Senior Architect / Designer

Permanent employee, Full-time · London

Overview
At Zaha Hadid Architects, we are seeking to hire Senior Architects / Senior Designers on a fixed-term contract to join our growing team in London. In this role you will be closely working with the Lead Architect / Lead Designers and the wider Senior Team to create excellent-quality design in line with the ethos and integrity of the ZHA brand. This role is a key position responsible for contributing to the Business’ strategic goals. You will be able to steer projects or part of a project through most work stages whilst leading by example, inspiring your Team to reach their targets and creative potential.
Main responsibilities
  • Act as the lead on given elements of a project, managing simple teams in-house and co-ordinating external teams to meet the requirements of a particular work stage to time, to budget and to the design quality required by their seniors.
  • Create plausible concept or detailed solutions that are delightful and deliverable and managing this with the wider design team, in-house and externally, while responding to the constraints of site, programme, budget, and brief.
  • Constructively question and develop a brief for a project or part of a project, responding effectively, using your own initiative to analyse options and prioritise alternatives, while referring as required, to ensure work remains on track.
  • Prepare contractual documents under supervision, create key stage drawings, specifications, and construction information such that a building can be costed and built. 
  • Anticipating changing circumstances on given projects and bringing these to the attention of the relevant Lead Architect / Lead Designer.
  • Influence, nurture and motivate colleagues in-house and externally inspiring them to meet set targets in creating and presenting their best work.
  • Understand and apply all appropriate legislation to a project: H&S, Building Regulations, professional Code of Conduct, etc. 
  • Maintain and protect the integrity of a design concept as a project develops, through their own work and that of others in the project team.
  • Initiate, maintain, and develop relationships with day-to-day clients, other consultants, contractors, and suppliers.
  • Understand ZHA’s responsibilities and the wider legal implications on given projects and mitigate risk by adjusting working methods to accommodate constraints. 
  • Understand and adhere to ZHA’s financial responsibilities on given projects.
  • Understand and respond effectively to the construction processes and logistics used on projects.
  • Recognise the importance of marketing and PR at a strategic level across the practice and help to generate repeat business within the existing client base by delivering successful projects.
  • Respect and work within the practice management and administration frameworks. However, not being afraid to constructively challenge working methods, to help ZHA improve its service and efficiency.
  • With the Lead Architect, contribute to personnel development on given projects, contribute to staff appraisals and deal with low levels of conflict management, discussing difficult decisions with colleagues and superiors.  
  • Make simple but effective presentations at a project level, structuring and delivering formal presentations to the project teams. 
  • Be able to write clear, accurate and professional letters, reports and minutes in accordance with ZHA’s QA protocols.
Your profile
  • Effective communicator when describing complex ideas for drawings or models.
  • Highly organised, effectively managing your time and that of others.
  • Confident in exercising judgement, making, and implementing reasoned decisions at project level and being able to justify their reasoning.
  • Professional at all times.
  • Enquiring and adaptable.
  • Self-motivated and self-critical.
  • Willing to develop, learn and go the extra mile.
Skills Required
  • Confident in Software skills such as 3D, 2D, CAD, Word Processing and Rivet.
Required experience
  • Qualified Part 3 Architect (or equivalent international qualification) with demonstrable and relevant experience of working in practice.
How to apply
Along with your CV and Portfolio, please also include detailed examples of projects using Revit in your application.
About us
Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) redefined architecture for the 21st century with a repertoire of projects that have captured imaginations across the globe. Creating buildings uniquely tailored to the communities they serve, ZHA has been awarded the highest honours from professional and academic institutions worldwide. Founded by Zaha Hadid in 1979, ZHA is one of the world’s most consistently inventive architectural studios—and has been for four decades. These decades of pioneering research are inscribed within our architecture to become more spatially inventive, more structurally efficient, more technologically advanced, and more environmentally considerate with every new design. Combining innovative architectural solutions with ecologically sound materials and sustainable construction practices, we do not look at the disparate parts, but work to understand them as a whole to meet the aspirations of each new generation. As an employee-owned business, we reinvest all profits back into our people and our company; continually enhancing our multidisciplinary research to address the challenges impacting communities around the world.
We are looking forward to hearing from you!
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