黑洞社区

鈥淭oo often we hear in our profession of people sort of hanging on, not wanting to let go,鈥� says Karen Mosley. 鈥淭hat stifles progress.鈥�

The HLM managing director is talking to 黑洞社区 as she contemplates her own succession at the firm where she has worked for 36 years. This week, Mosley will step away from her role and stay on the board as a director, as will the firm鈥檚 chair Richard O鈥橬eil. They will be replaced by two current directors, Michael Scherdel, who will be the managing director, and head of design Philip Watson, who will be the chair. Lorraine Robertson will also become the operations director.

It is the culmination of a decade-long transition plan aiming to draw a line under one era of the practice, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, and to steer its future course. 

Handing over the reins requires delicate management in any firm, but it seems the architecture profession can be particularly susceptible to fallouts. Just look at Adam Architecture founder Robert Adam, who . Avoiding such a public row takes careful handling and many practices will have experienced the lengthy discussions that go on behind the scenes at the top levels to ensure a smooth transition of power to the next generation.

鈥淚 think you鈥檝e got to be able to stand back and say, actually, for the longevity of our business, for our brand and for innovation, we need to just see this as an evolutionary process,鈥� Mosley says. 鈥淚 think you鈥檝e got to be prepared to see change, you know. It鈥檚 natural.鈥�

It also requires an element of trust between the individuals involved, and a degree of expectation management for people who might be expecting promotion. Ensuring everyone knows where the firm is heading is almost like a 鈥渃ontract鈥�, according to O鈥橬eil. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e binding people together to take it all forward, and when you get that community culture, when you get that movement, there鈥檚 strength behind it.鈥�

You鈥檙e binding people together to take it all forward, and when you get that community culture, when you get that movement, there鈥檚 strength behind it

Richard O鈥橬eil

HLM has been careful to build strong relationships as the succession plan has developed in order to hold the firm together and avoid the kind of strife seen in some other parts of the profession. For Mosley, speaking to 黑洞社区 on a quiet afternoon the week before the changes are made public, it is the end of an 鈥渋ncredible journey鈥�. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 half past five on a Friday night and it鈥檚 feeling like we鈥檙e sort of a week away from Richard and I reflecting on the journey that we鈥檝e been on,鈥� she says. 鈥淣ot just as individuals, but as a practice, and the journey that we鈥檒l continue to go on.鈥�

HLM鈥檚 journey

The moment has taken on greater significance for Mosley and O鈥橬eil because of the flurry of awards which the practice has amassed in the past few years, including being named practice of the year at the 黑洞社区 Awards in both 2022 and 2023. It has been a vindication for a process started back in 2014, when there had been a collective acknowledgement that the firm needed to reinvent itself after a challenging few years.

HLM specialises in UK public sector projects, which were squeezed in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis as funding for big schemes dried up. While order books had been filled up for a year or two by ongoing schemes, the firm realised that a crunch was approaching. 鈥淏y 2009 we could see that it was going to be a major problem, there was the austerity aspect and they were going to turn the taps off,鈥� O鈥橬eil says. 

So the firm diversified by going international, securing work in the Middle East where it set up studios in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. This filled in gaps in the UK market which grew wider as the new David Cameron-led coalition government doubled down on its cost-cutting agenda.

By 2013 the firm was seeing green shoots coming back in its core UK business, but was also having to come to terms with a changing market. 鈥淚 think the whole design process had moved on, and I think we were left behind a little bit,鈥� O鈥橬eil says. 鈥淲e just felt at that time, 鈥榟ang on, let鈥檚 just do a big reset here鈥�. Let鈥檚 think about what we鈥檝e achieved so far after 50 years, but where are we going?鈥�

鈥淲e were probably coming out of the back end of the recession,鈥� Mosley adds, 鈥渁nd I suppose it was just recognition of where we are, where we want to be, and then thinking how we鈥檙e going to get there and realising that we weren鈥檛 the finished article, and that we needed to continuously learn about ourselves.鈥�

It was recognition of where we want to be and realising that we weren鈥檛 the finished article, and that we needed to continuously learn about ourselves

Karen Mosley

The practice hired an external consultant to carry out a 12 month programme aiming to 鈥済ive the board an executive poke in the eye鈥�, O鈥橬eil says. 鈥淚t was a time to look in the mirror and really say 鈥榳hat are we doing together here? What鈥檚 our culture? Let鈥檚 reset that. And we had some really positive, constructive conversations鈥�.

Sustainability and the climate agenda was one area where the firm realised it needed investment, partly because of changing regulations but also out of a 鈥渃onsciousness to do the right thing鈥�.

The next shake-up began in 2017, when Mosley was appointed managing director and O鈥橬eil became chair, working closely with his predecessor and mentor Chris Liddle. Two years later it rebranded its design philosophy as 鈥淭houghtful design to create better places for people鈥�, while focusing more towards offering staff a progressive and supportive workplace environment, becoming an employee ownership trust (EOT) in 2021. It also set a series of strategic objectives, namely gearing itself towards growing markets including net zero design and MMC.

HLM鈥檚 recent experiences with MMC have not all gone as smoothly as it may have liked. Two modular school projects designed by the practice were ordered to be demolished at the end of last year because of structural defects. It was a story that made national headlines. 

During construction, HLM had walked away from the schemes due to concerns it had with contractor Caledonian Modular, which later fell into administration in 2022. 鈥淚t was a decision which nobody would take lightly, but we just felt we had no choice,鈥� says O鈥橬eil.

The Department of Education later found the schools, the 1,200-place Haygrove School in Somerset and the 630-place Sir Frederick Gibberd College in Essex, had not been constructed as designed and could not be assured as safe to occupy. 

While the incident was unfortunate for HLM, its bold decision to leave the projects has arguably strengthened its reputation in the eyes of public sector clients by demonstrating expertise and sound judgement. 

鈥淲e have robust protocols to go through when we undertake projects. And if there鈥檚 any areas of conflict or aspects we need to identify and do due diligence, then we will probably be a bit more vocal about it. And you know, I鈥檓 not sure what we could have done at the time over and above what we did do,鈥� O鈥橬eil says.

>> See also: Government launches wider probe into Caledonian Modular after school closures

Has it affected how the firm now approaches projects of this kind? 鈥淚t probably has shaped us a little bit,鈥� O鈥橬eil says. 鈥淚 think you always learn from these things. If you don鈥檛, then you鈥檝e missed an opportunity.鈥�

For Mosley, the experience is an example of how far the firm has come in recent years in defining its purpose and strengths, and how it has sought to set itself apart as a leader in the sector.

鈥淪ome businesses disappear, some brands disappear, some get consumed into other brands. I think we鈥檝e got such a strong heritage and legacy, we wanted to see that live on, ad infinitum.鈥�