Senior Project Manager/Senior Architect

About Verdant Studio

Verdant Studio is a design-forward, multidisciplinary architecture and placemaking practice based in Northwest Arkansas. We blend architecture, interiors, urban design, and real estate-driven development into projects that create lasting impact for people and communities. Our work spans luxury residential, adaptive reuse, mixed-use, and commercial spaces all rooted in craft, context, and community impact. The practice is at an inflection point. As we scale, we are seeking a Senior Project Manager/Senior Architect to step in as second-in-command — someone who will lead complex projects from concept through completion and help decide what Verdant Studio becomes over the next decade.

The Role

This is a second-in-charge role. You will be the firm's senior design and delivery leader, working alongside the principal on the work, the team, and the direction of the practice. You will lead multiple concurrent projects, direct a team of designers and coordinate consultants, and own quality, schedule, and profitability outcomes across the studio's portfolio. Expect roughly 60% delivery leadership and 40% hands-on design. This role is built for an experienced architect who wants real ownership — of projects, of standards, and ultimately of a stake in the firm itself. 

Key Responsibilities

• Firm Leadership: Serve as second-in-command to the principal — a voice in pursuits, hiring, studio direction, and the firm's five- to ten-year plan.
• Project Leadership: Lead multiple architecture projects across scales and typologies, from luxury homes to mixed-use and civic work — with authorship over the design, not just the schedule.
• Client Engagement: Serve as the primary client contact, guiding them through design and construction decisions with clarity and confidence.
• Design & Technical Execution: Oversee design development, documentation, and coordination through all project phases.
• Team Management: Build and lead a team of designers — mentor, delegate, and hold accountability; help hire as the studio grows.
• Site Leadership: Own construction administration — regular site presence, contractor coordination, and resolving issues in the field with authority.
• Consultant Coordination: Manage consultants and collaborators to ensure seamless project delivery.
• Quality & Profitability: Uphold design standards, monitor budgets and schedules, and support firm profitability goals.
• Process Development: Own and build out Verdant Studio’s systems and standards for project delivery and quality assurance — the infrastructure the next decade of work runs on.
• External Relations: Represent the firm in client-facing meetings, business development, and public/agency coordination — increasingly as a principal-level voice for the practice.

Qualifications

• Licensed Architect (or actively pursuing licensure with demonstrated progress toward completion). 10 years of experience managing diverse architectural projects from start to finish, including at least 8 years leading teams.
• Proven expertise in project delivery and operations, not only design.
• Readiness to operate as a firm leader — comfortable making decisions in the principal's absence and representing the practice externally.
• Strong understanding of budgets, contracts, schedules, and profitability.
• Ability to mentor, motivate, and elevate others while holding accountability.
• Clear communicator with strong presence in client and partner settings.
• Passion for Verdant Studio’s ethos: design excellence, community impact, and entrepreneurial spirit — and the appetite to help run a business, not just a project.
• PMP or LEED AP a plus, though not required.
• Proficiency in relevant BIM/CAD software; thorough knowledge of codes and zoning regulations.
• Experience with public-sector, historic preservation, or existing-building/forensic work a plus.

Why Join Verdant Studio?

• Impact: Step in as second-in-charge of a growing, design-forward practice — your decisions will shape the work, the team, and the firm's trajectory.
• Influence: Set the standards, systems, and design culture that will scale Verdant Studio for the next decade. You are not inheriting a playbook — you are writing it.
• Growth: Help drive a bold five- to ten-year vision of expansion, innovation, and national recognition.
• Ownership: A defined path toward principal / partner within 3 years, including [describe equity structure], for the right person.
• Culture: Collaborate with a creative, values-driven team that blends design excellence with grounded elegance.