Lee Holmes has used a RIBA vlog to describe architects as ‘solutionisers’ and has encouraged the next generation to grasp the opportunities presented by the coronavirus crisis.
Box’s Senior Architect, a visiting tutor at the University of Huddersfield, delivered his upbeat message in a video blog for the RIBA Future Architects programme.
He said that newly qualified architects who were worried about finding a job during the pandemic should use the time to ‘reflect, create and promote yourself’.
Lee, who also mentors students through the firm’s in-house Box Academy, added: “We are in unprecedented times. There are a lot of unknowns, but a lot of opportunities too – although I guess many people won’t see it like that. You’ve just smashed your degree and you’re ready to put into practice what you’ve learned. How are you going to do that, find a job, get a wage?
“What I’d say is that as architects, and because of our skill set, we’re best-placed for this. We are solutionisers (although I might have made up that word). We ask questions; we solve problems. We create solutions that are considered, conceptual and appropriate so, in some respects, the scenario we find ourselves living in could just be another design parameter.
“All bets are off, the established rules of our profession are ripe for change, so my advice would be to grasp the opportunities.”
Urging the new generation to be proactive and not wait for the profession to return to normal (because things may not ever be the same) – Lee added: “Promote yourself. Keep creating and keep developing your own ideas. Ask for guidance from your peers and from professionals, and we will help. And stay positive.”
“We are solutionisers. We ask questions; we solve problems. We create solutions that are considered, conceptual and appropriate.”
Lee Holmes, Senior Architect, Box Architects