‘CHANGING THE FACE OF ARCHITECTURE’: Bringing about meaningful change in the sector

At Curio Careers, we are passionate advocates for raising the profile of women in architecture.?We were therefore incredibly proud to sponsor the recent Women in Architecture UK ?(WIA) mentoring programme closure and celebration event.

It was a chance to network, socialise, and celebrate the achievements of the programme’s 2023 mentors and mentees. We welcomed architects, designers, and creatives across all levels and had the most rewarding night of stories, shared experiences and humour. We heard first-hand of the support and growth of both mentors and mentees.

The night was hosted flawlessly by Tania Ihlenfeld and our brilliant panellists included:

• Ayo Abbas – award-winning built environment marketing expert, Abbas Marketing
• Dessislava Dimitrova – Architect, Grimshaw
• Andela A. – Architectural Assistant, Corstorphine & Wright
• Sophia Chang-Stalker – Senior & Project Architect, Murphy Phillips LLP
• Rupali Sharma-Patel - Head of Assisted Transport; On Demand Transport, Transport for London

It was a positive and thought-provoking evening, full of ideas and optimism on "Changing the Face of Architecture" and discovering how to bring about real change within the sector.?

HERE ARE SOME OF THE KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THE NIGHT:

1.???? The need to drive for greater diversity in the sector is as strong as ever

• In a sector that is still traditionally male-dominated, we need to see greater diversity being brought into the workforce, whether that’s gender, race, religion, background, neurodiversity, or other differences.
• People tend to recruit people who look just like them, so there is a pattern of those at the top just recruiting those who sound like them, went to the same school as them and who design like them.
• We need to see greater diversity of people across all levels, including women, but especially at the senior end of the market.
• Firms need to also think more about how they can attract people from different backgrounds and invest in a more diverse next-generation of architects and designers. Education needs to be more accessible for a start, to encourage more diversity into the profession.
• The benefits of this to the architecture and engineering sector are huge – if we have different people in practices, then we’ll get different ways of thinking and doing things, which means we’ll get different buildings and designs. Diverse hiring ultimately breeds diverse and stronger designs.

2.???? It’s everyone’s responsibility to drive change

• Inclusion is everyone’s responsibility – and collectively we can and are doing so much to make this a more equitable profession. And yet if we want true and lasting change within the sector, it has to also come from the top. Important conversations about diversity and representation within the sector need to happen, not just in dedicated spaces such as this, but in boardrooms and partnership meetings across all practices. True cultural change has to be led by and have buy-in from the decision-makers. So how do we get those people to the table?

3.???? Championing women to break down barriers

• We need more allies who champion women and are cheerleaders for those in the sector. And this isn’t just female support, we need men involved too in order to drive real change and also to retain key talent. ?
• The Women in Architecture mentoring programme is just one of those ways we can celebrate and support women in the sector and help to slowly bring about change, by helping them to break down barriers.
• There are some amazing females in architecture, but a lot of the time they just aren’t being heard, so we need to give them a voice. Quite often they do incredible work to give their leaders the spotlight, but actually they are amazing themselves – we need to start putting them on the podium!?

4.???? Practices need to become more flexible

• To attract and retain great talent and develop a truly diverse workforce, practices need to become more flexible. Diversity and inclusion only truly works in an organisation when they understand that people are all juggling many things in their lives, not just work. Whether it’s kids, parents, pets or other responsibilities, life doesn’t always happen outside of the Monday to Friday 9-5.
• More often than not, it falls to women to juggle more in terms of childcare and other responsibilities than their male counterparts. A lack of flexibility from practices means that people, particularly women of a certain age, are being lost from the profession. Many tend to just drop out and do their own thing. Practices need to address the issues to stop them dropping out in the first place. Those females who’ve set up their own practices can work more flexibly, and be more inclusive…so why can’t the larger practices do this too?

5.???? Everyone needs role models

• Aspiring architects and designers need to see people who look like them in these practices – whether that’s in the board room, conducting their interviews or running design projects.
• And where are the senior women in architecture to inspire the next generation?? The profession needs a lot more female role models. While some are starting to climb the ranks and break through glass ceilings, we still need to see more coming through.

6.???? Women should be more confident in their abilities

• Why is it that men are much more confident in their abilities than women? Men might not know 100% of a job, but they’re happy knowing perhaps 90%, 80%, or maybe less…but women think they have to be over-qualified and know it all (and more) in order to consider themselves qualified for the role.
• Women strive for educational excellence, they suffer imposter syndrome, they feel they have to prove themselves over and over again. They feel they must be even better and work even harder, just to achieve the same. As women, they can often be heard saying “I was lucky”, but they’ve in fact worked hard to get there.
• Women should remind themselves: they do deserve to be at the table, yes they are adding value, and what they have to say is worthwhile. They shouldn’t undervalue themselves. They should also recognise the other strengths they can bring to a role, such as soft skills and emotional intelligence, which can be critical success factors in delivering projects. As men and women, we have different strengths and weaknesses, it’s about acknowledging that and harnessing that.
• There were some feelings too that women are often overlooked for promotions and opportunities. The WIA mentoring programme supports women in learning not to be afraid to ask for what they need to develop. It’s not always about blaming the system – it’s about learning to push for what we want, put our hands up more, or find someone else who can make it happen.

Change can start today, tomorrow, next week…so what more can we be doing to drive positive change as a profession?

If you’re interested in becoming a mentor/mentee for the WIA Mentoring Programme, you can find out more on their website https://www.wia-uk.org/ or follow their social channels for updates.