156: Attracting and Retaining Talent with James Ewen and Jason Geen

This week, I'm speaking with Jason Geen and James Ewen of Apt. Jason started his career at Ellis Williams where he worked on The Stirling Prize-nominated Baltic Centre for Contemporary Arts, then working at Stanton Williams and YRM, before joining Apt in 2011. At Apt, Jason is a Director, Studio Leader, and member of the Board. He has been instrumental in the development and growth of the company to an Employee ownership Trust in 2018 and provides strategic direction and design overview across the practice's portfolio of projects, encompassing several sectors, typologies, and scales. Jason is an active member of the London Arts scene, having recently completed tenures as a trustee of several arts-based institutions. He has also been a board member of the Bloomsbury Festival and was recently invited to join the esteemed jury for the Architecture MasterPrize in 2021. James joined Apt in 2013. He is a Trustee Board member, Project Leader and contributes to the strategic development of Apt and its culture. He has overseen some of the practice's largest projects including the 17.5-acre Fulham Gasworks Masterplan which creates a new residential community delivering almost 2000 new homes. His extensive experience spans overseeing projects within several different sectors, typologies, and scales. He recently completed 400 & 450 Longwater Avenue, a 297,500 sq.ft, twin office building in Reading which was designed to achieve a BREEAM 'Excellent' rating and Well Building Standard® 'Platinum Certification'. In this episode, Jason Geen and James give us an insight into their company structure, what is an employee-owned trust and how the shift from traditional to EOT re-energised the studio and provided an environment that attracts, retains, and incentivizes employees. They share their commitment to facilitating change in the industry, and how their own change/rebrand reflects the values of the firm that is now Apt. They also discuss a very important apprenticeship scheme and how Apt has been encouraging the growth of new architects and how they are cultivating talent. THIS WEEK'S RESOURCES Access your free training at http://SmartPracticeMethod.com/ If you want to speak directly to our advisors, book a call at https://www.businessofarchitecture.com/call Jason's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-geen-75a88040/ James' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-ewen-a616b314/ Apt https://apt.london/