Architect + Action = Result

By Rebecca W. E. Edmunds, AIA

Architect + Action = Result presents a collection of guidelines and advice for identifying themes and shaping narratives of professional achievements, career milestones, and building and design projects. Inspired by over a decade of supporting nominees for Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Edmunds's method for developing narratives provides valuable tools for all architects seeking to articulate the stories of their work, regardless of their interest in Fellowship. More than a guidebook, the volume invites readers to apply the introspection and preparation required for Fellowship to find, define, and elevate meaning in practice. Her approach—and treatise on writing basics—is transformative for all professionals and designers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: r4 llc
• Release date: Jul 6, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201818159

Rebecca W. E. Edmunds, AIA

Rebecca W. E. Edmunds’s career spans multiple disciplines including design for highly technical textiles and apparel. Her architectural practice focuses on providing leadership in creating consistent, comprehensive communications and writing on design for aesthetic and technical performance. Her experience includes product design for technical applications in environments such as medical, cleanrooms, military and extreme outdoor. She has been a consultant to state AIA Fellowship Committees since 2007 aiding candidate submission strategies. Today, Edmunds assists architects, designers and artists develop comprehensive narratives of their projects, achievements, careers and creative philosophy. She brings a background in architecture, design, R&D, graphics, communications and creative writing to professional narrative development. She has served as editor and/or advisor to several publications including Managing Design: Conversations, Project Controls and Best Practices for Commercial Design and Construction Projects (Michael A. LeFevre FAIA, 2019); Individual to Collective, Duda|Paine Architects (2014), Sketchbook on the World, Pen and Ink Travel Sketches (Terrance J. Brown, FAIA, 2017); and Homelands (The NAAB National Conference, 2001). She has authored and ghost-authored many articles and case studies. Edmunds received a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University, a Master of Architecture from the University of North Carolina Charlotte, and a Master of Fine Arts from Queens University Charlotte. She has also completed executive training programs at including a mini-MBA at UNC Chapel Hill’s Kenan Flagler Business School, Leadership for Performance at UVA’s Darden School of Business and Leadership for Technical Managers at the Center for Creative Leadership. Edmunds received the 2019 Leslie N. Boney Spirit of Fellowship Award for her work on behalf of the AIA College of Fellows. She has won writing and design awards including the AIA’s Henry Adams Medal, the AIA NC Architectural Book Award, and UNC Charlotte’s Excellence in Architectural History and Theory Book Award and Best Architectural Design Project. She won an Innovation Award for Technology from textile manufacturer Burlington Industries. 

Book preview

Preface

If you’ve never experienced the pomp and circumstance of the AIA College of Fellows Investiture Ceremony held each year, you are missing one of the finest things the AIA does for its members. Fellowship within the American Institute of Architects is one of the highest honors an architect can receive—a symbol of extraordinary achievement and professional excellence.

Achieving Fellowship is frequently sought but seldom achieved. Only three percent of our members become Fellows. The College of Fellows’ Regional Representatives are constantly on the lookout for worthy candidates, urging, mentoring and supporting those who aspire to become future Fellows. In all cases, it is a journey that is years in the making. But a journey without plan or reason is just a hope, and hope is simply not a strategy. Personally, I had always hoped of becoming a Fellow but did not know where to begin or how to achieve it. I had attended several AIA Demystifying Fellowship seminars over the years that left me more mystified than when I started. The one thing I learned is to keep a record of everything you’ve done, because someday you’ll need it.

Then, one day—as happens for many of us—a colleague, and member of the College of Fellows, tapped me on the shoulder and said, you know, Ed, you ought to think about applying for Fellowship, I think you have what it takes. Well, after the elation of their belief in me subsided, I got to work. I toiled all summer organizing my career into a representative semblance of a submittal package and shipped it off to a recently elevated colleague for a quick review. He told me I had all the makings of a Fellow but that my story needed help.

That’s when I was introduced to Rebecca Edmunds. My friend couldn’t speak highly enough of her skills and capabilities. She had helped him achieve Fellowship, like so many others before him. He was right. Rebecca helped me discover my voice, honing my story in ways I never thought possible. I achieved Fellowship on my first attempt. That began a relationship that has now spanned nearly a decade. During that time Rebecca and I have worked closely together during my years on the College of Fellows Executive Committee, in our mutual mission to pull back the veils of secrecy and mystery that have plagued applicants for years. She and I share a deep devotion to the Institute and the College that has changed it for the better in more ways than I can share here. Though Rebecca is not (yet) a member, she understands the College of Fellows far better than most of its members and is without a doubt an emerging Fellowship candidate.

Over the years, Rebecca has developed a successful writing, editing and coaching practice centered on helping architects across the country develop their voices in their quests for Fellowship. She has also served as the historically relevant voice for The College of Fellows History & Directory while helping architects craft and refine their voices and stories of their work for other narrative pursuits. In creating this volume, she passes the torch, leaving an actionable, accessible legacy of experience and wisdom.

Her audience includes architects lacking the resources to afford marketing departments and consultants, practitioners with minimal marketing resources, and the next generation of individuals who will help architects craft their stories.

With so much emphasis on how practice is evolving and the rapid development of new technology for designing and evaluating design, this book asks readers to pause and contemplate the meaning of their work. With wit, wisdom and specific practical advice on framing and conveying the impact of many architect’s careers, Rebecca Edmunds simultaneously offers the only—and best—proven guide to crafting professional architectural narratives and achieving AIA Fellowship.

Mentor to many, and friend to all, Rebecca Edmunds, through this expert-guide-in-a-book format, is saving the world one submittal at a time. I advise wise architects to digest it deeply and heed its sage advice.

Happy reading!

Edward A. Vance, FAIA

2019 Chancellor | AIA College of Fellows

Founder & CEO, EV&A

Foreword

I continue to be fascinated with the role serendipity has in our lives—and how a chance meeting or connection can redirect the trajectory of one’s path in life. Serendipity is the best way I can describe my accidental influence over the career journey of my friend, Rebecca Edmunds.

As you will learn in this book, Rebecca and I first met when she joined my architectural firm, LS3P, as an architectural intern. Through a myriad of circumstances (some of which are still deeply disappointing to me) we managed to turn Rebecca away from the traditional path of paying her dues as an intern. You know, sitting in front of a computer all day, detailing someone else’s design. And yet, one door closes and another opens. Through my connection with AIA North Carolina’s Fellows Committee, I asked Rebecca if she would be interested in editing the submissions of our current candidates.

That chance opportunity turned into a major fork in the road of her career path. As this book attests, Rebecca found her calling in helping architects discover their voice during their Fellowship journey. A life’s work was the result.

I believe Rebecca’s story highlights the value of an architectural education—and the wider variety of nontraditional career choices potentially supportable by such an education. The ability to apply design thinking in solving just about any problem has become de rigueur for many companies. Architectural graduates are now highly sought after in diverse settings, from managing facility departments at university campuses to envisioning the latest virtual game design. In response, the AIA Fellowship process is adapting to reflect the greater diversity of practice of today’s architects.

Speaking of diversity, my own career path of over 30 years mirrors the growing progress of women in architecture. When I graduated from college with my architectural degree, only a small percentage of graduates were women. Today, almost half the students in US architectural programs are women. Despite this enrollment growth, the number of women that become registered, achieve upper management positions or own architectural firms has not increased in the same proportion as that of their male counterparts.

Currently, only 17 percent of registered architects are women. This same ratio applies to women who are principals in their firms. Statistics reflecting the number of registered Black architects in the US are even more dismal. Clearly, achieving greater diversity within the architectural profession still has a long way to go. But I am heartened by the variety of voices now coming to the forefront of our profession, especially those offering a more humanistic, open, empathic and female perspective.

Rebecca’s incredible track record of successfully shepherding candidates through the rigorous AIA Fellowship process is proof of her expertise in finding your voice. Those lucky enough to travel the pages of this guidebook will be delighted to find proven, helpful advice on subjects ranging from AIA Fellowship Requirements, the principles of narrative and storytelling, to time-tested writing tips—all essential components of a convincing Fellowship submittal.

I wish Rebecca had been around when I was navigating my journey to Fellowship—it took me several tries to figure it out. I sure would have benefited from her wise counsel. What is so wonderful about Rebecca’s book is that she shares her magic in her noble pursuit of making the Fellowship process more accessible to all. Whether you choose to pursue Fellowship, or not, this book will help you find greater meaning in your practice. Your story. I am proud of my small, serendipitous role in shaping Rebecca’s path to finding her voice and her ascendant growth to help others find theirs. Read this book and you’ll see what I mean.

Katherine Peele, FAIA

2007 Chair | AIA North Carolina Fellows Committee

Principal, Chief Practice Officer, LS3P

Introduction

Architect + Action = Result© emerged from my years of helping hundreds of architects gain Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows and researching the College’s history of successful candidates. While helping individuals catalog their careers and craft their stories, I observed the process was transformative for many. Having had this revelation, I thought: why not make the process accessible to all architects who seek to add meaning and purpose in their careers, regardless of their interest in the professional recognition that Fellowship brings?

Over these years, I have also repeated the same guidance on how to approach a submission—with clarity, consistency, metrics and objectively and methodically without irrelevant achievements. Eventually, I realized creating this book may be helpful to future nominees, professionals and those who help them tell their stories for a multitude of purposes.

The AIA provides abundant resources on the College of Fellows’ six Objects of Nomination, the Categories within each, and detailed submittal requirements for the honor. My intention in this volume is not to duplicate or supplant those resources. Instead, this book empowers architects to view their practices and careers through the lens of Fellowship and increase understanding of the work of members of the College. As you turn these pages, think about what you are reading in two ways. First, as a guidebook for discovering and framing the material required by the AIA’s Fellowship submission. Second, as an opportunity to reflect on, encapsulate and capture your architectural career for future generations.

To access all the AIA offers on the Fellowship submission process, start at aia.org and navigate through the Honors & Awards section to find the Fellows submission home page. There you will find descriptions of the Objects, examples of successful submissions by Object, a sample application, the AIA’s Submitting for Fellowship PDF presentation, FAQs and many other resources to guide you through the requirements of preparing and submitting your case for Fellowship.[i] Should you find any of these materials confusing, the AIA’s Honors & Awards staff is extremely helpful.

For many architects and their supporters in the Fellowship process, an early challenge is finding the time to digest the AIA’s submittal requirements. I don’t know how else to say it: find the time. If you do, you’ll be playing by the rules (critical) and your journey (and submission preparation process) will be much easier.

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If you are reading this book and considering pursuing AIA Fellowship, one of your first questions might be: what qualifications does this author—an architect and AIA member and non-Fellow—have to tell anyone about the relevancy and process of Fellowship? My sustained involvement with the world of Fellowship began when I worked with the AIA North Carolina Fellows Committee starting in 2007, fully volunteering after 2009 to provide critique and commentary at their pinups to help advance individuals to state nomination and Fellowship. As of 2021, as I write this volume, I’ve now provided counsel to chapters across the country through direct involvement, such as with AIA Nevada, or indirectly through candidates with whom I openly