A&E Business Journal Features Article on Client Feedback

The A&E Business Journal, published by the AE Management Association, featured an article on Client Feedback in their May 2009 issue entitled “Using Client Feedback to Address the Five Biggest Problems for Design Firms,” written by Mike Phillips AIA.  In the article Phillips discusses how to collect actionable data from your clients and how to use this information to reduce problems and liability, increase profitability, improve team performance, and enhance marketing effectiveness.  Here he discusses how collecting feedback in design firms can be especially challenging.

Design firms tend to solve unique problems in unique ways, which brings a focus on developing a deeper understanding of the specific details of our clients’ problems, preferences and priorities. Not only is this success criteria elaborate, but it is different for each project and often mutates multiple times during a single project due to shifts in budget, schedule and a client’s sense of desired quality. Design firms which utilize a system for tracking and responding to these changes waste less time and creates the maximum value to their client by being better aligned with their needs.

To read the entire article, subscribe to A&E Business Journal. The AE Management Association is offering a FREE 2009 AEMA Salary Survey with an AEMA membership of $125.00 for those who sign up by June 30, 2009.

Mike Phillips is President and Founder of Phillips Architecture and DesignFacilitator. His personal website can be found at AboutMikePhillips.com.