like BQE Core etc.

• MS Project or other scheduling software a plus.

Education

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in interior design, Architecture, or Interior Architecture.

• Industry accreditation or licenses such as NCIDQ, NCARB, Registered Architect, or LEED – a plus but not required.

Professional Experience

• Equivalence of approximately 11 years of post-graduate professional experience in architecture, interior design, or interior architecture firm with a hospitality focus of which at least 3 years have been in a senior design role.

• Excellent knowledge of hospitality-specific design such as food & beverage, hotel, residential, retail, and product design, and application

AvroKO