IA Interior Architects reviews

It is a tough place for mid to senior-level people trying to move up in their careers. IA is known for employees wearing "many hats." When it comes down to it, the people who wear the "many hats" are given a heavier workload than others. Management acknowledges that they spread certain people thinner than others. It doesn't feel great, from the employee side, knowing this is common knowledge. Some of the senior designers are overworked and rarely get to take advantage of their half-day Fridays. When conversations were had with management regarding their pay versus hours worked, ultimately equaling less income, their response was, "that is the nature of the business." IA's AVT leaves employees with mixed feelings. The basis of AVT is you have an "unlimited" amount of time to take off. With the term "unlimited," there has to be some restraint. It does not mean you can take time off for two weeks every month. It should be used within reason. For your time to be approved, your team needs to sign off, signaling they will cover for you when you're off and vice versa. However, management does not balance the amount of time taken off by various employees. Some individuals can take significantly more time with others in the office. Yes, personal time off is a personal decision. If someone chooses not to take the time, that is their choice. However, the people who took minimal to zero time off throughout the year were given a hard time when it came to getting their time signed off. Performance reviews don't happen there. Most employees can go a year without any feedback regarding their performance. Management says that the company as a whole is struggling with finalizing a review process. That is fair; however, it's not fair to let your employees know how they are doing. In the interim, you still schedule reviews with people, even if they are informal. Pairing people with managers who do not work with them to provide feedback doesn't make sense.

Local and firm leadership lacks a shared articulate vision Firmwide executive leadership often makes decisions based on fear or what is easy vs. what might be more difficult but better in the long run Local studio leadership lacks charisma and direction and struggles to build trust with younger staff. Local studio leadership doesn't like to have hard conversations Local studio leadership always chasing after the next shiny object but unable to get any real momentum behind initiatives to complete them Lack of transparency on many levels. Little to no investment in meaningful, effective training and mentoring.