"Gain the confidence of on of the three principals and they will sponsor your advancement. Don't be afraid to ask questions of the principals and of others in the studio. Also don't hesitate to make suggestions, but don't be offended if they are not always accepted, but they will be considered and not tossed out without regard. It is possible to grow in the firm, they push the Interns to step up. Don't expect promotion overnight unless you have the qualifications, but they do let you grow in responsibilities."

"The firm's bread and butter is in the auto industry and would likely stay there if not for its employees' criticism for new project types. A few projects have been for office core and shell projects. There seems to be an effort to enter the hospitality industry."

"From the portfolio books I have seen, the firm has the background to do a lot of different types of work, like government, hotels, retail stores and office buildings. But, apparently they got into doing auto dealership work when things were slow and kept doing it. Sort of a dichotomy. Currently we are doing a resort hotel and the design intent seems very good a high line hotel and client who wants to do it. A new office building project is supposed to start in late summer (we are told) will be the first LEED project - something that everyone in the firm wants to do and finally a client has agreed. Things are looking up."

"The Principals are very open and will teach you all procedural aspects of a project. An intern can learn a great deal of technical knowledge if they are willing. The first day you are thrown into the mix and will be expected to perform."

"The firm does try to grow from within, and tries to retain talented staff with promotions. Since the firm is not that large, sometimes people leave simply to try something new. Usually departed employees stay on good terms with the principals, which I think says something positive about the attitude."

"The firm has difficulty maintaining competent employees because of their lack of compensation and uninteresting projects. The turnover rate is higher than normal for an architecture office."

"Most of the employees are talented, hardworking and committed. We have one intern who just doesn't get it and we don't know why the principals don't ask him/her to leave. Guess that they need another pair of hands. He does drag down the morale. The rest of us sort of compliment each others skills and we learn from each other as well as the principals."

"The projects are uninteresting and boring. Time mostly crawls with the occasional spurt to complete deadlines."

"Energy ebbs and flows - depends on the projects on the boards. Also energy low when significant projects stall as they had recently due to the client delays. Exciting projects mean higher energy levels from everyone. Now it is high energy again. Most people don't punch the clock and hang around to finish the work as needed. The half-day Fridays are good."

"The Principals are making an effort to shift project types but are unwilling to develop a real marketing strategy or team. The Principals are very easy to approach and are very down to earth individuals."

"They usually listen to the staff, but often get caught up talking amongst themselves and not resolving firm issues in a timely manner. Seems to be getting better."