I own a small firm and have an opportunity to do a project in Asia. My partner has experience working internationally at some big name offices, but our group has never pursued or managed these types of projects directly. It's a long story and has happened quite quickly (friend of my wife's from law school on the west coast tee'd us up and well here we are). We want to pursue the project, but know there are probably a million things we aren't expecting or planning for. For our office of 4, this project would more than double our annual revenue (given, much will get piped right back into our overseas partners). We aren't expecting this to be a very profitable project, but it has a lot of other desirable qualities (construction budget, great site, great program). P
Any advise on finding a local architect to partner?
Any advise on how to manage that relationship?
Does it seem reasonable to start a legally distinct entity (in our case, a new LLC) to run the project through?
Does it seem reasonable to carry a separate E/O policy?
What am I not thinking of that will bite me in the ass?
Obviously several of these questions I will need to speak to our accountant/attorney/insurance folks, but wondering in general what you all have seen and what pitfalls I should look out for.
Any thoughts appreciated. Thank you in advance.
SneakyPete
Dec 18, 20 11:54 am
Make 100% certain this is not a scam. I am not insinuating it is, but there are scammers out there who prey on Arch firms by pretending to be big, overseas clients.
JLC-1
Dec 18, 20 12:05 pm
15 years ago, I was working for an urban design firm, there was a project in southern asia I was not involved with, but word got out about the need for cash in envelopes to make things move quicker. Never knew if it was part of the developer's budget.
lower.case.yao
Dec 18, 20 1:57 pm
I’ve seen firms get burned because their contracts were not honored by the other country. Be very careful, this could be a good opportunity or it could be some hot air.
sameolddoctor
Dec 18, 20 2:30 pm
All of the above is true...international work can be very profitable, with little liability, or be a complete hogwash. In my experience, here are the important aspects:
1. Local architect - you really need to have a strong local contact, but one that will not step over your toes and try to take the job away. In most cases, the client will have someone in mind already. If not, ask your immediate contact for a few options whom you can interview and get a feel for.
2. Fees - better if you set up a local entity in that country, and wire the payments back home. If you get a dependable local architect, you may want to route all the payments through them - and you'd be effectively subcontractor to them.
3. Liability - its always better to not take any liability for overseas projects at all. It will most certainly bite you in the ass. The way to make it happen is be heavily involved in the front end, and have the local architect take care of the SD level and upwards, with regular checks by you. Though not most appropriate this would be the best way to keep yourself our of liability territory.
Frankly, I found working overseas to be easier in terms of legal stuff, but most important to find a good local partner and have a strong rapport with the client....
midlander
Dec 18, 20 8:48 pm
are any of your staff from that country? do any of them have experience working there or on projects to be located there? how close is this friend of your wife?
if i were in your position i'd be curious to ask why they are pursuing your office to do this instead of one with obvious related experience and local connections. wife's law school classmate doesn't sound like such a close relationship that they wouldn't have considered other options.
i'd be very concerned taking on a project which you described as likely low profit in an environment where you don't know well what needs to be done to meet the expectations of a client, and for a client you don't already have a working relationship with. the nature of your relationship to this client will be far more important than any advice you get from your american professional advisors.
midlander
Dec 18, 20 9:06 pm
adding to that i recommend doing some thorough research on the client not only to see if they are trustworthy but to make sure have the experience and capabilities to manage this process and make sure every part of design construction and financing goes smoothly. be wary of being an outside collaborator with someone who doesn't know what they're doing.
Hi all,
I own a small firm and have an opportunity to do a project in Asia. My partner has experience working internationally at some big name offices, but our group has never pursued or managed these types of projects directly. It's a long story and has happened quite quickly (friend of my wife's from law school on the west coast tee'd us up and well here we are). We want to pursue the project, but know there are probably a million things we aren't expecting or planning for. For our office of 4, this project would more than double our annual revenue (given, much will get piped right back into our overseas partners). We aren't expecting this to be a very profitable project, but it has a lot of other desirable qualities (construction budget, great site, great program). P
Any advise on finding a local architect to partner?
Any advise on how to manage that relationship?
Does it seem reasonable to start a legally distinct entity (in our case, a new LLC) to run the project through?
Does it seem reasonable to carry a separate E/O policy?
What am I not thinking of that will bite me in the ass?
Obviously several of these questions I will need to speak to our accountant/attorney/insurance folks, but wondering in general what you all have seen and what pitfalls I should look out for.
Any thoughts appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Make 100% certain this is not a scam. I am not insinuating it is, but there are scammers out there who prey on Arch firms by pretending to be big, overseas clients.
15 years ago, I was working for an urban design firm, there was a project in southern asia I was not involved with, but word got out about the need for cash in envelopes to make things move quicker. Never knew if it was part of the developer's budget.
I’ve seen firms get burned because their contracts were not honored by the other country. Be very careful, this could be a good opportunity or it could be some hot air.
All of the above is true...international work can be very profitable, with little liability, or be a complete hogwash. In my experience, here are the important aspects:
1. Local architect - you really need to have a strong local contact, but one that will not step over your toes and try to take the job away. In most cases, the client will have someone in mind already. If not, ask your immediate contact for a few options whom you can interview and get a feel for.
2. Fees - better if you set up a local entity in that country, and wire the payments back home. If you get a dependable local architect, you may want to route all the payments through them - and you'd be effectively subcontractor to them.
3. Liability - its always better to not take any liability for overseas projects at all. It will most certainly bite you in the ass. The way to make it happen is be heavily involved in the front end, and have the local architect take care of the SD level and upwards, with regular checks by you. Though not most appropriate this would be the best way to keep yourself our of liability territory.
Frankly, I found working overseas to be easier in terms of legal stuff, but most important to find a good local partner and have a strong rapport with the client....
are any of your staff from that country? do any of them have experience working there or on projects to be located there? how close is this friend of your wife?
if i were in your position i'd be curious to ask why they are pursuing your office to do this instead of one with obvious related experience and local connections. wife's law school classmate doesn't sound like such a close relationship that they wouldn't have considered other options.
i'd be very concerned taking on a project which you described as likely low profit in an environment where you don't know well what needs to be done to meet the expectations of a client, and for a client you don't already have a working relationship with. the nature of your relationship to this client will be far more important than any advice you get from your american professional advisors.
adding to that i recommend doing some thorough research on the client not only to see if they are trustworthy but to make sure have the experience and capabilities to manage this process and make sure every part of design construction and financing goes smoothly. be wary of being an outside collaborator with someone who doesn't know what they're doing.