Founded in 1989 as a collaborative workshop following the competition-winning entry for the new Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt, Snøhetta has continuously grown into a global powerhouse with high-profile commissions in its portfolio such as the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet in Oslo, the National September 11 Memorial Museum Pavilion in New York, the Le Monde Group Headquarters in Paris, the SFMOMA Expansion in San Francisco, or the viral underwater restaurant "Under" in Southern Norway.
Today, the firm employs nearly 300 team members with backgrounds in a variety of disciplines operating from offices in Oslo, New York, San Francisco, Paris, Innsbruck, Hong Kong, and Adelaide.
For Archinect's latest episode of the "How To Get A Job At ____" series, we interviewed members of the Snøhetta leadership team to learn more about their hiring process. Craig Dykers (Founding Partner; Architect), Elaine Molinar (Partner; Managing Director - The Americas), and Matthew McMahon (Director; Architect, Landscape Architect) took the time and shared with us what the firm is looking for in prospective new team members, which common application and portfolio mistakes should be avoided, and which skills are essential to land a job as a "Snøhettan."
What positions are the highest in demand at Snøhetta?
Elaine Molinar: All of them!
Matthew McMahon: We see demand for positions fluctuate with our project needs, but in all cases, collaborative, humble, and smart people are always in demand.
When meeting with a candidate, what is the best way that they can make a positive first impression during the interview?
EM: If you are presenting your work, make sure your memory of it is up to date! Be prepared to discuss what you learned, and why you made certain decisions. We want to know why you’ve chosen this profession and what it means to you. What excites you? What are you eager to learn? Don’t focus exclusively on your needs without discussing what you have to offer others.
MM: Be prepared and comfortable. Know enough about our practice to ask
intelligent questions and offer thoughtful opinions. Be comfortable
with your personality and try to articulate your professional goals.
What is the most common mistake that candidates make when applying to your firm?
EM: We’ve seen a lot of portfolios that are collections of past employers’ marketing materials. This doesn’t tell us anything about you, only who you’ve worked for. You’ll have more success getting through the recruitment process if you build a thoughtfully edited portfolio filled with original content. Not being clear and specific about your contribution to a project is a common misstep we come across in reviewing applications.
We see demand for positions fluctuate with our project needs, but in all cases, collaborative, humble, and smart people are always in demand. — Matthew McMahon (Director; Architect, Landscape Architect)
MM: Architects without any professional or academic background in
landscape architecture applying to landscape architecture positions.
Our version of interdisciplinary working is one that acknowledges
disciplinary boundaries but also thrives on a healthy transgression
of the types of expertise that give those boundaries definition.
That’s quite different from thinking we can “do” the work of
other disciplines just because we’re trained as designers.
How important is an applicant's educational background?
EM: We give no preference to undergraduate degrees vs graduate degrees; all combinations of degrees are welcome.
MM: Education and resulting experience are highly valued. Snøhetta values
disciplinary grounding within a profession along with the ability to
step outside one’s discipline to better engage, and invent, with
teammates. One’s education and how they have used their knowledge
and skill says a lot about their ability to innovate in this way.
What makes an outstanding CV/portfolio?
EM: Many portfolios lack graphic clarity or boldness. Most portfolios are reviewed on a screen, and too often, the size ratio between text and images is challenging, or there’s not enough contrast between the text or images and the background. It’s important to realize that your portfolio will likely be reviewed by people with “older eyes!” Also, when we recruit, we are typically reviewing multiple portfolios, so easy, straightforward graphics will help your portfolio stand out.
Not being clear and specific about your contribution to a project is a common misstep we come across in reviewing applications. — Elaine Molinar (Partner; Managing Director - The Americas)
MM: Clarity through smart editing and graphic restraint make for the best portfolios. A broad demonstration of abilities and ways of thinking should come across clearly and easily in your work sample.
What kind of technical skills are absolutely essential for applicants?
EM: Be nimble; the ability to easily learn new skills will serve you well anywhere you get a job.
MM: Necessary
skills largely depend on the specific position we are hiring for, but
communication and the ability to collaborate are paramount skills for
every role at Snøhetta.
What kind of training do new hires receive during their first day on the job?
MM: In the case of project training, we introduce a new teammate (whether
on their first day, or on the first day with a project) to the
project’s key information — previous documents, an outline of the
schedule, and where the project currently sits within it, an overview of
client and external team, and greeting Snøhetta colleagues and
understanding responsibilities. At some point early in a new
Snøhettan’s arrival, they have lunch with their designated office
“buddy” who is there to smooth out their entry into the practice.
Do you have an internship program? If so, briefly describe.
MM: Snøhetta hires interns throughout the year (not just summer).
Positions are limited in number to allow for competitive compensation
and the assurance that interns participate in live project work and
receive the attention of mentors and teammates. Interns join
in-progress work on projects or project pursuits alongside full-time
Snøhetta employees, immersing these interns in the practice.
Snøhetta is headquartered in Oslo with offices in New York, San Francisco, Paris, Innsbruck, Hong Kong, and Adelaide. Do the firm's different offices frequently collaborate with each other when working on projects? What challenges are usually involved? Or does each office operate more independently?
Craig Dykers: We collaborate with each other when the project can manage this extra level of complexity. Very few projects can afford this. However, project information is shared between studios, and we keep each other apprised of the projects across the studios. The studios are meant to be self-sustaining and build their own relevant resources for projects they are involved with. There is no single creative author, studios build authorship separately and together. We do this using a shared vision and common values for what our work is about.
The studios are meant to be self-sustaining and build their own relevant resources for projects they are involved with. There is no single creative author, studios build authorship separately and together. — Craig Dykers (Founding Partner; Architect)
How do you encourage a work-life balance for your employees? Does Snøhetta have any fun, longtime traditions?
CD: We
try as much as possible to focus the day’s work so there is less
need to work beyond ordinary working schedules. Occasionally, project
schedules make it more difficult to keep a well-managed working
style, but we do the best we can to promote a healthy, focused
environment. We like to work efficiently to complete work effectively
as opposed to working longer in the day.
How does Snøhetta promote diversity, equity, and inclusivity in its work culture?
MM: Snøhetta promotes an inclusive, diverse, equitable culture on
multiple levels in a variety of ways. To provide a few examples: The firm
encourages and makes space for employee-led initiatives that are as
diverse as the interests of the employees themselves. The firm is internally transparent regarding role structure and
responsibilities as well as with the salaries assigned to those
roles, and we actively solicit applicants from schools
where we don't typically receive applications from.
Based on your own observations, how has Snøhetta's design process and office culture evolved over the years? What aspects of your practice do you want to improve?
CD: We continue to focus more creatively on issues concerning environmental and social impact. While these issues have always been a part of our thinking, we have been digging deeper into the consequences of these conditions. We have also had to find methods to maintain the intimacy of the ways of working that defined earlier phases of the company now that we have grown more substantially in terms of the number of designers we employ.
If a job candidate had the choice between you and another firm, what argument would you use to win them over?
EM: I would simply say, “Our company is a place where it’s easy to be who you are and to explore how you want to define your career.”
MM: I would connect the candidate to other Snøhettans who would be their peers and encourage everyone to speak candidly about the practice.
Alexander Walter grew up in East Germany with plenty of Bratwurst. He studied Architecture and Media Design at Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Germany, and participated in foreign exchange programs with Washington-Alexandria Architecture Consortium in Alexandria, Virginia and Waseda University in ...
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