We are finally conceding to a request that’s been made a thousand times – do an episode on starting an architectural business – a topic that I have resisted for essentially 6 years, and I think I’ve finally broken. This is not as easy of a topic to discuss as you might think because there are a million different ways you could answer a question this broad. In an attempt to make this conversation of value, we are going to start at the beginning, and we are going to eat this whale one bit at a time. Welcome to EP 151: Starting a Business [Note: If you are reading this via email, click here to access the on-site audio player] [hoops name="top1"] Starting at the Beginning jump to 1:36 Business plans are not that difficult to prepare, and when created properly, they can be used as a guide to help make long term decisions on to best set up you new firm. Since we are going to go about today's conversation at the beginning, we are going to adopt the strategy of "eating this whale one bite at a time". Student Example Business Plan from Andrew's class Executive Strategy jump to 4:40 The first thing to do is to take some time to figure out exactly who you are, and more importantly, who you want to be - which means creating an overview of your firm, its mission, and goals. For me, the most important part of this process is to focus on your goals. This can mean a handful of different things, (type of work, geographic location, size of your new firm, how much money do you want to make, etc.) but how you decide to answer this question will fundamentally guide your behavior in the beginning Summary of services offered and target market jump to 7:12 This should be an easy one for most people to figure out. What type of work will you be providing and who will you be providing it for? Let’s say you want to start a residential architecture firm. Will you be focusing on developers, builders or end users as your client base (maybe all three?) Will you be designing new houses, additions renovations, full documentation or something at a reduced capacity (i.e. “Builder set”?) Maybe you think you will simply be taking on whatever you can and for whomever – which is a reality for most people starting out in a residential firm but you still need to have some sort of understanding at what level of service and documentation each of these user bases will require and how to establish an appropriate fee for each one (which is probably the most asked question I get on this topic). For the record, there is no canned ready-to-serve answer to this question due to the number considerations that fall into place. Firm Description jump to 11:10 History of the firm (if any if it is a modification of an existing firm) and its partners. This is exactly what you think it is and might be the easiest thing about creating a business plan. The purpose of this section is to really demonstrate competency to the people you want as clients. This is really a personal history of the individuals that make up the firm (which could be one) but it explains how and why you ventured out to create this firm. Develop a Vision and Mission Statement jump to 12:40 I am not a big fan typically of mission statements, mostly because I don’t think people use them properly. A mission statement is typically used to clarify what business you are in, focus your goals, and identify your business objectives. They should be internal vision statements to help guide the decision making process not some pandering message shared with the public espousing things you should be doing anyway (like providing excellent service, providing solutions, or any sort of “listening to your clients”) I wrote a post on Mission Statements back in 2014 (http://lifeofanarchitect.com/mission-statements/) and my thoughts on the matter haven’t changed at all. Other than me making fun at how bad a lot of them are, there are two key takeaways on this matter – Keep it simple and at a high level, and your mission statement should reflect the future (meaning it’s not about who you are and what you’ve done – it should be about who you want to be and where you want to be.) Location and facility jump to 19:03 Okay – I lied. This is the easiest one to understand. You need to find out where you are going to work. Home office? Renting space? Subletting a smaller piece of someone else’s space? Legal Structure (sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, etc.) jump to 21:10 This one is easy to list out what your options are but you should really spend some time working through this. Each business structure has distinct advantages and disadvantages and your choice depends on factors such as the number of owners, liability concerns, tax considerations, and the level of regulatory burden the business is willing to bear. It is reasonable for you to spend some time and money to consult with legal and financial advisors that can help you choose the best structure for your business. That having been said, here are the ones y
