5 things we learned from Zaha Hadid Architects Global Head of People and Talent Viewpoint careers advice blog

5 things we learned from Zaha Hadid Architects’ Global Head of People and Talent In the latest issue of the Hays Journal, we spoke to Caroline Roberts, Global Head of People and Talent of Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA). The firm is one of the most progressive practices in the industry. From the Guangzhou Opera House in China to the London Olympics Aquatic Centre in the UK, their buildings are groundbreaking and iconic. Similar words might be used to describe the firm’s influential founder, Zaha Hadid, who tragically died in March 2016. Roberts started her role with the company just two weeks later. The death of a founder is a hard situation for any firm to manage, but an added layer of complexity is present when they are as involved as Hadid was with her eponymous firm’s major projects.  Unsurprisingly, as a company they are still dealing with it on a day-to-day basis. “People are still coming to terms with it,” Roberts says. “Projects last a long time in architecture, so there are still projects we’re doing that she played a major role in. The shock was huge, as was the sadness. People have a tremendous loyalty to her. There was a huge generosity to her character, as well as the genius, that people really appreciated. People still talk about her as though her death was yesterday.” 1. Teaching comes from the top Roberts says the firm is lucky that so many people who have been with the business since the start are still there, including Hadid’s business partner Patrik Schumacher. “It’s almost like her mantle has been passed to other people,” she explains. “There’s a huge loyalty to honour what she started. Teaching is still at the heart of the firm and Patrik does a lot of it himself, lecturing internationally and in the UK. We have particular links to the Architectural Association, where Zaha had a studio and lectured herself. As a thought leader, we host regular smaller group sessions at the gallery. We also have regular continuing professional development and knowledge sharing sessions and encourage innovation.” 2. Barriers can be broken down Starting her career in radio production at the BBC, working on national programmes, Roberts progressed and took on senior roles with increasing managerial duties, she became responsible for more staff training and was offered a role focusing on that across the whole of the broadcaster. She set up a pan-organisation attachment scheme that allowed colleagues to spend time in other departments, learn new skills and then apply them to their own job. “It’s a fantastic way of getting real learning and inspiring people who are very creative, and for whom doing an online or classroom course is not the right thing,” she says, and it’s a principle she still stands by at ZHA. “We have monthly lectures that different departments will give, but people also transfer across the organisation.” 3. International challenges are on the horizon Roberts says the firm have a focus on upcoming international challenges. With the headquarters of ZHA sitting in London, but with offices in New York, Mexico City, Dubai, Hong Kong and Beijing and a hugely international workforce, Brexit has been a difficult situation for the firm. “For many international workers, it’s not just the red tape of applying for permanent residency,” she says. “People feel very hurt by it here. The immigration skills levy in the UK is a business cost and I do wonder if it will make it more difficult to hire skilled workers.” 4. Architects are ready to question policies Roberts says that employees are more than happy to challenge ideas, and this means that if she is bringing in new policies, she must ask herself questions in a way she has not needed to in the past. “When you are talking to people who can divert rivers, coming up with a poor HR policy is going to be found out very quickly,” she laughs. “If a river being in the way won’t stop them, if they can command the elements, an ill-thought-out piece of people planning will be found out straight away. In this business, even those without formal management training have startling intellects and a grasp of people issues, so you never have to explain things twice.” 5. But they still need support And while architects at ZHA obviously do not mind giving robust feedback, the nature of their work means they often need to be supported in other ways. “We get our work through tenders and through competitions,” Roberts explains. “Architects can be working for months on designs that they truly feel are the best for a particular project and then come second. That can be almost like a bereavement in itself for staff.” She has introduced more skills training to help them deal with this, and to help managers have pivotal conversations with people. This article originally appeared in the  Hays Journal Issue 13. View the full article on pages 26-30  and read other stories that appeared in this and previous issues of the publication: Dont let your business get caught out by disruption How to embed a customer-led culture Five ways to attract Generation Z How can data drive HR insight for businesses Six ways to get the most from freelancers 4 lessons from McDonalds Global Chief People Officer View the Hays Journal online or request a printed copy from haysjournal@hays.com