Anyone need an architect?
 

Just found out our office will be closing its doors in January right after the New Year due to work slowdown (actually it's pretty much come to a screeching halt) associated with the economy. Fkin wonderful. Happy 2009. Might not be around here much anymore as a result.

If anyone happens to know of anyone hiring/looking, let me know. Or maybe I'll just try to make a career change out of it. I'm getting awfully sick of dealing with this kind of crap every time the economy burps every 5-8 years or so... This profession is so love/hate sometimes...

Sorry to hear the bad news.


KT

Thanks - I know you're in a similar boat as a construction guy. Our office was heavily focused on retail (something I warned the boss about at least a half-dozen times, but I guess he was just in love with the "easy money" during the good times or whatever). We just hit the wall in the last month or two and I think he saw the writing on the wall. It bites but I'm trying to focus on the silver linings...

I have plenty to get caught up on around home and what-not so it's not like I'll be short of things to do, but it's a bit easier when there's money coming in also. I'm hopeful that something will come along, just the uncertainty kind of stinks.

I was frankly getting kind of sick of where I was anyway - sort of "plateaued", not much real advancement opportunity, wasn't really learning anything new, etc. Maybe a change will be good. We'll see. 2008 has officially been one of the crappiest years of my life for many reasons I won't get into right now (this is just the icing on the cake). I'll be celebrating its departure tomorrow night. Hopefully 2009 marks better days.

2009 has "got" to be better for a bunch of us :). I've been busier than ever with "house projects" these past few months while I figure out "what's next"...good luck, you'll be OK even though it sucks (now)!!!

Sorry to hear that, Jeff. I'm confident that you will turn this into a positive experience and that everything will work out fine in the end.

That sucks Jeff. Sorry to hear. :(

The industry sucks now. My construction business has tanked this past yr. I had alot of job cancellations. Plus, I'm just not getting that many calls. I've never seen it this bad.

Jeff, sorry to hear the news. I've been watching the Architectural Billings Index tank to all-time record lows and always wondered if you were safe. I feel it's good that you're prepped for a change, because this monstrous commercial real estate bust will delay the eventual recovery in architecture. jürgen

Sorry to hear the news, here's hoping 2009 brings better things. I concur, 2008 was a crappy, crappy year...

I'm obviously going to shoot a bunch of resumes off to the (few) firms that are still hiring, but I'm seriously giving thought to just becoming an owner's rep or some sort of (non-construction-related) general Project Manager. I think I could make a pretty compelling case for being effective in that role. Worst case I have my study materials for the CA Real Estate Agent test too, so I can take that and go sit around a Century 21 office or something and see if I can scrape up a few clients if worse comes to worse. Dunno yet. Something will shake out.

I'll be lifting a glass at midnight tonight to kick 2008's arse into the history books in either case. Here's hoping for a good 2009 and a good one to all you guys too - and thanks for the kind words!

Ugh.

Just talked to my best friend last night. He works for a small video game developer that does games for the PS3. They are small enough that the whole company works on only one game at a time. Their publisher just cancelled their contract for their one and only game in development.

He expects to be looking for a new job soon too.
...
My mother, who works for a rental car company, was telling me that someone from corporate sent an e-mail to the wrong "Linda" in her office three weeks ago. In the e-mail was a reference to her (my mother's) office closing. The very next day, three people from corporate showed up in person to deny the rumors (my mother doesn't buy their denials). She's just waiting for the "official" word.

Lot's of people in a lot of industries are hurting right now, but at least we are bailing out the largest, least profitiable companies, right?

What's keeping you in CA, Jeff? Other parts of the country may be in better shape. What about LEED? Will the new administration's interest in green technology open opportunities for architects that are LEED certified / savy?

You could always see if Markus could get you up to speed on a career as a fluffer. :)

Sorry to hear that Jeff,

Maybe I could get you a job wit the state... on wait.

Or maybe you could get a sales job at Circle Porsche? Seriously, even as a in between job until you find something else.

If things get really bad you can always make a few bucks wrenching on my 944. ;) I really do have to either get it running or give it away in 2009.

Jeff this may turn out to be the opportunity to find something you like more. At least you have been smart with your money!

As for me and the wife, we are still waiting to see if the new Governor is going to keep us or let us go. We both may be out on the streets in Jan. 2009.

I have been out of the job market since Sept. 2008. Not only do I have an architectural license for my state but I am NCARB certified and a LEED Accredited Professional. Been going on interviews, but the companies that are hiring are only offering half of what I was making. Last time I was unemployed was back in 1974.

Lucky for me I have a pension and the wife still have her job.

Hoping that Chicago will get the nod for the 2016 Olympic in 2009. That will bring design and construction jobs back to the city.

The bright side of this is that i have been able to spend a lot of time with my 4year old son. My wife think he has autism because he missed several milestones in his development. I think he is fine. We had him tested by several specialists and some say that he is find and some say that he has a little bit of autism.

He is more talkative since I been home and I got him hook on the internet. My brother even got him a tiny mouse for his hand.

Happy New Year everyone.

Too bad, Jeff. Join the club. I'm just waiting for my wife to get laid off and lose our benefits, not to mention what keeps us going. When that happens, I'm outta this sewer. Maybe Costa Rica or BFE. I have nothing but contempt for the US, the lemmings, the politicians, everything.

Nothing has changed for 90 % of the people I know, but they're all behaving as if they have lost their jobs, which they haven't. They can all suck mine.

At least you can pick up and go. I have so much sch!t around me that I'm anchored until I can sell it or give it away. Can't afford to move it or store it.

Might be a hijack, but I must comment. I have a grand nephew that didn't even start to talk until he was 4. Everyone in the family was so worried that he was going to be slow, but I said, "He's fine."

Guess what? He's fine. 16 and in high school doing well. Hope this is the case for you too, ruf.

It is probably a massive cut in pay... and very little job security being a state job.

But FWIW my department is hiring:

http://jobs.spb.ca.gov/wvpos/more_info.cfm?recno=384626

Jeff,
Sorry to hear of your troubles.
Do you speak French? Many English home buyers have a need for English First Language Architect or Project Manager. Many French Architects have English skills that don't quite mesh with the technically challenged home buyers or owners. Might be a good opportunity.

They are or were offering jobs for Architects/project managers for $200,00 per year. Only down side is it is in Iraq. Mrs. Ruf didn't think it was a great idea. I told her it not worth losing your head over a job. Other companies are hiring but you had to relocate to Dubai, and the cost of living in Dubai is much more than the cost of living in the states.

It's pretty calm now.

I know a guy who did a stint in Iraq in 2004 as a heavy machine operator. When he came back, he had enough money to buy a brand new 997 C4S Cab. (He is also "unemployed" every year from December to March when he chooses not to work, but that is a thread for PARF.)

Sorry Jeff:

I used to do consulting myself and I'm glad I'm out of it right now. We're so slow it's scary.

FWIW, Thomas Sowell has written a great book on late talkers. IIRC he asserts that it's a sign of intellect.

what's a late talker?

David Letterman
Jay Leno
Conan O'Brien
Craig Ferguson
Jimmy Kimmel
Spike Fersten
Carson Daly

There is a lot of that going around. I'm still employed - for now.

Good luck in the job hunt Jeff.

Ian

Sorry to hear that Jeff.

On the positive side - you're young, not weighed down with kids or mortgages, and have a lot of experience at different things.

Jeff, sorry to hear the bad news.
I'm feeling the pinch too, but i am just a one pony show so i can't lay myself off
Let me rephrase that... i can't fire myself.
I don't think 2009 can be any worse than 2008, but we'll see what the new administration has in store for us small business owners.
I hope you find something that suits your abilities.

Join us, Jeff

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/448988-psup-pelican-society-unemployed-people.html#post4390151

Sorry to hear. It does suck.

If the Gubermint goes ahead with it's economic stimulus package, those companies positioned to win government contracts will be looking for folks like you. When you are ready, start finding contacts so they know you are available. When (if?) the bucks start flowing, you want to be in a position to be picked up.

Best of luck.

Tuesday evening my wife and I had dinner with an architect, her husband and their young son. She works for a non-profit organization (supported by foundation money) that is promoting more efficient buildings and housing on a national basis. She stated that the country was way over built in terms of real estate and built for business models and ways-of-living that are likely to become obsolete for various reasons (mainly technology and quality of life). Her organization has been meeting with representatives of Congress and the new administration. They are proposing a work stimulus/energy efficiency improvement/carbon foot print reduction program to the government that would motivate home owners to improve the energy efficiency of their homes through a program of mortgage interest rate buy downs. For every level of improvement the mortgage interest rate drops with homes reaching the highest standard of efficiency qualifying for a 1% mortgage rate for example. The costs of the needed improvements/renovations would be offset by reduced monthly mortgage payments and smaller future utility costs. The economy would benefit from the jobs created in this effort, the country would reduce its dependence on foreign energy supplies and we could burn less coal in this country. The overall quality of the country's housing stock would be improved. Home renovation has always seemed to be very inefficient as compared to new construction so there may be big gains to be had in developing better ways to do it. There would seem to be significant work and opportunities for architects, builders, craftsmen, construction laborers and technical innovators if such a program goes forward. Best wishes for a good 2009. Jim

What is that, like one day lead time?

That sucks.

Most companies will want a recently laid-off / fire employee to leave the premises as soon as possible upon notification. This is to insure that security to their network system is maintain. They however will give a serverance package base on the number of years of service.

If you notice that IT is backing up your pc at work more often, consider that a wake up call that you are about to be terminated.

Our IT guy got laid off too and frankly, I probably had overall more computer/network experience than he did anyway. Mostly I just never flaunted it because I didn't want to get pegged as the "office CAD guy" or whatever (happened to me at a past job - I ended up spending 2/3 of my time chasing down computer problems and fixing network glitches and only 1/3 of my time doing actual design/production work). Years ago (90s) I was really into computers and stuff - now I've become more anti-technology and don't find the stuff nearly as fun or interesting. But I'm still fair around a network in any case.

This was a small office so there's a lot of trust involved. I realize there always COULD be the potential for someone to sabotage or whatever, but it'd be pretty easy to figure out who and doing so would only mean they shoot themselves in the foot insofar as a reference. I just don't see it as a realistic thing. Possible, but very unlikely. There isn't much they could REALLY do that would be much more than an inconvenience anyway and means that the few people staying on to "tie up the loose ends" wouldn't fix anyway (they lose a day of work maybe).

I agree we're WAY overbuilt as a society. Retail in particular. In the future I see work/projects (if any) being adaptive reuse or creative ways of reconfiguring existing buildings into other/alternate uses. Obviously some attention to energy efficiency and LEED standards as well. My best leads right now are in the area of civic/municipal/state type work, although I'm going to give one of my old firms a call and see if they can use me again (they did mostly telecom/critical infrastructure stuff).

Things look really, really bad out there. As bad as I've ever seen or heard of. It's very, very bleak. But I also can't imagine that we as a society will just let things keep sliding and sliding and sliding into despair so bad that our whole way of life completely collapses. I realize it COULD happen, but I just don't see it as especially realistic. Things are bad, they will continue to get bad, but eventually people just get sick of being miserable, start looking for positive "rays of sunshine" and when they start finding them/seeing them, it becomes the genesis for a turnaround (basic economics - positive attitudes become "self fulfilling prophecies" of positive consumer habits and vise-versa). Right now it's just working in reverse - everyone's scared schitless so they're not doing anything, not spending, not LIVING, which is paralyzing the economy and making businesses shut down and lay off people, which in turn scares people, etc. Catch-22. Well-known and well-documented.

Eventually things will turn. I still love the practice of architecture and design, but I wonder if it's what I'll ultimately end up doing. It's truly a noble profession and seeks to make us better as a society - not many can really say that. Most just seek to take. Architecture seeks to give - at its core. It really does. But if we as a society can't value it or don't appreciate it or can't support it - I have to look elsewhere.

The hunt starts in earnest tomorrow/Monday. Right now I'm just taking it easy and building up my mental toughness to stay resilient and not give up or despair. I'll emerge from this stronger and better off - I just don't know how yet. It's "psyche-up before the fight" time.

This is what you call building your mental toughness?
Sorry to hear about losing your job, especially at Christmas time; but I truly believe the most important thing is our attitudes. If you believe it's bad, then it's bad. You need to decide that 2009 will be the greatest year for you; then focus your attention on being happy. I don't think you need the money, so go out and do something you enjoy. Life's too short to be miserable.

When you cut a blade of grass, it grows back. The world is an abundant source of positive energy and all you have to do is tap into it. So your grass got cut? It's gonna grow back and possibly healthier and stronger, if you allow it. Put your focus on what you want!

good luck in the job search for you and the others in the same situation.

Pipe dream.

Might be a Pipe Dream, but so were flat panel displays.

Saw an episode of the original twilight zone in which a flat panel was use in the story. This had to be 40 or 50 years ago when black and white TV was the norm and color was the exception.

The story was about a women who was consider ugly because she didn't look like the rest of society. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

One person dream is another person reality.

Wow, talk about a Milt-down ;)

Thanks Rob - I agree with you on the attitude thing. If you go back and re-read what I wrote, I think you'll see I actually believe in that too. Unfortunately right now there's a lot of negative energy out there. I just don't want it to get on me, ya' know? But to be Pollyana-ish and pretend it's all just rosy out there is simply to deny reality. Yes, it's bad out there. It's extremely bad. But it's not bad everywhere and it's not bad for everyone. I just need to figure out who's doing well and where, and try and tap it. It's a temporary state and a temporary setback. It ain't the end of the world. I know I'm a pretty smart guy with a real passion and a lot of drive. That counts for a lot. I've got good credentials and experience and a good educational background. That counts for a lot too. Eventually either (1) someone will realize it and want to hire me on because they see me as a big potential asset or (2) I'll figure out a way to build my own business/client base (which is kinda' where my heart lies anyway I think...)

Can't say I didn't see this one coming either. I brought up the subject of diversification to my former boss on several occasions. In one ear and right out the other. He couldn't be bothered. I decided a while ago I probably was going to eventually have to get out of this place anyway, so in a way it's just a catylist and perhaps prevented any prolonging of misery or drawn-out wasting of my time by staying put just because of convenience/perceived comfort.

There's a lot more to this story that I'm leaving out (I have a few things in my personal life that I've not posted about here that make the timing of this particular event not so great right now) but I'm trying to just let those things become motivators, rather than loci for worry.

Very good advice. I will definitely put irons into those fires starting tomorrow. Thanks.