Hey world,
I am new here. I was curious anyone can anyone share their experiences with their transition into Development. I am an Architect and have been in this industry for 8 years. I have always wanted to be in the position of Developer-Architect, a position that I can ensure the projects I work on come out as intended and the "freedom" to chose the projects to purse ... an increased earnings also wouldn't be the most terrible thing either.
So any advice? Any stories? I am open ears!
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I work for large, multi-market, commercial development firm. Many of the people on the development teams started their careers as architects and their experience is absolutely valued and a big part of why they were hired.
They people I know the most personally, made the transition into our firm at the associate/manager level. So I don't know where you are in seniority, but doing it at the "junior-ish" level seems easiest (but just my opinion).
Final observation, I've seen that many architects/engineers who want to make this transition go get an MSRE/MSRED (or even MBA) as means of gaining the financial/real estate skills and then to act as a career reset point. Not sure if that's an option for you, but you would not be the only person in most of those programs looking to do what you are trying.
The single biggest thing that you're going to need prove is that you have some kind of understanding of dollars and cents and the financial side of the business.
I know a ton of people that made the transition into development from the GC world, but very few that came in with an architectural background. I would guess that that is predominantly for two reasons, first that architects rarely have any experience working with money or finance, and second that there's some kind of selection bias at work in that people who want to be architects often don't really have much interest in the financial side of construction and development to begin with. One exception here would be if you work for one of the firms that takes an equity stake in developments in exchange for or as a boost to your fee. If that's the case, you may have a better high-level feel for the deals and how they're structured.
All that being said, you certainly have a valuable background and should be able to transition into development with enough effort on your part. If you are open to any additional post-grad education, a MSRE/MSRED or MBA would definitely go a long way.
MSRE/D programs are basically tailor-made for architects who want to become developers. They emphasize finance, which is your weakness. The design and construction part is harder to teach in a classroom.
You'll also find it pretty difficult to crack into the field without a credential.
Thanks all, you all are spot on. Understanding finances is an area that I have a lot of room for improvement.
Fortunately for myself I currently live in New Orleans, LA, and after a quick google search I have discovered that our local university Tulane University apparently has one of the nation’s only dual MBA/MSRED program.
Unfortunately, I work consulting for two firms while I also pursue my own Architecture Projects.
Therefore, I will meet with the head of the department and ask for a copy of their syllabus along with any course materials they can offer. Purchase these and study at my own rate. If that doesn’t work I will make an offer to a recent graduate of the program for their old syllabus/books/assignments and perhaps a few sit downs.
Thanks again
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