Individual Portfolio: The Key Aspects of Running the Business of a Professional Practice - Personal Statement Example

Individual Portfolio Explain the key aspects of running the business of a professional practice The practice of architecture consists of providingprofessional services in the areas of town planning, building design, and construction of other special structures like parking lots, works of conservation, restoration, or alteration of a building or group of buildings. These professional services also include planning and land-use planning, urban design, provision of preliminary studies, designs, models, drawings, specifications and technical documentation. Other areas of professional service comprises of coordination of technical documentation prepared by other consultants as appropriate and without limitation, construction economics, contract administration, monitoring of construction, and project management. Running a business, or rather, working as a professional architect needs the application of a variety of skills acquired during the course of education as well as by practice, internship and various sources of continuous learning. Architectural professional practice being very demanding, demands one to have and all encompassing knowledge base of many fields like the information about available construction technology, the trends prevailing in society, the social needs, the economics and finances of construction, the rules and regulations applied by the local authorities, the fundamental knowledge of engineering and structure and other applied fields. Provided with these issues, a professional should be able to effectively generate designs that are sensitive to the society in which it is supposed to be built, and sensitive as well to the environment as a whole. Other practical skills like time management, work management and the management of public relationships, the ability to work in teams with effective coordination, identify and utilise the potentials of the colleagues (as an architect is generally looked upon as a key person in the team), proficient communication skills etc. prove to be crucial in the handling of various tasks. One also needs to have the necessary design skills, the knowledge of climate and environmental sciences, building services etc. to meet building users' requirements within the constraints imposed by cost factors and building regulations. Ethics and Conduct of Practice In any long-term practice, it is the behaviour and the reputation of a professional that counts. The manner and quality, in which works have been completed in past, the sincerity that has been displayed for work and client, play an important role in creating the goodwill of the architect. As a professional architect, an individual has a primary duty of care towards the community as a whole and this duty prevails over the personal interests of clients as well as one's own self. A professional should be concerned and dedicated to the standards of professionalism, integrity and competence and ultimately contribute to the wellbeing of the environment and the wellbeing of the society. Fundamental Skills of a Professional As a qualified architect, there are some fundamental skills that are expected from a professional. One fully utilises the skills developed during the formal education and other practical onsite skills which are developed with the experience of practical works. Creating designs that satisfy technical requirements and which aim to be environmentally sensitive is very important. An understanding of the structural design, construction and engineering problems associated with building is necessary to minimise any structural problems. One needs adequate knowledge of the practicalities of the on-site work problems and should be prepared to deal with them accordingly by employing ones own skills or by deploying the skills of the available consultants. This is very crucial. Further, necessary design skills to meet building users' requirements within the constraints imposed by cost factors and building regulations are very imperative to be known. Adequate knowledge of the industries, organizations, regulations, and procedures involved in translating design concepts into buildings and integrating plans into overall planning. Registration with the local authority, licensing and certification needs to be procured to gain the legal recognition of ones qualifications. This allows an architect to practice as an architect associated with the regulations preventing unqualified persons from performing certain functions. Continuing Professional Development With the rapidly expanding scope of technology, a considerable development in construction technology can be observed. The technologies that were uncommon before a period a few years could be found widely in practice presently. The formal education that one has received as a student is limited in comparison to the wide practices in the construction field, and it requires that periodic update is made to the existing pool of knowledge. Maintaining and continuing professional development is very important in order to provide good quality and time sensitive services. It is important to keep abreast with the new technologies, methods of practice and changing social and ecological conditions. In other words, learning is a lifelong process in the field of architecture, which maintains, enhances, or increases the knowledge and continuing ability of architects. Professionals require devoting time to maintain existing skills, broadening knowledge and exploring new areas. Professional Communication One also requires learning the art of meaningful and professional presentation of ideas and subsequently the architectural designs and all the other things that a proposal might include. That is to say, a professional must be fairly good at the art of non verbal and verbal communication. This must be both ways, one must perceive well what the client or other team players convey and must effectively convey what he himself intends to convey. It is a good and safe practice, while working professionally; to cross check the ideas that have been conveyed to another person by oneself, as an attempt to prevent any case of miscommunication, as in profession it might lead to unwanted disasters. Almost all of the architectural project works include communication with various team-mates. A professional should be able to discuss strategies effectively with the colleagues. one needs to communicate well with other players of the team like the structural consultants, the HVAC and plumbing consultants, the project contractor, site engineer and most importantly the client because he is the most curious about where are his funds being utilised and also regular communication with the client with the progress of the work will not surprise him with any unexpected element when the things are done. Also good communication skills help while explaining designs in competitions and making presentations at gatherings of architects and engineers. Using a project that you are working on, describe the procurement route adopted, and evaluate it by looking at other procurement options. Project Procurement Procurement is a method by which architectural services are commissioned whereas the procurement route is the means by which the design and construction process is carried out. It deals with the entire life of the project beginning with the conception of the project up till its total completion and occupation by the client. The various recognized methods of procurement include the Traditional Procurement Method, Design and Build, Construction Management Contracting or Design Construct and Manage. These methods basically differ in distribution of responsibilities in between the various members of the team. With different method of procurement, the duties, obligations and responsibilities of the individuals also change. In different types of procurements, the level of risk that the owner has to bear also differs. He is the safest in a traditional model of procurement as he is aware of the design development and makes all the decision by himself. In private projects, the Traditional Model has been the most popular one whereas in public sector projects, Design and Build has in recent times increased in usage whereas the traditional continues to be the most favourite model till date. Traditional procurement This form of procurement involves the appointment of a separate design team direct by the client. The team will develop the design in accordance with the client's design brief, arrange for a tender and subsequently administer the contract on site. The design and all the specifications should be completed in all aspects before the tenders from contractors are invited. A separate contractor is employed by the client, by being in consultation with the architect at his will, to construct the work which is normally under a standard joint contracts tribunal form of contract. Therefore in this case, the contractor and the design team are two separate bodies that are hired by the client, both of them responsible to the client. However it is expected that the contractor exactly follows the instructions of the architect and in other words it can also be said that the architect is acting on the client's behalf to get the job completed effectively. The contractor quotes a lump sum amount for which he agrees to carry out the entire job. Once the quote is finalised, the contractor assumes the total risk of financial expenditures that are incurred during the construction part. This kind of procurement has been largely followed by private clients and till date has been the most popular method of procurement. The traditional model has at its core the following principles Design and construction responsibilities split Design completed prior to starting on site Client afforded maximum ability to effect change at any stage of the process Client attains relative cost certainty at the outset of the construct stage of the project Client attains relative program certainty at the outset of the construct stage of the project. Approach allows maximum competition at all levels of the supply chain at tender stage Risk allocation is well established, known and understood by all participants Client retains maximum control on the process, which allows the client an input into all aspects of the design process in particular Tendering costs for contractors are low based on the provision of completed design by others A suite of standardized and recognized contract documents supported by substantial case precedent is in place. Management procurement This type of procurement is suitable for medium sized projects. It involves the client directly engaging professionals and trades people on an ad hoc basis. There is scope for a number of problems with this process; however the risk is greatly reduced if there is a designated person with the time and expertise to coordinate the project. However the employer in this case remains uncertain about the quality of design. The exact cost estimates can also not be calculated at the onset of the project. Design and Build With this form of procurement the client draws up a list of 'employer's requirements', which the contractor uses to prepare a tender and present 'contractor's proposals'. It is generally seen that the client employs an architect or similar professional to assist in the drawing up of the employer's requirements and to act as the employer's agent during the construction phase. The proposal submitted by the contractor contains the proposal of design as well as the estimated cost and time for the project. In this case the role of designer as well as that of the contractor is played by the same person. It is also seen that the contractor does not subsequently employ the same person since this would result in a conflict of interest. The main advantage of this form of procurement is single-point responsibility, but the quality of the finished product may suffer as many of the design decisions are left to the discretion of the contractor. The employer is set free from the amount of risk as compared to a traditional model. At the same time he also lessens his own control over the project. Explain how Managing information and the design process can be key to a successful project In the process of design, an architect has to remain informed about a variety of issues regarding the requirements of the project, the demands made by the client, the local development and construction bylaws, the available technology and material for construction, and many more issues to say. Relevant information on all these issues is needed in order to meaningfully investigate various aspects of the project and make issue specific decisions. A collection of relevant information can make sense only when it can be used effectively in discussion and decision making. Information management deals with organisation and classification of this collected information that can be of any help in future. This includes extraction of information from various and its appropriate placement with a rational framework that can facilitate retrieval of required data at a later stage. A framework of information is helpful to the designer in classifying the received information and placing it into broader compartments. This prevents the loss of useful information in the mass of usable information that is collected in the earlier phase. In large projects, the amount of data received from the client and the consultants can be staggering. This flood of information, if mismanaged, will lead into a bulk of information that is not helpful in generating desired results. One important point is to judge whether the information of useful in the project, at any state of the design or is the provided data in the information, a repetition of something said elsewhere This will prevent trivial and irrelevant information to form a part of the database and will eliminate data clog. Data clog occurring from unorganised information causes confusion and prevents clear conclusions. It paralyses the thought process and a mental block develops against all information. Unable to comprehend, a designer may decide to ignore it all. Therefore one can assimilate any amount of information as long as it is pertinent, meaningful and well organised for effective use. Large amounts of highly organised material are requited to expand the range of possibilities before a new and useful combination of ideas can be generated by the architect. Selecting and discarding the relevant information. It needs proper knowledge to decide what all information shall be helpful in the decision making of design process. However, the risk of discarding useful information is discarded with experience. Information is only important if it is appropriate. It also includes statistic data of the site including the physical, legal, climatic and aesthetic aspects. These facts can also be documented graphically if necessary. This proves to be more effective when such drawings are placed one over the other to form a completed picture of the site giving out various information simultaneously. Look at the knowledge base and skills that you now have, consider what you would like to spend time on over the next 12 months developing and say how you plan to do this. Personal skills With my experiences, I have discovered my natural tendencies towards practical and analytical thinking. Being a left brained thinker has helped me in effectively performing jobs at managerial and administrative positions in the past. I also have fairly good skills of interpersonal communication and can enthusiastically work in team as a team player or as a team leader. I also have flexibility towards adjusting to new patterns or work and can learn new things rapidly. My tendency to socialise with a variety of people helps me in dealing with different people and working to effectively generate good amount of team work. I have proved to be well organised and possess good work and time management skills that can help me in handling a variety of tasks simultaneously without affecting the quality of output. Having formally acquired the skills for producing architectural designs, now I look forward towards sharpening the management skills by pursuing the course of 'construction and project management. But initially, for about a year, I intend to work for a firm that handles project of mega scale. This can help me gain more experience in the working atmosphere and explore the diversity of architectural works. I expect to deal with practicalities of managing large scale works for and maintaining deadlines by effectively managing the resources like human resource, materials, finances etc. Further, I would also intend to shift jobs at regular periods to gain a better exposure of a variety of works and systems of practice. With this practical experience, I shall further decide my further course of action. Construction and project management is an emerging trend on account of the developing construction industry. Qualified project managers are in great demand in many good firms and this education also promises good opportunities for work in future. The program trains an individual in management and will help me in polishing the managerial skills that I have acquired during the course of my job. In addition to this, the course also covers essential syllabus to give enough technological knowledge of construction which is more of engineering oriented. This, I think, will help in bridging the gap in between the skills of an architect and that of an engineer. Technological knowledge in combination with management skills can jointly be of great help to me as I can put into play my natural talent of performing practically oriented tasks. The post of a project manager also facilitates me to work in a team, as a team leader, and work in coordination with different consultants. In the event when I run my own practice in future, the management and construction skills acquired will also help me in running my office efficiently. The architectural education provide skills to an individual for generating designs, whereas the education of construction and project management equips one with the managerial skills. Hence this helps ultimately to become managerial architects. Summarise the key aspects of business practice, including those described above, relevant to the "professional" ethos. Say what you think professionalism means. For a professional, it becomes imperative to have a detailed knowledge of the practical aspects of construction. The knowledge of latest development in construction technology and the practices helps one in developing in keeping pace with time. The development control regulations also need to be followed in detail and care should be taken that timely updates are made in accordance with any modification or amendment in the rules. The establishment of code of ethics not only helps an individual to paint a better picture of ones own profession in the society, but also builds his own good will which on a longer period helps him in receiving projects that are larger in magnitude and of greater importance. This also helps in inducing other able individuals of the same profession to collaborate with the architect and ultimately creates a better and powerful team. With the changing lifestyle and the changing needs of time, it is important to keep oneself updated with the progress of the society and be a student for life. Therefore an individual should maintain and advance his knowledge of the art and science of architecture, and consider the social and environmental impact of his professional activity. The professional should serve the client competently and in professional manner and should see to it that the instructions of the client is followed properly, as in many cases, on account of lack of technical knowledge client is not totally able to understand the course of work on site until its completion. It is necessary to update the client regularly with the proceedings. A general tendency of thinking, at times portrays architects to be non practical in terms of thinking; as an individual who is keen to have some special play of form, light, colour, space etc. and generate an aura that only other trained eyes can recognise. This is the issue where the architect and the engineer differ in opinion. However the point that architects design impractical elements in design is both true and untrue. With his experience and specialised training of various subjects like the history of architecture, humanities, social sciences and the knowledge of other applied arts, an architect has a bigger picture in mind with reference to which he makes design decisions. Individuals who do not have an exposure, or have a limited exposure to these areas, find it difficult to understand such designs. However, in certain cases the artistic and philosophical tendencies of an architect override practicality, and result in such architectural creations that prove to be disastrous for the client for whom it is made. The house IV by peter Eisenman is a good example in this case. The overriding application of deconstruction theory by the architect resulted in sheer dissatisfaction of the client. This, according to me, is non ethical. An architect is supposedly assumed to be satisfying the needs, primarily of the client and secondly of the society and not those of his own at the expense of the client. 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