EA191: How To Attract and Hire The Best of the Next Generation of Architects with Nick Serfass, AIAS National Executive Director [Podcast]

How To Attract and Hire The Best of the Next Generation of Architects with Nick Serfass, AIAS National Executive Director This week on EntreArchitect Podcast, How To Attract and Hire The Best of the Next Generation of Architects with Nick Serfass, AIAS National Executive Director. Background In his role as Executive Director of the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS), Nick Serfass focuses on driving the organization toward relentless “forward progress”, so that it creates a more impactful future for its student members and the profession of architecture.  Nick holds alumni status as a Virginia Wahoo, Miami Hurricane and Auburn Tiger. He is also an architect when necessary. Listen to Nick’s origin story back on EA050: Big Changes with AIAS Executive Director Nick Serfass. Tell us about your role at AIAS? Nick is the operational captain who makes the events, programming and services move forward. He’s also working to bridge the gap between academia and the profession. He works to connect students to the profession and help them succeed with the right tools and resources. A lot of what they’ve done is a ton of storytelling: about the profession, about what students need to know, and highlighting the great content the students put forth. They’re trying to get more eyeballs on the organization so that more people become aware of who they are and what they’re doing. That way, they can grow the community and it’s impact on the profession. The more people who know about AIAS, the more opportunities our members have to engage. They’re consistently creating products, programs and services to have a story to tell about. How can architects be attractive to the next generation of architects? For students, there are so many avenues to research firms in depth than there were before. You can find out a ton about small firms by diving into their social media. The biggest challenge is that students go to the website and can’t find a lot of information to get excited about working there. For firms, document and create. Show young architects what you’re doing, and put out vulnerable and authentic content for them to connect with.  All students bring different interests to the table, but today they’re searching for firms that are passionate about those topics too. If they can’t identify what a firm is excited about, they can’t make that connection. Do you think the website is the most important thing to update? Your website is your face, that’s where people will check you out. After that, social media and other digital platforms can add to your marketing strategy. If all you see is one static homepage, how can someone identify if they’re a fit or not? How can architects improve their websites to connect better with this new generation of architects? Make your website image and video heavy. Our phones are powerful, they take great photos and videos and the platforms available to us make it so easy to share. AIAS.org has a lot of imagery, graphics, and video imbedded. The goal is to catch someone’s eye. This is a creative industry: showcase your creativity. The point of your website is to tell a story about your firm. You can design it however you want when you’re doing that. Identify your story

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