The business of architecture
As regular Panfilo readers will know, Mihaly Slocombe is the small architecture business I run with my wife. Erica and I also share the parenting of our two young children, who are in grade two and kinder this year. At the best of times this is a daily juggling act of epic proportions. Every day... Continue Reading →
In the early days of Mihaly Slocombe, we had no idea how to plan. We knew what needed doing, on what projects, and in what order, but we never attempted to put it all together. We had no conception of short cycle planning, of how to line up tasks each month to achieve a setlist... Continue Reading →
This is the fifth article in a series examining how we are transitioning our architecture studio from a lean startup to a more mature business methodology. In the last article, I shared my research into twenty six different resource scheduling apps, and the approach I used to whittle them down to a shortlist of four: Coincraft,... Continue Reading →
For the first six years and three months of Mihaly Slocombe's existence, we relied on a lean methodology and Microsoft Excel to manage our business. But my growing constellation of Excel spreadsheets eventually began creating as many problems as they were solving. The increasing trouble I was having with them triggered a broader realisation that... Continue Reading →
For the first six years and three months of Mihaly Slocombe's existence, we relied on a lean methodology and Microsoft Excel to manage our business. But my growing constellation of Excel spreadsheets eventually began creating as many problems as they were solving. The increasing trouble I was having with them triggered a broader realisation that... Continue Reading →
Continued from Feeding the beast... Our financial forecasting has proved to be a great tool to keep the Mihaly Slocombe beast satiated year-round. By starting with the money, we can prioritise projects and tasks to help us reach our earnings target each month. We can work out who's going to work on what, how long it should take and when... Continue Reading →
Most of the time, the construction of an architect-designed project proceeds according to plan. Construction unfolds on time. The construction documentation is clear and free of ambiguity. The trades perform their work skilfully and conscientiously. There are few surprises, be they physical or financial. The builder, owner and architect maintain a positive working relationship. Sometimes... Continue Reading →
I recently had the intriguing experience of requiring the services of a lawyer. I say intriguing not because of the legal matter (which was a bit of basic conveyancing) but because my firsthand experience confirmed the commonly held view that lawyers speak a different language from the rest of us. My lawyer not only crafted the documents I needed in advanced legalese, she structured... Continue Reading →
Most of the time, the construction of an architect-designed project proceeds according to plan. Construction unfolds on time. The construction documentation is clear and free of ambiguity. The trades perform their work skilfully and conscientiously. There are few surprises, be they physical or financial. The builder, owner and architect maintain a positive working relationship. Sometimes... Continue Reading →
Most of the time, the construction of an architect-designed project proceeds according to plan. Construction unfolds on time. The construction documentation is clear and free of ambiguity. The trades perform their work skilfully and conscientiously. There are few surprises, be they physical or financial. The builder, owner and architect maintain a positive working relationship. Sometimes... Continue Reading →