142: How to Manage a Global Architecture Firm with Mark Middleton

This week, I have the pleasure of speaking to the Group Managing Partner at Grimshaw based in Sidney, Mark Middleton. Mark joined Grimshaw's London studio in 1996. He had been working for British Rail and Transport for London and has since worked on a variety of projects in different sectors like leisure, ecotourism, commercial, property, and transportation. He has been a pivotal character in providing leadership and creative direction to many of the practice's award-winning rail and aviation projects. Mark has been instrumental in establishing Grimshaw's preeminent position in these sectors. He worked on many large-scale projects such as Heathrow Terminal 2B, Pulkovo Airport, station redevelopments over at Paddington and the Fulton Center. Most notably, Mark was partner-in-charge of a £1 billion London Bridge redevelopment project completed in May 2018 and nominated for the RIBA Stirling Prize. Mark also led the design for the Southern Cross Station in Melbourne, which won the Lubetkin Prize prize in 2007. Mark has had a lot of experience as a senior leader at Grimshaw. He talks about being the Group Managing Partner and discusses what that role entails, what leadership means at Grimshaw, the structure of the business, how they win work, how they go about looking for new projects, how they bid for those projects. We talk in-depth about the sorts of metrics and things they keep a close eye on to ensure the business is profitable while keeping its high standard of design.