Research has shown the consequences of a lack of diversity in professions inside and outside the building sector, but the general public’s growing awareness of institutional racism has raised the consciousness of some companies. How can firms wanting to do more than express support for diversity and inclusion begin? And why should firms successfully operating in the status quo be motivated to change?
Today, global firm Perkins&Will and The American Institute of Architects address these questions in the newly released white paper “Creating a Culture of Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Your Architectural Practice,” written by two Los Angeles–based Perkins&Will principals: director of global diversity Gabrielle Bullock, FAIA; and Bill Schmalz, FAIA, a member of the company’s LGBTQ+ affinity group and of AIA’s Best Practices Committee.
The committee had expressed interest in publishing on the topic of diversity last summer, Schmalz tells ARCHITECT. Meanwhile, Bullock has long fielded requests to share how she cultivated Perkins&Will’s JEDI culture, a process she formally began in 2013. “This was an opportunity to bring it all together in one digestible document for [everyone] who has asked us for advice,” Bullock says.
“Diversity has become a buzzword,” the white paper begins, but it is “a new way of thinking” that remains essential to the architectural profession due to the demographic, business, and human imperatives. Clients, end users, and the general population are becoming more diverse; people of color now make up more than half of the population in 15 of the 20 largest U.S. cities. “The history of white male architects designing for diverse human populations has been, to say the least, dismal,” the authors write. “[F]or architects to be social visionaries we must represent and reflect the diverse human societies we serve.”
Likewise, the demographics of emerging designers are diversifying. In order to recruit and retain talent, firms will have to demonstrate a commitment to the vision and environment that they profess to support, Bullock says.
Accepting the three imperatives—demographic, business, and human—as reasons to embrace JEDI is a prerequisite for the seven-step process outlined in the white paper. Starting with “Create Your Vision” and ending with “The Final Step,” the steps are brief in description, but comprise multiple sub-steps that will take time to execute. As the white paper states: “[A]ttempting to reverse decades of institutionalized behavior and practice” is “not easy, and it’s not quick.”
The resource integrates lessons learned from Bullock's own work. For example, in the second step, “Find Your Leader,” the document recommends not selecting a person in the human resources department. “HR plays an important role in JEDI planning, programming, and implementation, but HR can’t do it alone—nor should it. Cultural shifts within an organization happen only when multiple departments and voices are at the table leading the charge,” Bullock says. “The biggest qualification is a real passion and commitment for this work [as well as] expertise, either through lived experiences or training.”
Step four, “Create a JEDI Organization,” features a recommended organizational makeup that firms can scale to suit their office size. Bullock serves as Perkins&Will's firmwide JEDI program leader while each of its 20-plus offices, totaling 2,000-plus employees, has one or more diversity “champions.” A small or medium-sized firm might have multiple people share the role of program leader.
The JEDI program leader also “must be empowered to make the program successful and be accountable for its progress,” according to the white paper. “This is not a do-it-on-your-own-time effort because that diminishes the value that the firm puts on this,” Bullock explains. “There’s got to be a budget that pays for [the work],” Schmalz adds.
The initiative also needs the support of an executive advocate, such as the company’s president or founder. “If a JEDI leader doesn’t have that support, it’s not going to go anywhere,” Schmalz says. Bullock, for example, reports directly to Perkins&Will’s CEO.
Increasing diversity in architecture will take several years, Bullock says, but “the challenge will be to make sure … that this stays on the radar of our profession and of all professions.” She notes that AIA and the National Organization for Minority Architects have a goal to double the percentage of African American architects from 2% to 4% by 2030, which NOMA past president Kimberly Dowdell has likened to being as “ambitious as sending a person to the moon in 1962.”
Which brings us to the white paper’s step seven, “The Final Step.” Spoiler alert: Creating a JEDI culture in architecture is work that will likely never be finished; something more can always be done, whether it be in outreach, recruitment, or training. “We wanted to give firms a place to start,” Bullock says, “[but don’t think that] once I get my firm through step seven, I’m good.”
Read the full white paper “Creating a Culture of Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Your Architectural Practice”. For another resource, see the AIA Guides for Equitable Practice.
This article has been updated since first publication.
