Moser disruptive practice-arch3.0-2012

Architecture 3.0:
How to Build a Profitable Disruptive Practice
WE100
Wednesday 5/16/2012 8AM - 12PM

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Cliff Moser, AIA

• 35 years in the Design and Construction Industry.
• Executive Vice President of AECCatalyst
• Past Chair of ASQ Design and Construction Division
www.asq.org/design
• Past Chair of the AIA Practice Management
Knowledge Community (PMKC) www.aia.org/pm

AIA PMKC
Advancing the Practice of Architecture

Mission
The Practice Management Knowledge Community’s mission is to
discover, generate, organize, and share insights, resources, and tools
that enable architects to practice more effectively.
Vision
To serve as the essential resource for advancing the practice of
architecture.

AIA/CES Quality Statement
This program is registered with the AIA/CES for continuing
professional education. As such, it does not include content that
may be deemed or construed to constitute approval, sponsorship
or endorsement by the AIA of any method, product, service,
enterprise or organization. The statements expressed by speakers,
panelists, and other participants reflect their own views and do
not necessarily reflect the views or positions of The American
Institute of Architects or of AIA components, or those of their
respective officers, directors, members, employees, or other
organizations, groups or individuals associated with them.
Questions related to specific products, publications, and services
may be addressed at the conclusion of this presentation.

learning objectives
1. Learn to provide new solutions for creating a successful
design practice that utilizes innovative and disruptive
processes to leverage a firm’s existing markets as well as
identify new opportunities.
2. Outline how to develop a business and client base that
supports disruptive processes.
3. Detail how to build a successful disruptive eco-system of
staff, consultants and vendors.
4. Develop supportive but disruptive relationships with allied
professional such as builders and agencies.

innovation and disruption

• an innovation is a new idea or process that
helps create a new market and value
network-
• and eventually goes on to disrupt an existing
market and value network (over a few years
or decades),
• displacing an earlier technology.

why disruption?

• 50% unemployment within the profession
• 70% less construction spending since 2007

• We need to help facilitate the evolution of
the profession.

construction unemployment

• According to the Labor Department, the
construction industry slashed 2.27 million
jobs from its prerecession peak in 2007 to the
trough of construction employment in
January 2011.
• Just 95,000 jobs have returned, or less than 5
percent of those lost.

lost generation

• Many express concerns that these job losses
may be permanent, that there may not be a
sustained economic rebound for years to
come.
• If these concerns are realized, we risk losing
an entire generation of architects to other
careers.

not just us…

lawyers too…

lawyers

• But the problems that began in the recession
were not a momentary blip.
• Rather, they seem to have been the
beginning of a long term shift within the
profession...

disrupted lawyers

• … where companies are simply not willing to
spend as much on lawyers.
• Legal outsourcing firms, the use of
inexpensive contract attorneys, the decision
by companies to bring more work in-house,
• and demands for cheaper rates have all put
permanent pressure on profits.

disrupted professionals

• The march of improved information
technology will only slim margins further
• Substitution will continue to eliminate jobs
• Expertise is now distributed

first

• Learn to provide new solutions for creating a
successful design practice that
– utilizes innovative and disruptive processes to
leverage a firm’s existing markets and
– identify new opportunities
– maintain existing value streams

types of disruption

• iPod and iPhone
• cds & records, mp3s & cds, streaming & mp3s
• local computing, cloud computing
• hand drafting, cad, and bim
• design bid build, design-build, ipd

disruption is the only way to evolve

• innovation
• disruption
• new business models
• upset the incumbent

types of disruption

• Level One Disruption –
– New Market
• Level Two Disruption
– Enhance Value of Existing Processes

level one disruption

• Create new processes
– Identify a new market that can utilize design-
thinking.

for example

• New Software
– BIM
• New Services
– Transition Planning
– Program Management

level two disruption

• enhance existing processes.
– leverage your existing services and processes by
adding new activities and tasks
– focus on creating an additive that may replace the
technology you’re adding to.

for example

• Existing Conditions – look beyond sketch pad
and photos. Work with a 3d Imager to scan
the building and build smart objects in BIM.
• Create BIM Execution Plan and Requirements
for Owners

diffusion of innovations

• Learn from the bad bets, make part of your
research and development.
• Strive for Ideality incrementation, evolution
and less friction
– Examples
• Billboard Faxes vs PLTs and PDFs
• Portable hard drives vs Drop Box
• Fleet of Blackberries vs Bring your own Device (BYOD)

low end nibbler

• netflix and blockbuster
• creating queue online, waiting for delivery vs.
• going to the store and picking a video out
• soon Blockbuster was trying to compete
• Blockbuster on my android phone
– can’t use it, can’t get rid of it…

netflix disrupted itself

• introduced streaming
• stream to multiple devices
• tried to separate the dvd mail and streaming
market.

we don’t like disruption

• but then we say WTF?
• kodak, polaroid..

• tried to innovate, tried disruption
• but their shareholders wouldn’t give them
enough leeway to make netflix mistakes…

case studies

• Level One Disruptions

AirBnB.com
RISD Industrial Design
& Fine Art Graduates
Kernel of an idea-
-Rent out spare
bedrooms to travelers.
-Started out as “Air
Bed” and Breakfast in
their loft apartment
for attendees of ICSID
Conference in San
Francisco in 2007

level two disruption

• cloud services
• renting software
• outsourcing construction documents

second

• how to develop a new business base
• through level one disruption

second

• Outline how to develop a business and client
base that supports disruptive processes.
– Design for problem-solving
– Design for building
• Measuring the performance of your
disruption
– Balanced Scorecard Metrics

two professions

• Design for Problem-Solving
• Design for Building

design for problem-solving

• framed by design-thinking theories
• focuses your architectural training on
developing system and network solutions to
client problems
• design for problem-solving is main business
model for Arch3.0
• design for building is a specialized activity of
Arch3.0

design thinking

• architects own the origins of design thinking
– Bryan Lawson -Architects vs. Engineers-
• In 1972, psychologist, architect and design researcher
Bryan Lawson, undertook research to understand the
difference between problem-based solvers and
solution-based solvers.
• used two groups of students – final year students in
architecture and post-graduate science students – and
asked them to create one-story structures from a set
of colored blocks.

design thinking

• architects are the original design thinkers
– Bryan Lawson Architects vs. Engineers, 1979
• perimeter of the building was to optimize either the
red or the blue color.
• rules were unspecified regarding the placement and
relationship of the blocks.
• engineers used many different blocks and
combinations of blocks as possible as quickly as
possible.
• maximized information available to them about the
allowed combinations, hoping to discover a formula.

design thinking

• architects are the original design thinkers
– Bryan Lawson Architects vs. Engineers, 1979
• architects selected blocks in order to achieve the
appropriately colored perimeter.
• If this proved not to be an acceptable combination,
then the next most favorably colored block
combination would be substituted and so on until an
acceptable solution was found.
• Engineers (traditional) problem-solving is done by
analysis.
• Design problem-solving is solve through synthesis.

analysis vs. synthesis

• analysis is a breaking down of a whole into
parts or components.
• synthesis is a combining of separate elements
or components in order to form a coherent
whole.

divergent & convergent thinking

• divergent thinking- ability to offer different,
unique & variant ideas for one theme.
• convergent thinking- ability to find the
“correct” solution to the given problem.
• design thinking uses divergent thinking to
ideate many solutions (possible & impossible)
• then convergent thinking to prefer and realize
the best resolution.

what happened?

• we created “design-thinking”
• but then abandoned it to the Industrial
Designers.
• “d-Schools”
• Stanford, Art Center

we take it back

• we’re the original synthesizers
• holistically understand clients needs-

• Beyond Buildings
• Beyond Construction


• seven steps
– Define –Decide, Agree, Prioritize, Determine.
– Research –Review, Collect, Outline.
– Ideation –Brainstorm, Identify, Generate.
– Prototype –Combine, Expand, Feedback, Present.
– Objectives –Review, Set-Aside, Select.
– Implement –Task, Plan, Resource, Execute, Present
– Learn –Feedback, Discuss, Measure, Document.


• posits that design for building is a separate
specialized activity within the practice.
• …that design for problem-solving is the core
activity of the profession.
• states that you first build a practice based on
• …then create a specialized group for design for
building (if at all).

how to measure success

• Balanced scorecard metrics
– A focus on more than financial performance and
information within your practice.
• People, Processes, Customers, Financial
– Use to support strategy around your
competencies and then add to the edges.

balanced scorecard

• People – the people in your practice
• Processes – the way you do your work
• Customers – not just clients –external/internal
• Financial – the way you get paid

Why a Balanced Scorecard?
• To ensure that all parts of the organization
are measured.
• To identify and manage people, processes,
customers and financial perspectives.
• To capture knowledge and information.
• To identify and measure intangible assets.
• To align organizational goals to strategy.

3 Types of Balanced Scorecards
• Project-Based Balanced Scorecard
– Project Specific. Implement at particular phase, or
through project start to finish.
• Initiative-Based Balanced Scorecard
– Build around a specific initiative:
• Quality Assurance/Quality Control
• Marketing or Business Development Initiative
• Organization-Based Balanced Scorecard
– Holistic metrics for entire organization

Project-Based Balanced Scorecard

• Implement at any project phase.
• Establish Mission/Vision Statements.
• Create Goals.
• Identify Strategy.
• Create Tactics for Achieving Strategy.
• Identify and weigh indicators/metrics.

• Construction Administration Phase BSC.
– Mission & Vision
– Identify Leading/Lagging Indicators
– Weigh by using Analytical Hierarchy Method
– Determine Reporting Period
– Set goals.
– Measure/report goals
– Re-set goals.
– Modify Measures. (PDCA)


Project Goal Perspective Objective Lag Measure Lead Measure Target
Build an Processes On-time 1 RFI Turnaround 1. Anticipated 90% weighted
outstanding construction 2 Submittal Drawings
Project delivery Turnaround 2. Scheduled
3 Error Free Work.
Drawings 3. Team
4 Timely Field Innovation
Decisions 4. Team Problem
5. Inspection Solving
Approval


Timely Field Decisions
Submittal Turnaround

Inspection Approval
Error Free Drawings
•Submittal Turnaround

RFI Turnaround
•RFI Turnaround
•Error Free Drawings
•Timely Field Decisions
•Inspection Approval
Submittal Turnaround 1 1 1/5 1/9 1/9
RFI Turnaround 1 1 1/4 1/8 1/9
Error Free Drawings 5 4 1 2 1
Timely Field Decisions 9 8 2 1 2
Inspection Approval 9 9 2 1 1

Rank each measure against each other in order to determine which measure is
more important.



Inspection Approval
Error Free Drawings
•Submittal Turnaround

RFI Turnaround
•RFI Turnaround
•Error Free Drawings
•Timely Field Decisions
Submittal Turnaround 1.00 1.00 0.20 0.11 0.11 •Inspection Approval
RFI Turnaround 1.00 1.00 0.25 0.13 0.11
Error Free Drawings 5.00 4.00 1.00 2.00 1.00
Timely Field Decisions 9.00 8.00 2.00 1.00 2.00
Inspection Approval 9.00 9.00 2.00 1.00 1.00
Total 25.00 23.00 5.45 4.24 4.22

Complete paired ranking and total each column.


Normalize each issue to

Inspection Approval
Error Free Drawings
determine ranking against each

Normalized Total
other.

RFI Turnaround
Then normalize total.
Rankings:

Total
Submittal Turnaround .03 RFI
Turnaround .04 Error-Free
Submittal Turnaround 0.04 0.04 0.04 0.03 0.03 0.17 0.03 Dwgs .25 Field Decisions .36
Inspection Approval .32
RFI Turnaround 0.04 0.04 0.05 0.03 0.03 0.18 0.04
Error Free Drawings 0.20 0.17 0.18 0.47 0.24 1.27 0.25
Timely Field Decisions 0.36 0.35 0.37 0.24 0.47 1.78 0.36
Inspection Approval 0.36 0.39 0.37 0.24 0.24 1.59 0.32
Total 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 5.00 1.00

Create Goals and Reporting Periods.
-Submittals 3% below goal of 90%. -Timely Field Decision. Unfortunately,
Therefore the team multiplies this metric will bring down the goal for
0.97*0.03 = 0.0291 the month. 65% creates a 25% gap.
0.75*0.36 = 0.27
-RFIs were 5% below the goal of 90%.
0.95*0.04 = 0.038
-Inspection. Again, a bad month leaves
-Error Free Drawings were above the the team 20% shy of its goal of 90%.
goal by 8%. Therefore the team 0.8*0.32 = .256.
multiplies 1.08*0.25 = 0.27

Adding the totals brings the month’s achievement goal as follows: 0.029 +
0.038 + 0.27 + 0.27 + 0.27 + 0.256 = 0.836 or 84% of the team’s process
goals for the month, which, is close to the target of 90%.

Use a matrix measure to determine what the team believes to be important (in
other words a 100% win in Inspection, Field Walks, and Error free drawings)
deliver its results immediately.

Instead of relying on arbitrary or immediate metrics, the team can begin to create
and implement stretch goals in order to create endorsed and sustaining
improvement.

people

• Measures the activities of the stakeholders in
your network
– all staff
• modelers, architects, and admin
– consultants
– vendors

Arch3.0 people

• Flexible workforce
• Contractors, Partners and Consultants
• Bring your own device

processes

• The activities you use to perform your work

Arch3.0 processes

• no longer beholden to an incumbent
• autodesk, google, bentley, archicad
• cloud-based services
• focus on deliverable not the tool
• bring your own device

customers

• These are the stakeholders within your
network with a focus on their needs as
customers and clients.

Arch3.0 customers

• everyone is a customer
– staff, consultants, building contractors, agencies
• channel partners
– strengthen supply chain

financial

• These are the traditional series of metrics for
identifying the performance of your
organization, including Profit/Loss, booked
work, etc.
• The disruptive practice focuses on creating
new metrics with alternate performance
requirements.

Arch3.0 financial

• fee from downloads
• new approach to intellectual property
• collaborative model
• no longer focus on fee for labor

ideo case study

• the disruptive practice pioneer
– industrial design firm that formed design thinking

third

• Detail how to build a successful disruptive
eco-system of staff, consultants and vendors.
– How to leverage your relationships with your
stakeholders
– Open network innovation
• Design for Problem-Solving

recognizing your networks

• Arch2.0 was based on ownership and hiding
• Arch3.0 is based on sharing and transparency
• identify and leverage your networks
– multiple networks within your profession,
personal and social life

structural holes

• these are the breaks between networks

• you make yourself the bridge between the
networks

open innovation networks

• The challenge-
– How to use new social networks to be more than
repositories?
– How to engage your staff/stakeholders to
participate in the network conversations?
– How to use social networks to leverage your weak
ties and bridge structural holes

new flavor of the month

• Pinterest
• Tumblr
• Plaxo
• Google+
• MySpace
• ?

social media
• Create a blog tailored to a specific market. If you are a leader in a
given market, chances are you see things about your client's
industry that they can't see on their own. Creative approaches,
common mistakes, insight into the clients they are chasing or simply
lessons unique to their built environment. People enjoy reading
about themselves. Creating the blog from a journalistic perspective
helps cut down the natural resistance to over-branded pieces and it
is possible to build an audience of consistent followers.
• Tag the photos you post. When clients first start dreaming about
their projects they typically start looking for similar projects that
have already been built. When you post your photos—either as part
of your website or on a social media platform like Flickr—take the
time to tag them in the ways that your clients would look for them.

social media
• Add your high-profile projects to Wikipedia. Wikipedia provides the
opportunity to create a public record. Stadiums, theatres and other
high profile projects frequently have entries. Make sure that
statistics are entered for your projects
• Coach your team to use LinkedIn. If someone is searching for one of
your employees, chances are that LinkedIn will come up in search
ahead of their profile on your company’s website. Make sure your
team has fully completed profiles and that their corporate e-mail
address is listed so they are easily found. Coach them on building a
network that helps them expand into your client’s world.
• Social media gives the opportunity to let client’s see behind the
curtain and the glossy portfolio.

design for problem-solving and
design for building
• HOK
– Blended practice
– Specialists in social media, sustainability, client
management

design for building

• Barker Rinker Seacat
– Community Center and Natatorium designers
– Problem-Solving became consultancy as well as
architect of record.

fourth

• develop supportive but disruptive
relationships with allied professionals such as
builders and agencies.
– how can you earn fee in these traditionally
adversarial relationships?
– how can you expand the Arch3.0 two practice
model to successfully create and engage this
market.

fourth

• Design for Problem Solving
– BIM Execution and Management Plan
– Teaching
– Board Member Role
– Design-Build
– IPD
– Design Assist

design for problem solving

• design for problem-solving
– focus on identifying your client’s needs and
requirements
– assist them in the seven step process

design for building

• design for building
– Collaborative models
– IPD, Design-Build, Design Assist
– Scoping Documents

design a disruption

• Break into balanced scorecard groups
• People, processes, customers, finance
– one group-
– Identify a Design for Problem Solving Activity
– another group
– Identify a Design for Building Activity
• Identify a level one or level two innovation
for each perspective

and then

• Identify performance metrics
• That will ensure the disruption is nurtured.

for example

• I’m in the financial new disruption group
• identify a new disruption
– I pay the client to work for them
– what?
– Arcosanti, habitat for humanity, church missions

• then identify performance metrics for
people, processes, customer, and financial
that support the new disruption

people

• access to the customer expertise and clients
• use to learn new skillsets
– metrics-
– amount of time onsite with client
– percentage of billing to free job vs paid job

processes

• use the customers hardware and software
• no local office

customers

• identify the internal and external customers
– internal
• your staff, the consultants
– external
• the client’s staff and consultants

financial

• how do we manage costs?
– do we get paid for expenses, do we pay our
consultants?

summary

• Arch3.0
– disruption
• level one and level two
– two practices
• design for problem-solving
• design for building
– network effects
• manage your weak ties and structural holes
– recognize and leverage your strengths

Speaker
[List alphabetically by last name regardless of speaking order]

• Cliff Moser, AIA

1
2

Contact Information
Cliff Moser, AIA
310.947.8509
cliff.moser@gmail.com
cliffm@aeccatalyst.com

Moser disruptive practice-arch3.0-2012

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