Simon Mcgown, Aia Email & Phone Number

Austin, Texas Metropolitan Area

Role: Currently managing a boutique architecture, interior design, and development firm with over $200m in ongoing projects in design and construction.Outcome: Hired to oversee organizational change, the firm has undergone significant improvements in project/client management, cashflow management, risk management, employee morale, and saw a 50% increase in project revenue with 85% close rate on new business. This is made possible by:Fully revamping all operations, contracts, financial models, employee guidelines, and project management tools, ensuring thorough documentation and training of new standard operating procedures by all team members.Actively leading design, project management, new business development, and client engagement firm-wide.

Austin, Texas Metropolitan Area

Role: Promoted to oversee the expansion of the design org, accelerate growth, and enhance virtual touring and space planning product offerings.Outcome: After a major transition from third-party to proprietary design software, over four months the design org increased delivery output by 330% and reduced delivery time by 21% while decreasing COGS by 66%. This was made possible by:Sustainably growing the design org from 10 to 25 people with 100% retention, embracing best practices in remote work, building a robust onboarding and training program, building a design system of templates & tools and balancing US-based full-time designers with off-shore visual artists in 7 countriesOverseeing change management with the merging of Swivel’s product and design teams, leading to a more streamlined workflow between product UX research, development, and delivery.Redeveloping the product roadmap to improve interior design and workplace strategy offerings and collaborated cross-functionally on go-to-market strategy for upcoming product features and services.Overseeing the creation of 4.5m SF of commercial office virtual tours and 3.4m SF of commercial office testfits using activity-based workplace strategy principles over my tenure at Swivel.

Austin, Texas Metropolitan Area

Role: Revamp legacy design operations and systems, oversee client management, and accelerate growth in delivering best in class space planning and immersive virtual tours for US-based workplace environments. Outcome: Within the first 6 months, I led the design org to increase delivery output by 360% and reduce delivery time by 60% while decreasing COGS by 75%. This was made possible by:Rebuilding the in-house design org from 4 to 10 people, overseeing the hiring, training, and professional development of designers and project managers.Rebuilding client management, design, QA/QC, & overall product delivery operations and cross-functionally working alongside product, sales, revenue, customer success, finance, and marketing teams to enhance and more effectively communicate current product features to existing and new clientele.

163 Malcolm X Blvd, New York, Ny

Responsibilities: Founded firm with the mission to craft unique spaces, experiences, and communities, with high returns on investment, culture, and ecology. Led practice operations, business development, client management, and partner-in-charge of design on several feature projects.Outcome: Bootstrapped the firm to double revenue annually, reinvested in firm growth, maintained 14% annual profit margins, and successfully exited business. This was made possible by:Developing firm-wide systems for practice operations, business development, client contract negotiations, custom millwork detailing, and multi-use programming & design philosophy.Procuring 74 projects over tenure, ranging from workplace design, experiential retail, and single-family residential projects within the NYC region.Leading design as Partner-in-charge on 46 projects over my tenure.

163 Malcolm X Blvd, New York, Ny 10026

A member of the Harlem Properties Team, helping find and design everyone's place in the world. Specialized in serving upper Manhattan in not-for-profit / faith-based pre-development services, leasing, and sales.

Newark, Nj

Taught an Advanced Options Studio focused on the discrete and interdependent layers of the city and the evolution of new typologies of live, work, and play space. Students developed a network of individual projects across multiples sites in downtown Newark, considering the aggregate effect of their projects on one another’s projects and the city at large.

New York, New York

Responsibilities: Provided design assistance ranging from early schematic design sets to construction administration on two higher education projects for Cornell University, the $60m Gates Hall in Ithaca, NY and the $120m Bloomberg Center on Roosevelt Island, NY.Outcome: Successefully delivered on project design responsibilities in a timely and thoughtful manner leading to rapidly higher levels of responsibility through construction administration. This was made possible by:Overseeing the development of the Bloomberg Center’s building shell package from hydrostatic foundation to double skin facade to the net zero solar panel canopy.Overseeing Construction Administration for Gates Hall, including in-field design modifications, submittals, LEED certification, and shop drawing review.

Master'S Degree, Architecture

B.S.Arch, Architecture

Activities and Societies: AIAS (President)