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There has been much discussion raised about "Why are women leaving Architecture? and more broadly, Why is the profession losing key talent?" Both women and men practitioners are disillusioned by the myth of work/life balance: Women are grappling with "have it all" expectations of juggling family time with the demands of full-time work. Men are struggling to support their families solely on an architect's salary and fall back on asking spouses to maintain their jobs. The lack of affordable childcare and high cost of living only magnifies the challenges. How did we end up in this modern family dilemma? What can we do to improve the situation?

EQxD Metrics: Key Findings from the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey

February 16, 2017

In the United States, while women represent approximately 45% of students enrolled in NAAB-accredited architecture programs, they account for only 31% of architecture staff, and 20% of principals and partners in AIA member-owned firms. Meanwhile, people of color account for 56% of all students, and 43% of US Nationals, enrolled in NAAB-accredited architecture programs, but only 21% of architecture staff, and 11% of principals and partners, working in AIA member-owned firms. With today’s graduating classes far more diverse than the architectural profession as a whole, the architectural community has a responsibility to reexamine our studio cultures, values, and ways of working to ensure that we are cultivating professional environments that actively expand the definition of who an architect is, and what an architect does.

Equity by Design has embraced this mandate, and is proud to present the results of the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey as a tool to support this dialogue. Equity by Design is focused on achieving equitable practice in architecture in order to retain talent, advance the profession, and engage the public in understanding architecture’s true value and impact. Equity's impact in the designed and built environment has the potential to improve the quality of life, reinforce sustainability and concurrently benefit the economic outcomes of the communities that adopt it.

Formed from the desire for sustained and informed discussion about equitable practice in architecture , the Equity in Architecture Research Project represents a commitment to change the status quo for practitioners by conducting research, publishing best practices, and fostering peer-to-peer accountability and collaboration among firms regionally and beyond. Of primary importance is attracting and retaining the profession's best talent pool by providing equitable conditions that empower individuals to thrive.

The 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey was designed to generate a comprehensive national dataset detailing current positions and career experiences of architecture school graduates. With the assistance of architecture’s national collateral organizations, AIA component chapters, firms, and academic institutions, survey invitations were sent out to a broad cross-section of the profession. The resulting dataset -- the largest ever collected on equity within the profession -- documents the experiences of 8,664 individuals representing all 50 states and nations on six continents. The survey sampled for race, ethnicity, sexuality and gender identity. Key Findings reflect areas of statistical significance. Please see our article on survey demographics for more information on our survey population.

Two frameworks are used to provide insights on equity within the profession today: Career Dynamics, and Career Pinch Points. This analysis offers insight into ways in which individual practitioners, employers, and the industry as a whole can make changes on a policy and culture level that promote satisfying careers in architecture for women and men alike, improve employee retention, and ultimately, improve companies’ bottom lines.

Career Dynamics

Career Dynamics explore underlying tensions that persist throughout our professional lives, and the factors that drive career perceptions. The main categories we have identified as Career Dynamics include Finding the Right Fit, Work-Life Integration, Professional Development, Beyond Architecture and Pay Equity. Key findings related to each of the Career Dynamics are as follows: (please use the toggle arrows on the top right part of the window below to view all 5 categories)

Infographic Slides 2017

Finding The Right Fit, Key Findings, Finding the Right Fit Career Perceptions

On average, male respondents’ career perceptions were more positive than those of their female counterparts. When asked about the relative positivity or negativity of their career perceptions across 14 categories from “work –life flexibility” to “promotion process ”to their likelihood of staying at their job for the next year,” male respondents’ average perceptions were more positive than female respondents’ in every category. The largest gender gaps indicated significant differences between men’s and women’s likelihood of feeling energized by their work (male respondents 7% more likely), likelihood of “having a seat at the table”, or being included in one’s firm’s decision-making process (male respondents 6% more likely), and likelihood of planning to stay in one’s current job for the next year (male respondents 6% more likely).

There were also areas of work-life that tended to be viewed more positively or negatively by all respondents: average perceptions of autonomy, satisfaction, and confidence tended to be most positive for respondents, while respondents’ average perceptions of their firms’ promotion processes, their work-life flexibility, and their workloads were least positive, on average. Male respondents perceptions were more positive, on average, than female respondents’ perceptions in each of these categories. We did not observe significant differences in career perceptions on the basis of race or ethnicity.

Finding The Right Fit, Key Findings, Finding the Right Fit Career Perceptions

Professional Development, Key Findings

Mentorship and sponsorship -- and especially having access to career advice from a senior leader in one’s own firm -- emerged as important predictors of career success in the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey. We found that male respondents were more likely than female respondents to report turning to someone senior within their own office for career guidance.. Meanwhile, female respondents were more likely than their male counterparts to turn to senior leaders outside of their offices, family & friends, and their peers for guidance. They were also more likely to consider gender as a factor when describing their mentors.

Professional Development, Key Findings

Male respondents’ increased likelihood of turning to senior leaders is especially significant because, compared to those who received no career guidance, those who turned to a senior leader within their firm were more more optimistic about their professional futures, more energized by their work, more likely to plan to stay at their current job. These correlations were stronger for female than for male respondents, suggesting that female respondents have more to gain by finding a senior mentor from their own firm.

Professional Development, Key Findings

Key Findings, Pay Equity

The next career dynamic, pay equity, documents the wage gap between our male and female respondents. At every level of experience, our male respondents made more, on average, than our female respondents, with the highest differences at the top of the experience spectrum.

One of the most important ways of looking at the wage gap is to assess whether respondents are receiving equal pay for equal work. Our data showed a gender-based wage gap for every project role, with the largest gap between male and female design principals.

Key Findings, Pay Equity

Work-Life, Key Findings

Not only did our female respondents make less money on average than their male counterparts, but they were more likely to report having faced a host of work-life conflicts, from poor health and neglected personal duties to turning down travel or even leaving a job. It’s also important to note that our respondents, both male and female, were much more likely to report facing personal setbacks in the face of work-life conflict than they were to report making professional trade-offs in these situations.

Work-Life, Key Findings

Beyond Arch, Key Findings

The last career dynamic, Beyond architecture, tracks individuals who are currently working in settings other than firms or sole proprietorships, as well as full-time caregivers and those who are unemployed. We also consider those who have spent time away from a firm or sole proprietorship in the past, whether to pursue another career opportunity, or to take a sabbatical or leave of absence.

Overall, 17% of our male respondents, and 18% of our female respondents, we currently working outside of an architecture setting, full-time caregivers, or unemployed. Most of these individuals were working in another setting, but still influenced the built environment in some way.

Beyond Arch, Key Findings

Career Pinch Points

Career Pinch Points offers insight into personal and professional milestones that can either hinder career progression or influence employee retention. The main categories we have identified as Career Pinch Points include Education, Paying Dues, Licensure, Caregiving, and Glass Ceiling. (please use the toggle arrows on the top right part of the window below to view all 5 categories)

Infographic Slides 2017

Education, Key Findings

The curriculum that both men and women say was most instrumental in preparing them were Design and Design Thinking, Construction Materials and Methods, and Building Systems. Meanwhile, respondents were most likely to say that Professional Practice/Business, Construction Materials and Methods, and Building Systems weren’t addressed fully enough to prepare them for a career in architecture. Women were more likely than men to report needing additional curricular focus on Construction Materials and Methods, and on Building Systems.

Education, Key Findings

Paying Dues, Work-Life, Key Findings, Paying Dues Why it Matters

Even within the first several years of one’s career, there were clear gendered divisions in the office management tasks that respondents took on, with female respondents with less than 5 years experience more likely than their male counterparts to take on planning office events and managing the office library and less likely to take on more strategic tasks like firm project standards, strategic planning, or firm operations and management.

Paying Dues, Work-Life, Key Findings, Paying Dues Why it Matters

Licensure, Key Findings

The survey demonstrated that licensure presents many professionals with challenges, with long work hours, the high cost of registration and exams, and low perceived rewards as the most frequently cited challenges. Female respondents were more likely than male respondents to experience every one of these challenges to licensure.

Licensure, Key Findings

Caregiving, Key Findings

The next major career pinchpoint – working caregivers – impacts many of our respondents. Amongst those currently practicing architecture, female respondents were less likely to have children than their male counterparts at every level of experience. This could suggest that female practitioners who have children are more likely than male practitioners with children to leave the field, resulting in a higher likelihood of being a practicing father than being a practicing mother. It could also suggest that women who pursue architecture are simply less likely than their male counterparts to become parents. Neither hypothesis can be confirmed by this survey, but this question is worth exploring in future research.

Caregiving, Key Findings

While female respondents were less likely than their male counterparts to be working parents, we found that those who were parents tended to bear more responsibility for childcare. Working mothers were approximately 10 times as likely as their male counterparts to be their children’s primary caregiver (48% of mothers vs. 5% of fathers). Meanwhile, 55% of fathers, and 10% of mothers, reported that their partner did more childcare.

Caregiving, Key Findings

Glass Ceiling, Key Findings

The culmination of all of these pinch points is a glass ceiling that we’ve found persists in architecture. While 8% of our female respondents, and 5% of our male respondents reported working in a firm that was mostly, or completely led by women, the majority of our respondents – male and female—reported working in a firm that was mostly or completely led by men.

Glass Ceiling, Key Findings

Key Findings, Glass Ceiling

While some of this leadership imbalance may be attributable to the pipeline issues (i.e. more men than women entered the field in the past, resulting in more men positioned for leadership in the present), this isn’t the entire story. White male respondents were more likely than non-white men and both white women and women of color to be principals or partners at nearly every level of experience. Men of color were the least likely of any group to be principals or partners in a firm.

Key Findings, Glass Ceiling

Conclusion

The 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey demonstrates that women and people of color continue to lag behind white men in terms of concrete measures of career success like annual salary and likelihood of leading a firm. Male respondents’ perspectives on their careers were also more positive on average than those of their female counterparts. Female respondents were less likely to feel energized by their work, less likely to feel that their opinions were valued, and ultimately, less likely to say that they planned to stay at their current job.

In addition to highlighting stark differences in salary, career advancement and perspective on the basis of race and gender, the survey illustrates that white men are more likely than others to have access to resources and opportunities that predict professional success. Factors like transparency in the promotion process, having access to a senior leader in one’s firm, receiving ongoing feedback about one’s work, sharing values with one’s firm, and having meaningful relationships at work are strongly correlated with attributes of professional success for respondents of all genders and races. In certain instances, like having access to a senior mentor within one’s firm, access to one of these resources is even more predictive of success for a traditionally marginalized group than it is for white men. Nevertheless, white male respondents are currently more likely to report having access to each of these ingredients for a satisfying career in architecture. These findings suggest that one of the best ways to being to build equity in architectural practice is to ensure that access to these resources is provided to all professionals, regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation.

EQxD Metrics: 2016 Survey Demographics

February 15, 2017

One of the most important things to ask oneself when looking at the results of a survey is who is represented in the respondent pool, and how reflective that respondent pool is of the broader population being studied. The more representative the sample is, the stronger the evidence is that a survey’s results point to trends that occur in the population at large.

For the purposes of the Equity in Architecture survey, this means that we tried to garner a large number of responses, but more importantly, we worked to create a respondent pool that was as representative of the architectural community as possible. To do this, we worked with architecture schools, professional organizations, and firms across the country to send e-mail invitations directly to these groups’ entire mailing lists, thereby ensuring that survey invitations would go to those who are interested in equity issues, but also to potential survey-takers who haven’t considered equity to be a vital part of their practice. We are extremely grateful to AIA National, NCARB, NOMA, the ACSA, and the many schools of architecture, AIA components, and firms that sent invitations to take the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey to their mailing lists. Our target survey population was graduates of architectural degree programs, including those who currently work in architectural practice, as well as those who are working in other fields, and those who are not currently doing paid work.

Overall, 8,664 respondents participated in the survey, making this the largest dataset ever conducted on the topic of equity in architecture in the U.S. While the survey population was the largest sample ever studied on this issue, it doesn’t mirror the demographics of the profession. Our sample was younger and more female than the architectural population as a whole. Moreover, our female respondent population was younger, on average, than our male respondent population. To correct for these variations in order to allow for meaningful analysis, we have shown our data broken out by race, gender and/or years of experience for each question in which significant differences in response occur on the basis of one of these factors.

The following is a description of the demographics of our survey respondent pool, and is intended to help our readers understand and interpret the findings from the 2016 Equity in Architecture survey. Please scroll through each summary below by clicking the arrows at the top right corner of the infographics below. to get a better idea of our respondent identity: Gender, Race, Ethnicity, Sexuality, Geography, Years of Experience, Career Track. We’re looking forward to sharing an overview of of the latest, and best statistics on the demographics of the field as a whole within the next few weeks.

KEY FINDINGS - DEMOGRAPHICS

Equitable Representation

Gender of Survey Respondents

Equitable Representation

Overall, 8,664 respondents participated in the survey, making this the largest survey ever conducted on the topic of equity in architecture in the U.S. Of our 8,664 survey responses, roughly 50% identified as female, and 50% identified as male. We also had a small number of respondents (<1%) with non-binary genders. The non-binary gender sample was too small to allow us to conduct statistically valid analysis on this group on the basis of gender. We hope to over-sample this population in the future in order to be able to conduct more meaningful analysis on this group’s experiences. By comparing this to data from the AIA Firms Survey Report, we can see that the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey over-samples women, who make up only 31% of architectural staff in AIA member-owned firms.

Equitable Representation

Race/Ethnicity of Survey Respondents

Equitable Representation

While we had a relatively even gender representation in our respondent pool, there was little racial or ethnic diversity, with 78% of respondents describing themselves as “white or caucasian.” According to the 2016 AIA Firm Survey Report, approximately 21% of the architectural staff working in AIA member-owned firms are people of color, suggesting the the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey sample is fairly representative of the racial and ethnic diversity of AIA member-owned architectural firms. While the sample was representative as a percentage of the field, this also meant that it was quite small compared to the sample of the white population. This sample size, coupled with high degrees of response variability within this population, made drawing statistically valid conclusions on the basis of individual racial or ethnic group impossible for most questions due to insufficient sample size. In future rounds of study, we hope to gather more responses from people of color in order to be able to better understand equity issues as they relate to individual racial and ethnic groups.

Equitable Representation

Sexuality of Survey Respondents

Equitable Representation

The survey population also had little diversity in terms of sexual orientation, with 86% of male respondents, and 92% of female respondents, identifying as straight, or heterosexual. The datasets that we typically use to understand the demographics of the profession -- including those from NAAB, NCARB, and the AIA -- don’t include statistics on the sexual orientations of architectural practitioners, so we can’t make any conclusions about how our sample compares to the architectural community on this issue.

Equitable Representation

Geography of Survey Respondents

Equitable Representation

Our respondents’ geographic location was also fairly representative of the distribution of architectural professionals in the country, with heavy concentrations of respondents in states like California, New York, and Illinois. Overall, we received survey responses from all 50 states, as well as from foreign countries on six continents.

Equitable Representation

Years Experience in Architecture

Equitable Representation

There was an interesting pattern in the experience level of our respondents. While the majority of our less experienced respondents were female, the majority of our respondents with more than 14 years of experience were male. In some ways, this is representative of what’s been called the “pipeline problem” in architecture. For instance, men were much more likely than women to have graduated from architecture programs 25 years ago, and so it makes sense that there are many more men than women with 25 years of experience today. For practical purposes, though, this means that it’s very hard to simply compare men to women in our results without also introducing confounding age and experience-level-related distinctions. That’s part of why you’ll see that we often analyze variables like salary by both gender and years of experience.

Equitable Representation

Current Career Track

Equitable Representation

Because our study sampled architecture school graduates, not all respondents were currently working in architecture firms. The majority - 84% of all respondents - were currently practicing architecture, either within a firm or as a sole practitioner. There weren’t significant differences in respondents’ likelihood of practicing architecture on the basis of either race or gender. There were, however, differences in work setting amongst those who practiced architecture. For those practicing architecture, a firm was the most common work setting. This was especially true for women of color, who were only half as likely (4%) as either white men (8%) or men of color (8%) to work as a sole practitioner. In addition to those who were currently working in a firm or as a sole practitioner, we had a significant number of respondents who weren’t working in one of these settings, and may have been working in a related field or in another industry, providing full-time care for a family member, studying, unemployed, or retired. We have used the label "beyond architecture" throughout our analysis to identify this diverse population.

Equitable Representation

To view all the Demographic summaries - Please scroll through each summary below by clicking the arrows at the top right corner of the infographics

Announcing the Metrics Blog Series

February 2, 2017

#EQxDM3 attendees review key findings from the 2016 Equity in Architecture survey

Equity by Design is excited to announce “Metrics”, a new blog series that will unpack and explore findings from the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey. In this series, we’ll cover key findings from the survey, and will also take a deep dive into each of the Career Dynamics and Pinch Points.

Additionally, we’ll provide further resources and reading so that you can learn more about each topic. These in-depth looks at our survey data will be accompanied by interactive graphics, which will allow you to explore our data even further.

“Metrics” posts will occur about once a month (usually on Wednesdays), and are aligned with this year’s quarterly topics. This will enable us to integrate conversations about survey content into a broader conversation that will be fueled by our quarterly workshops, as well as by other initiatives, including: the Inspire% series, the Equitable Practice blog series, the ACSA blog series, and #EQxDActions (more on this next week!).

For more info on these quarterly topics, please see our post from earlier in the month.

Winter: Disrupt Bias

During the winter quarter, we’ll explore how to disrupt implicit bias. We’ll learn about the unconscious biases we all carry and leverage techniques to overcome our own assumptions about others.

Concurrent with this exploration, the “Metrics” series will provide insight into three issues that are commonly linked with implicit bias: the demographics of the profession, pay equity, and the Glass Ceiling. Also look out for a post on “Key Findings,” which will provide a broad overview of the survey findings.

Spring: Articulate Values

Spring quarter will provide an opportunity to reflect on how to articulate the value that architectural education,training, and the practice of architecture provide to society. We’ll consider the issue from a variety of points of view, exploring divergent career paths, design activism, and the value of professional licensure.

The “Metrics” series will provide context for these discussions by providing in-depth analyses of the following issues: “Education,” “Licensure,” and “Beyond Architecture.”

Summer: Chart Your Path

During the summer our attention will turn to charting your career path and do some serious thinking about how we as individuals organize our lives to achieve goals and stay connected within the profession.

To aid in these explorations, the “Metrics” series will provide analyses of Work-Life Flexibility as it relates to all respondents, and explore the experiences and the challenges of being a Working Caregiver.

Fall: Design Culture

We’ll close out the year with a conversation about the culture of our practices, schools, and profession as a whole by looking into the ways in which we can create culture that fosters creativity, design thinking and inclusivity.

The “Metrics” series will cover two issues that are often deeply linked to culture: Finding the Right Fit and Professional Development. The topics will allow us to explore issues like how “fit” is measured, and correlates with professional success, how cultural satisfaction and professional relationships are linked to success, and how fostering a culture of mentorship and transparency can lead to career satisfaction and increased retention.

We’re looking forward to your feedback as this series develops. Please let us know if you have a burning research question, if you have a great resource to share on an upcoming topic, or if you’d like to contribute a guest post on one of these topics!

#EQxDChats No. 1 - Metrics Recap

August 24, 2016

We had a great turn out last Monday for our 1st of 3 #EQxDChats via Twitter to kick off the conversation about the upcoming 4th symposium Equity by Design: Metrics, Meaning & Matrices at the SF Art Institute on October 29th. If you missed the conversation, you can catch up here via our Storify capture. Many thanks to all that participated! Don't miss our next 2 #EQxDChats in September and October.

#EQxDChats #2: Meaning – September 12th - 12n-1pm PST
#EQxDChats #3: Matrices – October 10th - 12n-1pm PST

View the story "#EQxDChats 1 of 3 - What is the value of Metrics for Equitable Practice?" on Storify

This year’s symposium theme: "Metrics, Meaning & Matrices" builds upon the last five years of advocacy and sets an exciting path for our next chapter.

“Equity - Just and fair inclusion. An equitable society is one in which all can participate and prosper. The goals of equity must be to create conditions that allow all to reach their full potential. In short, equity creates a path from hope to change.”

Why Equity in Architecture Matters.

Equity is the ethos of our work. It is the ability to recognize difference and provide fair and just access to opportunities. Equity also speaks to a collective ownership, vested interest and knowledge of our worth. Equitable practice promotes the recruitment and retention of the most diverse talent while building stronger, successful, sustainable practices. The equitable representation of professionals allows us to better represent the people we are meant to serve. Equity is for everyone - architects, design collaborators, clients, and our communities.

We must leverage metrics to make any substantial progress towards changing the ratios within our profession. We are committed to conduct research and compare data occurring at regular intervals to track progress and maintain accountability over time. In order to move the needle, we must create benchmarks for comparison and make time to review, discuss, and adjust our course of action based on the findings.

We seek meaning at many levels in the discovery of significance in one’s career, in the personal connections we make with others, in our own reflection upon research findings that can positively transform the workplace culture. Having meaningful work plays a significant role in improving professional satisfaction, increasing talent retention, and raising awareness of architecture’s true value within our global society.

We can adopt matrices to inspire a new mindset for advocacy and action. By nature, we are makers, observers of patterns, problem solvers, creators of connections, and synthesizers of dissimilar elements. Matrices enable us to become originators of new approaches and constructs. We can create more equitable environments within architectural practice and the places we design.

At the symposium this fall, we will present the early findings of the Equity in Architecture Survey 2016 with a series of panel discussions throughout the day. Interspersed with these sessions we have designed a series of diverse and interactive break-out workshops that encourage participants to engage in a dialogue of what is meaningful in their career experiences. And most importantly, we will experience the power and impact of action by learning and applying matrices as individuals, firms and in our professional networks.

Thanks to our #EQxDM3 Sponsors!

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2016 Equity in Architecture Survey Launches!

February 29, 2016

AIA SF Equity by Design's 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey launches today and can be taken thru April 1, 2016. Inspired by the 2014 research study "The Missing 32% Project" this survey will have questions on the professional experiences, backgrounds, and aspirations. This new survey goal is to attain 3,000 to 5,000 people who have graduated from Architecture schools and are currently residing in the United States. Current employment in professional practice is not required to take the survey. Survey links will be distributed via email through participating Architectural membership organizations, Academic alumni networks and firms.

Project Description

The Equity in Architecture Research Project will provide data on the ways in which men’s and women’s careers in architecture differ and the potential pinch points that affect talent retention in the industry. The survey will offer insight into ways in which individual practitioners, employers, and the industry as a whole can make changes on a policy and culture level that promote satisfying careers in architecture.

On average, the survey should take 20-25 minutes to complete, and will be administered within a 5 week period via Survey Monkey by email invitation. The survey results will be processed by the professional research team between April 2016 – July 2016, with preliminary results available in June 2016.

Survey Outreach:

Prospective survey participants will be reached through a joint effort by industry associations, including:

AIA National & AIA State and Local Components
AIAS American Institute of Architecture Students
ACSA Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture
NAAB National Architectural Accrediting Board
NCARB National Council of Architectural Registration Boards
NOMA National Organization of Minority Architects
Architecture Firms - of all sizes (firms can be provided a link to promote their entire staff to participate.)

Presentation of Findings:

It is anticipated that the key findings for the survey will be presented at the 4th Equity by Design Symposium: Meaning, Engagement, & Influence on October 29th 2016 at the San Francisco Art Institute followed by a Final Report in early 2017.

Project Background

In the United States, women represent about 50% of students enrolled in architecture programs, but only 18% of licensed architects are women. Place this disparity alongside the widely distributed Denise Scott Brown Pritzker Prize Petition, the success of Lean In by Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, the Australian Institute of Architects’ recently approved Gender Equity Policy and continuing attrition of women architects in the profession, and there is a perfect storm: a climate restless for discussion about women’s equitable representation and participation in the future of architectural practice.

The Equity in Architecture Research Project is an outcome of AIA San Francisco’s 2012 and 2013 sold-out Missing 32% symposium. Formed from the desire for sustained discussion about equity in architectural practice, these events produced a commitment to change the status quo for both women and men by conducting additional research, publishing best practices, and fostering peer-to-peer accountability and collaboration among firms regionally and beyond. Of primary importance is attracting and retaining the profession's best talent pool by providing equitable conditions that empower individuals to succeed. .

Equity By Design's Mission Statement:

Equity by Design is a call to action for both women and men to realize the goal of equitable practice, advance architecture, sustain the profession and communicate the value of design to society. Our mission is to understand the pinch points and promote the strategic execution of best practices in the recruitment, retention, and promotion of our profession's best talent at every level of architectural practice.

Survey FAQ's

Who are the researchers on the project?

Due to the sensitive nature of the information being collected, the selected researcher shall not be any person who will pursue admission to, or is currently enrolled in an architectural program, or has graduated from affiliated programs with professional degrees related to architecture. Please see below for research team information.

What should participants expect?

Participants will complete a 15-20 minute online survey administered and secured by the research team. At the end of the online survey, participants can indicate their interest to be contacted by the research team for a follow up interview to their initial responses.

Where will the survey take place?

Participants can complete the online survey with a link provided in an official outreach email that will be forwarded by supporting professional organizations. Participants can take the survey wherever they choose, and at whatever time during the open survey period, from February 29, 2016 to April 8, 2016. Once the survey period is complete, no additional survey responses will be taken. Follow-up interviews will be scheduled at the participants’ convenience.

Are there any risks based on involvement?

The research team will protect the anonymity of the respondents during the collection, analysis, and results phases. We do not foresee any risks based on involvement for either participants or firms given the confidentiality of the source data collected and rigorous protocol for statistical analysis being administered by our research team.

The survey time commitment seams rather long. What if I get interrupted while I take the survey?

If you find that you need to leave the survey and return where you left off, you can do so only from the same computer that you started your survey from.

Are there any benefits based on involvement?

Survey respondents and interviewees will not be paid for their involvement. We expect the architectural community to benefit from increased understanding about the impact of recruitment, retention, and professional development practices on both women and men in architectural practice. Findings from the research will be shared with all participants and organizations in the form of infographics and a final report. Select organizations supporting the research will get a preview of the research results prior to release.

How will we maintain confidentiality and privacy, and ensure security of the data once collected and stored?

The research team will separate any names, usernames, and email addresses collected via the survey. Quotations from open-ended questions may be used in research publications, but never in a way that would specifically identify a participant. Upon request, we will provide verification of the researchers’ procedures as endorsed by their Institution.

I took the AIA National Diversity Survey last year, how is this study different?

The Equity in Architecture Survey 2016 differs from the 2015 AIA Diversity Survey. This survey is a comprehensive deep dive in uncovering the Career Pinch Points and "Intersections" that influence professionals success and unique trajectories. The questions range from salary compensation, advancement goals, the type of work they do and what firms are providing in terms of benefits and workplace culture that encourages talent retention.

I have many friends in the profession that I think should take this survey, can I forward them the letter and link I receive?

In order to maintain the integrity of this survey, we rely on a data set that fully represents the survey participants we are sampling. The 2014 survey was conducted as a popular survey and thus was prone to a self-selection bias with more women respondents than men. The 2016 survey link will be made available via email to architectural graduates through their alumni affiliations to Architectural schools and the architectural collateral membership organizations including those identified below. So, please do not forward your survey letter and link.

I did not receive an invitation to participate in the survey, but would like to participate. How can that happen?

If you did not receive a letter to participate in the survey from your member organization, Please also check your spam folder to make sure it didn't accidentally get placed there. Please contact your member organization for information if you wish to participate, but did not receive a link.

Research Funding

The survey is funded through AIASF’s sustaining sponsorship program, equity champions and in part through the AIA National Diversity & Inclusion Grant. For a full list of sponsors and supporters, please visit http://aiasf.org. If you are interested in survey sponsorship, please contact us by completing the form below.

Find out more information on survey here.

Equity in Architecture Survey 2016 - Request for Proposals

December 10, 2015

by Annelise Pitts, Associate AIA

The AIA SF Committee - Equity by Design requests the submission of proposals to provide research and analysis services for the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey. Deliverables to include the administration and analysis of an approximately 80 question survey on the professional experiences, backgrounds, and aspirations of approximately 3,000 to 5,000 men and women practicing architecture across the United States. Parallel survey tracks are to be provided for the following:

Individuals who are currently working in an architectural practice
Individuals who have worked in an architectural practice in the past, but are currently employed in another profession
Individuals who who have worked in an architectural practice in the past, and are currently not employed in any profession

As the largest and most comprehensive study launched nationally to date on this topic, this research project has the potential to impact architectural practice nationwide.

Qualifications:

background in survey research and analysis,
excellent statistical analysis skills, (with a degree or major being beneficial)
an interest in issues impacting the careers and advancement of professional women,
familiarity with architectural practice,
experience collaborating with teams to produce narratives which depict the findings to a broader audience

In addition, the successful research team or individual will demonstrate the ability to work in collaboration with the AIASF Equity by Design Research Committee to present survey findings in a final report that can be understood by the broader AEC community.

Project Description

Building upon the successful 2014 Equity in Architecture Survey, the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey aims to create a comprehensive national dataset detailing female and male graduates of architecture school’s current positions and career experiences.

This phase of the Equity in Architecture Research Project will provide data on the ways in which men’s and women’s careers in architecture differ, and offer insight into ways in which individual practitioners, employers, and the industry as a whole can make changes on a policy and culture level that promote satisfying careers in architecture for women and men alike, improve employee retention, and ultimately, improve companies’ bottom lines.

The survey will be designed to include approximately 80 questions, with multiple tracks based on the criteria above. It should take 15-20 minutes to complete, and will be administered within a one month period via Survey Monkey. The survey results will be processed by the academic research team per the schedule outlined in this document within the general timeframe between March 2016 – July 2016, with preliminary results available in June 2016.

Key research goals/objectives for the 2016 Equity in Architecture Survey include:

Compare the current positions and career experiences of female and male architecture school graduates nationwide, including both current architectural professionals and those who no longer practice architecture.
Identify career pinch points associated with these experiences, highlighting ways in which women experience these career pinch points differently from their male counterparts.
Highlight individual attitudes and behaviors, as well as employer-provided benefits and practices, that contribute to success in navigating these pinch points. Conversely, identify behaviors and practices that correlate with negative outcomes.
Follow up with respondents of the 2014 Equity in Architecture Survey to track career progression between 2014-2016. Compare men’s and women’s career progress over this two-year period.

Submission Requirements

For Full RFP, Download PDF Here.

DEADLINE EXTENDED TO December 31, 2015.

Please submit the following items electronically by no later than 5pm, December 31st. Please address all submissions to Annelise Pitts, Chair of the Equity by Design Research Committee, annelise.pitts@gmail.com :

Executive summary, including a discussion of team experience with similar projects
CVs for all individuals who will be working on the project, including individual experience with relevant projects, their role on the project, professional accreditations, and educational and employment background
Proposed schedule of fees, including hourly rates and a projected breakdown of hours by phase listed above in the Project Timeline and Scope of Work
Proposed project delivery method, including schedule, methods of analysis, and a description of project deliverables included in the scope of work. Please discuss any suggested revisions to the project timeline, scope of services, or project deliverables
3 References for the scope of work.

Resources/Existing Data

The following resources provide additional information of the work of Equity by Design:

Equity by Design and AIA San Francisco, “Knowledge, Discussion, Action: 2014 Equity in Architecture Survey Report and Key Outcomes,” http://issuu.com/rsheng2/docs/equityinarch2014_finalreport

Power posing Architecture Mavens at the AIA WLS 2015 in Seattle

AIA WLS Seattle 2015: Defining the Problem, Crafting Solutions

September 23, 2015

By Rosa T. Sheng, AIA

This weekend, I joined 325 Women (and a few good men) from around the nation and beyond (including Australia & Egypt!) for the 5th edition of the AIA Women’s Leadership Summit hosted in Seattle. The 2-day summit's theme: Celebrating Women Leaders, Creating Cultural Change was envisioned for women in positions of leadership as well as aspiring leaders. The sessions of the event focused on supporting women in leadership by providing a forum to recognize, inform, and champion the work being created by women in architecture. Founded the BSA Women's Principals' Group in 2009 under the leadership of Sho-Ping Chin (1953-2015). A memorial video was shown as part of the tribute of her legacy.

Past sessions include the following themes:

2009 - Chicago, IL: Stories of the paths of leaders in our profession
2010 - New York, NY: Cultivating the next generation of leaders
2011 - Kansas City, MO: Suggestions for our own paths within and toward leadership
2013 - Phoenix, AZ: Ideas redefining leadership toward greatest impact

Having attended the last WLS is Pheonix in 2013, there were many familiar faces and many more that were attending for the first time. And then there were many “virtual faces” - those I have known first through social media or planning work for this event – finally united - face to face. From the many people I was fortunate enough to meet, there was an authentic warmth and tangible passion that became the common thread connecting the diversely brilliant pearls -backgrounds, journeys, and achievements - of our veritable profession.

Kate Schwennsen, FAIA slide comparing then and now

This year, there were 5 Sessions with 20 speakers and 8 special guests including AIA National CEO Robert Ivy, FAIA, 2016 President Russell Davidson, FAIA, and Beverly Willis, FAIA. I was excited to be part of the National Planning Committee and one of the speakers for Panel Session 1: Defining the Problem, Crafting the Solution. The first day was kicked off with a retrospective Keynote by AIA National former President, Kate Schwennsen, FAIA, "You Can't Just Add Women and Stir" with data comparisons from 1973 thru 2014, while highlighting 2009's first summit and current data. As Sean David Burke of ARCHITECT magazine pointed out, the number of women in leadership positions in many leading US firms has remained flat. Session 1 speakers Justine Clark of Parlour, Carol Wedge, FAIA, Principal of Shepley Bulfinch and I spoke about research findings and personal anecdotes to clarify challenges that women still face attaining advancement and recognition.

"Are we losing the battle?" We will not lose if we collectively act together.

The question I posed during my presentation along with The Missing 32% Survey findings was "Are we losing the battle?" Theoretically, if we choose to do nothing, given the statistics (we know about the percentage of licensed women AIA members is approximately 18-19%) and in order to get to 53% - representing women in the US population - at the current rate of moving the needle it would take 80-90 years. In the analogy I often share, life is not far from imitating art. In Shel Silverstein's poem Melinda Mae, it took a little girl 89 years to indignantly eat a whale that she proclaimed. My challenge to us all is that we don't accept being the only one at the table, but that we band together, each with fork in hand ready to take our bites of delicious challenges with voracious appetites.

In the 2nd half of the session, we asked participants the following questions:

What are 2 things that you would like to change about yourself? your firm? the profession at large? What would you prescribe as a plan of action to make that happen?

Utilizing our experience from this year's EQxD "U" Workshop format, we asked participants to write their plans of action on a post it; then actively discuss these plans with others at their tables. There was an active buzz from many conversations and insights. At the end, the post-its were aggregated onto a board for further discussion throughout the symposium.

In real life, we can do the 5 following things to kickstart equitable practice, today:

Embrace Technology - Leverage technology and social media to share our stories of Practice, promote resources, strengthen communication and support each other's initiatives for change. Join Twitter. Update your Linked In Profile. Start a Blog.
Document, Document, Document - Take notes, Take photos, keep good records of projects, conferences, meetings, etc that will help tell your story. Submit your records to BWAF DNA. Write blog entries about events immediately after they happen and link to reference tools and resources. (Don't have the time to start your own blog? Write a guest blog for the Equity by Design blog!)
Recognize - Help extract notable and inspirational women in architecture and write a Wikipedia entry so that we can create a legacy. Write about women contemporaries in architecture that you admire. Use the WiKiD guide developed by Justine Clark's Team at Parlour. Collaborate with other groups like SheHeroes.Org to expand our storytelling beyond our profession.
Participate - If you don't see a panel with diverse participants including women and or people of color, speak up AND submit for future panels. Get on the selection committees that determine panels and awards. If you don't see women being recognized for awards or listed on project teams receiving awards, speak up AND submit for future recognition. You have to be in it, to win it. Buy your lottery ticket as proclaimed by Julia Donoho, AIA
Advocate - Take action, start a group, start an initiative, start something that will move the needle. Use the Parlour Guides to Equitable Practice as a reference tool. Find others to build your tribe who will support you. Mentor future leaders and bring them with you. Become a Champion: be an advocate not only for underdogs, but for our whole profession. Celebrate and convey the value and power of design in everyone's lives. Equity is for Everyone, and Architecture is for Everyone.

There is so much more that I didn't get to cover here in terms of the other amazing speakers of the day and inspiring presentations. If you would like to catch up with the events of the entire summit, the following Storify curation of Twitter posts (Tweets) from the 3 days - and other write ups about the event:

Storify Recap of Day 1 - AIA WLS Seattle 2015

Storify Recap of Day 2 - AIA WLS Seattle 2015

Carve your Own Path and Other Takeaways from the AIA WLS 2015 by Sean David Burke for ARCHITECT magazine

Amy Kalar Archimom - 2015 AIA Women's Leadership Summit

How advancing women's equality can add $12 trillion to global growth.

Work Life Fit: A New Focus for Blurred Lines

September 8, 2015

By Rosa Sheng, AIA

Happy Labor Day! #Architalks is back and no. 12 happens to be themed on “Work/Life” in honor of the American labor movement and the contributions that workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country. No irony should be lost that I have written this post on Labor Day as it was due on Tuesday... with much thanks to Bob Borson of Life of an Architect!

The topic of Work/Life is no stranger to our Equity by Design forum, so we welcome this month’s conversation. Just beware that the secret confession of this Archimom holds firm that Work/Life “balance” does NOT exist – at least not in the meaning that implies maintaining equilibrium. Now, if you are talking about tightrope walking, then you may be closer to my world. (You may also envision juggling flaming knives, drinking from a firehose, or my favorite - the episode of I Love Lucy when they are working at the Chocolate Factory and can't keep up with the assembly line, so they start eating and hiding the chocolates. )

And since the proverbial Work/Life balance bubble has burst, there have been several new models hoping to be crowned the new "it" term for career and personal success; Work/Life Integration, Work/Life Flexibility, and now Work/Life Fit. I like the idea of Work/Life Fit. It implies a tailored approach to one's own journey for finding success in career and life. Regardless of the terms and rapidly evolving models of work AND life, we need to address the deeply rooted assumptions that prevent many from realizing the "dream". So, this post will provide awareness of the Implicit gender bias related to work/life flexibility and its impact on advancement to provide some quantifiable new focus for the often blurred lines related to this pinch point.

Survey finding of Work/Life Flex Challenges

As part of the Missing 32% Project: Equity in Architecture survey, our goal was to identify factors or “pinch points” from graduation to retirement that cause Architects to leave the profession. The five major pinch points are: Hiring, Paying your Dues, Licensure, Caregiving, and the Glass Ceiling. A few of the key survey findings addressed the challenges of work/life as it relates to caregiving as a major pinch point for talent retention. Work/Life challenges reported higher by women than men include turning down a promotion, a project opportunity, or project related travel. The 2nd highest response indicated that they left a position in a firm due to the lack of work/life flexibility. When asked what employers could provide that would be most supportive, respondents reported that flexible start and end times, comp time for overtime hours and technology to enable telecommuting from home when needed.

A recent study by Flex+Strategy Group/Work+Life Fit Inc. had some interesting findings about Work/Life Flexibility perceptions and a few surprises as well. The access to Work life flexibility was very common among the survey respondents with almost all saying they had some form of flexibility in 2013 (97%), with no significant difference between the levels reported by men and women. The ability to be flexible in how, when and where you work and to allocate time and energy between your work and personal life has increased. The number of full-time U.S. workers who said their level of flexibility increased was higher in 2013 (23%) than in 2011 (17%).

Infographic from Flex+Strategy Group/Work+Life Fit Inc.

However, among those who said they have work life flexibility, the majority of flexibility in 2013 was informal and occasional (55%) such as occasional changes in schedule or your work location other than your employer’s office, while the remainder (42%) had a formally agreed upon arrangement with their employer. The study also found that 31% of full time workers opt to telecommute at least part of the time. And most surprising was that of the 31%, nearly 3 out of 4 were men working from home of no particular generational category, while some have children and some don't; there was no clear pattern that would suggest men wanted to work from home because of family concerns. These findings are quite different to the perception that women are benefitting the most from flexibility arrangements.

In addition to the informal vs. formal nature of Work/Life Flex, there are the impacts associated with which path you choose. A NY Times article "How Some Men Fake an 80-Hour Workweek, and Why It Matters" by Neil Irwin discussed the disparity in a study completed by Erin Reid, a professor at Boston University's Questrom School of Business. One of Ms. Reid's key findings was that people (the majority of which were men) who were "passing" as workaholics, received performance reviews that were as strong as their truly ambitious colleagues. For the people who succeeded at "faking it" there were no consequences of their lighter workloads. Conversely, a second key finding indicated that women, particularly those with young children, were much more likely to request greater flexibility through more formal means, such as returning from maternity leave with an explicitly reduced schedule. Men who requested a paternity leave seemed to be punished come review time, and so may have felt more need to take time to spend with their families through those unofficial methods. The result of this is telling: Those specifically requesting a lighter workload, who were disproportionately women, suffered in their performance reviews; those who took a lighter workload more discreetly didn’t suffer.

A greater challenge to work/life flexibility as it relates to caregiving is the deeply rooted cultural bias that society still views mothers as the primary caregivers. Cultural assumptions aside, here is the reality: 71 percent of mothers with children at home do work, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and women are the sole or primary breadwinner in 40 percent of households with children, according to data from the Pew Research Center. In the NY times Article The Motherhood Penalty vs. the Fatherhood Bonus by Claire Cain Miller, employers credit fathers as being more committed and stable to their work while the opposite of women in parenthood is perceived; that they are less dependable and more easily distracted in a flexible work schedule.

With all these challenges, it's no wonder that we are faced with the uphill climb to increase the dismal numbers of women who are licensed architects and leaders in firms (which hopefully will include more archimoms in the future.) Can we get to a workplace that not only recognizes work/life, but also respects and encourages workers to exercise their "fit" without judgement of performance solely based on their schedules? And can we get away from the ultra competitive "Culture of Busy" that rewards the perception of long work hours vs. actual efficiency in hours saved in a results focused model?

The fundamental challenge we have as a profession and society is the need to rethink current workplace models and find new solutions that will positively support those that need work/life flexibility the most. The strongest motivation for this new value proposition is talent retention within our profession. Otherwise we are no better than Lucy and Ethel with a mouth full of chocolates, (and as Lucy pointed out, constantly on the verge of losing the battle).

For different takes on the #Architalks 12 theme "Work/Life", read from the following architecture "blogerati" contributors to this worthy topic.

Enoch Sears - Business of Architecture (@businessofarch)
Work Life

Bob Borson - Life of An Architect (@bobborson)
Work | Life - Different Letters, Same Word

Matthew Stanfield - FiELD9: architecture (@FiELD9arch)
Work / Life : Life / Work

Marica McKeel - Studio MM (@ArchitectMM)
Work/Life...What an Architect Does

Jeff Echols - Architect Of The Internet (@Jeff_Echols)
The One Secret to Work - Life Balance

Lee Calisti, AIA - Think Architect (@LeeCalisti)
work | life :: dance

Mark R. LePage - Entrepreneur Architect (@EntreArchitect)
Living an Integrated Life as a Small Firm Architect

Lora Teagarden - L² Design, LLC (@L2DesignLLC)
#ArchiTalks: Work/life...attempts

Collier Ward - Thousand Story Studio (@collier1960)
Work/Life

Jeremiah Russell, AIA - ROGUE Architecture (@rogue_architect)
what makes you giggle? #architalks

Jes Stafford - Modus Operandi Design (@modarchitect)
Turning It Off

Eric T. Faulkner - Rock Talk (@wishingrockhome)
Work/Life -- A Merger

Rosa Sheng - Equity by Design / The Missing 32% Project (@miss32percent)
Work Life Fit: A New Focus for Blurred Lines

Michele Grace Hottel - Michele Grace Hottel, Architect (@mghottel)
Work Life

Meghana Joshi - IRA Consultants, LLC (@MeghanaIRA)
Architalks: Imbalanced and uninterrupted

Amy Kalar - ArchiMom (@AmyKalar)
ArchiTalks #12: Balance is a Verb.

Michael Riscica - Young Architect (@YoungArchitxPDX)
I Just Can’t Do This Anymore

Stephen Ramos - BUILDINGS ARE COOL (@sramos_BAC)
An Architect's House

brady ernst - Soapbox Architect (@bradyernstAIA)
Brady Ernst - Family Man Since 08/01/2015

Brian Paletz - The Emerging Architect (@bpaletz)
Father, Husband, Architect - typically in that order

Tara Imani - Tara Imani Designs, LLC (@Parthenon1)
On Work: Life Balance – Cattywampus is as Good as it Gets

Eric Wittman - intern[life] (@rico_w)
midnight in the garden of [life] and [work]

Sharon George - Architecture By George (@sharonraigeorge)
Work = 1/3 Life

Daniel Beck - The Architect's Checklist (@archchecklist)
Work Life Balance: Architecture and Babies - 5 Hints for Expecting Parents

Jarod Hall - di'velept (@divelept)
Work is Life

Anthony Richardson - That Architecture Student (@thatarchstudent)
studio / life

Lindsey Rhoden - SPARC Design (@sparcdesignpc)
Work Life Balance: A Photo Essay

Drew Paul Bell - Drew Paul Bell (@DrewPaulBell)
Work / Life

Jonathan Brown - Proto-Architecture (@mondo_tiki_man)
Architecture: Work to Live

Equity in Architecture Survey 2014: Final Report

May 13, 2015

May 14, 2015 San Francisco - The AIA San Francisco Equity by Design committee is pleased to announce the release the Equity in Architecture 2014 Survey Report. The report is available for viewing online immediately and a published version will be available later this year. We have deep gratitude for the generosity of sponsors and equity partners who have supported this important initiative.

While this is a broad overview "road map" of the analysis, there is potential for interpretation and further analysis. Nevertheless, the Equity in Architecture Survey 2014 Report is an effective means to start a much needed conversation. There will inevitably be more questions than answers to understand the findings. Please share this information with your colleagues, firms, alumni networks, and AIA Chapters.

The research portion of the Missing 32% Project was envisioned as an endeavor with multiple stages, starting locally with the Bay Area, then expanding to the national scale with the ultimate goal of informing the global conversation on the issue of Equity in Architecture. Phase 1 of the project, a 90+ question survey conducted via Survey Monkey in February thru March 2014, explores the workplace participation and career aspirations of 2,289 participants with architectural degrees and experience in architectural practice within the United States.

The disparity between male and female representation within the profession and limited leadership opportunities have been well documented and are a growing concern. Recognizing a paucity of similar research and documentation of best practices within the United States, Equity by Design’s mission is to supplement this conversation with more targeted information about our local and national community of practitioners.

Equity by Design: The Missing 32% Project

Equity by Design is a call to action for both women and men to realize the goal of equitable practice, advance architecture, sustain the profession and communicate the value of design to society. Our mission is to understand the pinch points and promote the strategic execution of best practices in the recruitment, retention, and promotion of our profession's best talent at every level of architectural practice.

Equity by Design is a committee of AIA San Francisco. The group is made up of a diverse cross section of the industry: participants include both men and women; new graduates and seasoned industry professionals; architects, designers, industry consultants, and those working in allied fields; those without children, parents who have continued to work full time in traditional practice and those who have devised alternative situations to accommodate the demands of raising a family. The group has dual aims. First, we seek to forge strong personal and professional ties amongst like minded individuals. Second, we aim to leverage these connections to achieve progress towards more equitable and sustainable practice across the field.

A panel of women architects talked about the business case for women in architecture at an AIA Minnesota Convention. From left are Michelle Mongeon Allen, Renee Cheng and Julie Snow. Amy Kalar, right, moderated the discussion. (Staff photo: Bill Klo… — A panel of women architects talked about the business case for women in architecture at an AIA Minnesota Convention. From left are Michelle Mongeon Allen, Renee Cheng and Julie Snow. Amy Kalar, right, moderated the discussion. (Staff photo: Bill Klotz) Read more:

Building the Business Case for Equity in Architecture

November 20, 2014

They say "The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.” For me, it wasn't a step, but rather my head hitting my computer keyboard. Literally. It was a late night in April of 2013. I had just had a hard night putting my two young children to bed while my husband, who is also an architect, was away at class. He had started law school just one month before our daughter was born, so I was used to having the kids alone at night. But this night in April was harder than normal because I had a deadline at work. I had to be home with my kids while my team diligently worked away AT work. So after I got the kids in bed, I logged in from home and started working. But of course Revit doesn't work as smoothly when you connect remotely and something went wrong. I honestly don’t remember what happened, but my head hit the keyboard and the tears started flowing.

I thought to myself ‘There has to be a better way. I can’t be the only one struggling with this’. And by ‘this’, I meant the struggle that any parent has with this delicate dance between work and home. Since my Revit model was somehow paralyzed, I decided to search for some resource in the Twin Cities. Was there some sort of support group, or network of mothers or parents working in architecture? Nothing. I did find a lot out there, but nothing in Minneapolis, MN. By the end of that night, I knew what I had to do. I knew I wasn't alone in this struggle; I had to start some sort of Women in Architecture group.

Fast forward to July of 2014. With the help of many talented women, we had successfully started a Women in Architecture Committee with the AIA Minnesota. We had also started Women in Architecture + Design- Twin Cities, which is an inclusive community-based group. The AIA WIA Committee submitted a presentation for consideration to the AIA Minnesota Convention and it was accepted. The following is a summary of the presentation I gave to set up a panel discussion with women leaders in Minnesota. There were so many contributors to this presentation, but one woman- Samantha Turnock Mendiola deserves particular thanks and praise. Samantha designed the entire presentation and was my much needed sounding board, and so often, my reality check in developing the presentation.

The seminar is organized into 4 sections: TRENDS, ROOT CAUSES of what is holding women back or causing them to leave the profession, the BUSINESS CASE and finally CONCRETE MEASURES firms can take to help attract, retain and raise women into leadership roles. Here’s what we found:

Trends:

First let’s have a look at where we are today. Today women comprise 42% of graduates from architecture schools. The number of women interns that register with NCARB falls only slightly to 39%. But then, only 30% of women are Associate AIA members. Nationally, only 23.5% of people working in architecture are women (this number is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, so it includes licensed and non-licensed women working in the profession). AIA membership falls even further to 20%. And finally, only 17% of our principals and partners are women. Compared to 42% of graduates.

So why are those numbers so disparate? I know what you’re thinking… those 42% of women graduates have yet to reach leadership positions- we just have to give them time…. this is a pipeline issue. But actually, we’ve been graduating at or near 40% for a long time nationally, and locally here at the U of M we’ve been at that level since the mid-1990’s.

If we look at the number of women practicing architecture according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics over time, you see a similar trend. The local data shows some promise- the number of women licensed in the state of MN has been steadily growing.

Nationally our AIA membership has had excellent growth recently- you can see it starting in the 1980’s, and today the AIA MN has 24.6% women, which is in line with national numbers.

We’ve seen promising growth in the college of fellows as well- this graph starts in the 1950’s.

This year Julia Morgan won the Gold Medal at the national level- the first woman to ever do so, and Julie Snow won it here in MN- the second woman to ever do so. Overall, AIA Young Architect Awards winners are 25% women, and that percentage is slightly higher in Minnesota.

Let’s have a look at role models young women have today in Architecture School. Currently on average, 30% of people teaching are women, while only 23% of University Leadership positions are held by women.

What about in firms? Well, according to rankings in publications like Architectural Record, you can see below the rankings of the top profitable firms, the top award-winning firms, and the top firms here in Minnesota. There just aren't a lot of women role models out there.

And it turns out we’re not unique in our profession. Here is how Law, Education, Medicine, Engineering and Architecture stack up. Architects aren't the only ones facing these issues.

Root Causes

Next let’s have a look at the list of what holds women back (above the line), and what causes women to leave the profession (below the line). (Note: The Double Burden is working full time and then also doing the majority of housework and child care).

Let’s start with unconscious cultural bias. We all have them- men and women alike. In The Missing 32% Project's recent survey, when asked “What is the best criteria for promotion?”, the top criteria was performance reviews, with 82% of people saying it is an extremely effective process. And yet, in another study of performance reviews, women received significantly more negative feedback than men, and men’s reviews more often include only constructive criticism. Now women’s reviews did include constructive criticism, but they also included personality criticism’s that were absent in men’s reviews, with words like abrasive, bossy, aggressive and emotional.

So let’s have a look at a blind study conducted by Yale University. 127 professors of science were sent application materials for a lab manager position. Half got a resume with the name John, and half got the same resume with the name Jennifer. John was rated higher in competence, hireability and mentoring- totaling a 4.0 out of 7, where Jennifer scored only 3.3 out of 7. And when it came to the salaries they were offered? John was offered over $30,000, whereas Jennifer was only offered $26,507. It was the same resume, and John’s salary was 14% higher- because his name was John and not Jennifer.

This reaffirms a statement made in one McKinsey report "Women Matter" : men tend to be promoted based on future potential, but women tend to be promoted based on past performance. I’m going to say that again because it’s really important. Men tend to be promoted based on potential, and women based on performance.

Let’s move on to lack of mentors: "Like" tend to mentor "Like". People tend to mentor someone who behaves, thinks and has qualities most like themselves. So men tend to mentor men. This becomes a problem because there simply aren’t women in senior positions to mentor young women. Also, there can be reluctance among men to mentor young women because of the perception that it may appear inappropriate. All this adds up to a scarcity of mentors for women.

Now onto the confidence conundrum. In numerous studies, men tend to overestimate their abilities and performance, while women tend to underestimate both. But their job performance did not differ in quality. This has been shown in study after study. But what lack of confidence ultimately results in is inaction. In one study exemplifying the results of inaction, 500 students were given a series of spatial puzzles to solve, and the men performed markedly better than the women. The researchers were shocked, and wanted to find out what caused the disparity. It turned out that a number of women simply didn’t attempt many of the puzzles. So they decided to try it again, but this time they said that everyone had to at least try to solve all the puzzles. And the men and women performed equally. Women tend to hold themselves back because an outcome of low confidence is inaction.

Its also worth noting another result from The Missing 32% Project's survey, which is one of the reasons why women and men leave the profession: a lack of satisfaction. Only 28% of women responded being satisfied and not looking for other opportunities, compared to 41% of men being satisfied.

Business Case:

Let’s move onto the business case for retaining women in architecture. There are studies that show that gender diversity improves employee engagement, retention and recruiting. A more diverse employee base better reflects our diverse client base. But today we’re going to focus on just the last two.

First let’s address leadership behaviors. In a report titled "Women Matter: Gender Diversity" McKinsey developed a tool to measure the operational excellence of a business. They outlined nine criteria, you can see them listed below, and companies that performed the highest in these 9 criteria saw greater financial success. But we’re going to get into the financial piece in a bit.

They then took these 9 criteria of organizational excellence, and associated them with leadership behaviors that improved the outcomes of the 9 criteria. So you can see at the top in the red circle, coordination and control is improved by control and corrective action, and capabilities in the orange circle is improved by people development and so on.

They then looked at how often these leadership behaviors are exuded by men and women. Two of them men and women apply equally (grey): Intellectual stimulation and efficient communication. Men apply two behaviors more (green): individualistic decision making, and control and corrective action. Women, however, apply five of these behaviors more than men (blue): people development, expectations and rewards, role model, inspiration and participative decision making. Now when we tie these behaviors back to the organizational excellence, you can see that having a diverse leadership team is a huge advantage.

Because companies that score high in organizational performance financially perform more than twice as well than companies that score low in organizational performance.

While this was one tool used to measure financial success, it has been shown in study after study that companies with a higher proportion of women in top management perform better.

It’s worth noting however, that having one woman on your board will likely help, but there does seem to be a financial tipping point at about 30%. The financial performance of boards with 30% women or higher have been shown to perform anywhere from 40-60% better over time than boards with no women.

Concrete Measures:

So what measures can firms take to better support, retain and advance women into leadership roles? Well, there are lots of things!

Again, I’ll just address a few. The first thing is to simply be aware. It turns out there are a lot of men that don’t know many of the challenges that women face. So simply becoming more in-tune with some of these issues is a huge step. One way to better understand these challenges is to know the data in your firm. Conduct a poll, and ask women the challenges they face. Run the numbers- know the percentages of women at each level of your firm. Then be sure that whenever possible, you are considering diversity and inclusion. If you are hiring, try to interview both men and women for the position. Continuously monitor your progress. It turns out that firms with a clear understanding of their starting point are more than twice as likely to succeed at implementing diversity measures. Define what success looks like for your firm, and measure how far you've come each year.

The next thing firms can do is identify and address perceptions. As shown in the The Missing 32% Project's Equity in Architecture survey, the perceived impact on your career of taking leave was higher than the reality in every category. And did you know that 80% of women in another survey of architects believe that having children puts them at a disadvantage? And in that same survey 48% of women thought they would get paid more if they were a man? These are all perceptions that can easily be addressed, and firms that address these underlying attitudes are 4 times more likely to see meaningful change. (Please note: I am keenly aware that it is a fact that women are paid less than men, and not merely a perception. However if firms address the perception by gathering the hard data, they will then have the evidence and will be obligated to address the issue).

Another very important issue is clear leadership commitment. Diversity measures will not succeed without top-down support. Leadership needs to both acknowledge and visibly value diversity. This can be accomplished by making diversity a business and strategic imperative. Simply add it to your business plan.

And finally, allow for flexibility. In The Missing 32 Percent's survey, work/life flexibility was a key element of defining success for men and women in large and small firms. Flexibility is likely the most important, and easiest concrete measure firms can implement. This could mean flexible start and end times, flexibility of working from home, working part time or even allowing people to set their own hours.

In Conclusion:

I’d like to challenge each and every one of you to take action, no matter how large or small, to help advance women in our profession. To the men: you comprise over 75% of our profession. If we are to see meaningful change, it must include you. If you don’t know what you can do, then ask. Ask me, ask Rosa, ask a Women in Architecture Committee, but I assure you, the solution to these issues involves you. To the women in the room: I encourage you to get involved, to speak up and to advocate for the advancement of women into leadership roles. We have come a long way, but we still have work to do. I am convinced that women and men together will bring about meaningful, positive change for Equity in architecture, thereby creating a strong and enduring profession, with a vibrant future ahead of us all.

Following the presentation, the panel discussion included Michelle Mongeon Allen- COO of JLG Architects, Renee Cheng- Associate Dean of the College of Design at the University of MN, and Julie Snow of Snow Kreilich Architects and recipient of the 2014 AIA MN Gold Medal Award. The discussion was rich- below are a few quotes:

Julie Snow said the number of hours you spend at your desk doesn't necessarily translate to good performance. “I think we have to disabuse ourselves of the idea that hours equal productivity,” she said. “It’s not true.” Julie also said “The cool thing about Minnesota is they gave the Gold Medal to two women while they were alive!”, and “We need to embrace diversity in order to stay relevant”. From Renee Cheng, we heard “It’s not really on women to go fix themselves, but it’s [up to] the organization to be aware of this and to realize that they have actively participated in this disparity.” And Michelle Mongeon Allen stated that the industry is losing an opportunity if it’s overlooking a big segment of the population. “Those are people that could grow my company. To me, that is the business case.”

The response to the seminar was overwhelmingly positive, and we are already looking to build on the work and research we have already conducted. The conversation has long since begun on equity in the architectural profession, now it’s time for action. This seminar was one more step in our journey- or one more bite out of our whale. We are making progress, and we are starting to see meaningful change by raising awareness. Let’s keep the momentum going, and continue to take action. We will see meaningful change in this generation, and together, we will make a positive impact on our profession and the world around us.

Written by Amy Kalar, AIA