62 CORPORATE VISION / December 2017 , WMK is a highly innovative architecture and interior design firm, with a focus on its business and lifestyle clients. We profile the firmand speak to its CEO, Greg Barnett as we look to find out a bit more about its offerings and innovative designs. Innovation and Performance With a focus on its clients, WMK designs sustainable and energy-efficient office buildings, high-tech industrial buildings, innovative workplaces, and highly adaptive education facilities, as well as world-class hotels, liveable residential developments, branded retail, and what the team call ‘lifestyle care’ projects. Offering tailored professional services, the firm’s clients range from entrepreneurial individuals, corporates, and property developers through to schools, universities, and hotel operators. WMK provide strategy, master planning, architectural design, interior design and brand in the built environment services. Greg outlines what steps the firm takes to ensure WMK’s clients receive the best possible outcome. “At WMK, our major point of difference is our ability to listen and understand our clients. Only by doing this can we help give the edge. To help define our client’s needs and aspirations, we go through a comprehensive briefing process based on one- on-one meetings, online surveys, workshops with stakeholders and old-fashioned questions and answers. “Beyond this initial discovery phase, we have regular presentations and interactive feedback to ensure we are on the right path. Then, we look to regular client approvals at critical points throughout the design phase.” Greg tells us a bit more about the firm’s overall mission and what steps they plan to take to reach its targets. He talks about the designs of the firm and the general acceptance that staff must focus on the client. “Throughout the team, our mission is to improve our clients’ outcomes and businesses through innovative design and responsive performance. To achieve this, we spend the time to listen to and understand our clients, then our creative juices take over to vision innovative design solutions. We then take a responsive approach to delivering our designs on time and within the client’s budget. “As a company, we constantly interact with clients, attend industry events, and research and design built environments of the future, all while staying on top of resourcing and project delivery using sophisticated management information systems.” Related to its success, Greg believes there are many attributes which differentiate the company from the competition. “We know our role is to give clients the edge. Throughout the years, we’ve won many awards and competitions – but our most cherished reward is when our designs make a positive difference. If you look at our website, you will see we don’t have a ‘house style’ – our designs are different, reflecting the needs of our client, their brand, and target market. “Furthermore, our ideas are strategic and innovative. We tend to act as management consultants, not just designers. We are often engaged for our strategic advice and long-term master planning, separate from our designs. Dr Donna Wheatley, an esteemed built environment strategist, forms an integral part of our team. Our designs are all the better with this intellectual grounding. “As well, our solutions are truly innovative. Projects like the multi- award-winning NBCS ‘school of the future’ and the world-first Sargood on Collaroy, an accessible resort for people with spinal injuries, are prime examples. “Lastly, our design is sustainable, not just environmentally, but economically and socially sustainable in the truest sense. Our internal structures are different too, represented by sophisticated systems and underpinned by a culture of team dialogue. We are structured more like an advertising agency, with client managers and team leaders rather than a traditional hierarchical architecture firm.” With WMK and Greg seeing the firm as emerging young guns in the 1711CV37 architectural industry, there appears to be a lot of excitement about what the future holds. Greg notes that the team has consciously structured itself to be different, standing out in the industry, to be agile and adaptable in a constantly evolving business. He signs off by predicting what the future holds for WMK, hinting at potential expansion overseas. “Overall, the future looks very bright for WMK. We will continue to grow and undertake many more highly innovative world-class projects. Also, we can see the opportunity to do more work internationally with the prospect of opening overseas offices. This, combined with our great people will hopefully result in great success.” Company: WMK Architecture Email:
[email protected] Address: L1 346-348, Kent Street, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia Phone: (+61) 02 9299 0401 Website: wmkarchitecture.com