Building a Design Team That Lasts: Addressing Culture and Compliance
Presented by Adam Rechenmacher, Blueprint Hires
CE Pending

Hiring well is one of the most important decisions an architecture firm makes. Each hire affects project delivery, studio culture, client relationships and long-term growth. Adam Rechenmacher is the owner of Blueprint Hires, a recruiting firm specializing in architecture. He has spent 15 years helping architecture firms build their teams. In this session, Adam shares practical strategies for finding candidates who are a strong fit, both technically and culturally. He covers how to structure interviews that show a candidate’s real ability and how to stay on the right side of employment law with clear interviewing do’s and don’ts. He also explains how assessments, such as design exercises, software tests and behavioral tools, can add objectivity to the hiring process. Finally, the session compares 1099 contractors with W-2 employees, covering cost, control, risk of misclassification, and flexibility, so firm leaders can decide which model fits each role. Participants will leave with tools they can put to use right away to make more confident, consistent and compliant hiring decisions.

Free for AIA and NOMA members
$15 for non-Members

Learning Objectives -
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
Identify the key elements of a structured interview process that assesses an architecture candidate’s technical skills, communication style and fit with the firm’s culture.
Distinguish between lawful and unlawful interview questions and practices, so firm leaders can reduce legal risk and support fair, consistent hiring.
Evaluate how different pre-hire assessments, such as portfolio reviews, design or software exercises and behavioral tools, can make hiring decisions more objective.
Compare the practical, financial and legal trade-offs of hiring 1099 independent contractors versus W-2 employees, and apply worker-classification criteria to staffing decisions.