5D AGO

What is Succession Planning & Why Does It Matter with Kevin Crawford | 120

Jon Clayton hosts Architecture Business Club with guest Kevin Crawford, an architecture practice leader with 20+ years’ experience who implemented a succession plan at Crawford Architecture via a transition to employee ownership. They define succession planning as future-proofing the business, protecting legacy, and ensuring continuity if the owner retires, can’t work, or dies, noting many practices delay it until it becomes urgent. Kevin shares how waiting until his father was around 70 created pressure and highlights why planning matters for owners, families, staff career paths, valuation, and avoiding rushed sales to the wrong buyer. They discuss that succession planning applies to all firms, including sole practitioners, and stress the need to take time away from day-to-day work, use structured planning (including ideas from the book “Traction”), clarify roles, communicate a shared vision, and maintain discipline. Today’s Guest Kevin Crawford is an architecture practice leader with over 20 years of experience running and growing a practice, before putting a succession plan in place through a transition to employee ownership. Today, he’s the founder of Designing Success and co-founder of ASC and Pilotis, where he helps architecture practice leaders design better businesses — gaining more clarity, time and freedom, while strengthening the person behind the practice. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Introduction 00:46 Meet Kevin Crawford 01:20 Why This Topic Now 01:40 Defining Succession Planning 02:15 Planning For Inevitability 02:49 Family Firm Backstory 03:58 New Ventures Plan From Day One 04:33 Ostrich To Eagle Mindset 05:18 Forced Change And Complexity 05:39 Most Firms Delay This 06:23 Reactive Industry Trap 06:52 Hamster Wheel Workaholism 07:27 Two Year Transition Journey 08:03 Balancing Three Stakeholders 08:29 Protecting The Legacy 08:48 Choosing Employee Ownership 09:36 Others Still Ignore It 10:18 Why Succession Matters 10:42 Time With Family Motivation 12:34 Shared Vision And Culture Shift 13:53 Risks Of Leaving It Late 15:28 Is Succession Planning Relevant To Small Firms 16:33 Buying Time To Plan 20:25 Consequences Of Ignoring It 22:36 Collaboration Over Competition 24:24 Where To Start Today 24:49 Frameworks And Reflection 26:21 Discipline And Weekly Structure 27:41 Key Takeaways 29:26 Employee Ownership Realities 30:31 Must Have Business Resource 30:51 Project Management Game Changer 32:02 Connect With Kevin — Key Takeaways Don't put it off — start thinking about succession planning now. It's easy to say "I'll deal with it later," but Kevin learned the hard way that waiting too long makes everything harder. His dad was 70 before they started planning, and by then it was stressful for the whole family. Even if you're not ready to act right now, you should at least start thinking about what happens to your business when you're no longer running it. You need to make time to work on your business, not just in it. Kevin used to think working longer hours was the answer. He'd start at 4am and work until midnight. But that didn't help him plan for the future — it just kept him stuck on the hamster wheel. The real change came when he stepped away from the day-to-day and gave himself proper time to think. You need to block out time in your week to focus on the bigger picture, even if it's just a couple of hours on a Friday. Succession planning matters no matter how big or small your practice is. You might think this only applies to large firms, but Kevin says it's just as important for sole practitioners. If your business depends entirely on you, what happens if you can't work? Who looks after your projects and your clients? Having a plan in place protects you, your team, and the legacy you've built — whether you're a one-person studio or a team of twenty. — Subscribe on YouTube (for upcoming video episodes!) 📺 Send a Voicemail to the show (we listen to every message!) 📢 Connect with Kevin Crawford on LinkedIn 🤝 Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 And if you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode.

34 min

MAR 12

Navigating Our 100+ Episodes: A Guide to Discovering Hidden Gems | 119

Jon Clayton marks Architecture Business Club’s 100+ episodes (nearing 120) and explains how new listeners can quickly find relevant content using newly added episode categories on architecturebusinessclub.com. He lists key themes including business strategy and growth, marketing and lead generation, personal brand, sales and pricing, systems and automations, mindset and wellbeing, career journeys, content/PR/podcasting, industry events, community, and team collaboration. Spotlighting the Business Strategy and Growth category, he highlights the most downloaded episode. He also recommends a lesser-known “hidden gem”, and shares his personal favourite. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Why This Episode Exists 00:50 The Back Catalogue Problem 01:41 New Website Categories 02:03 All Episode Themes Overview 02:58 Why Categorising Matters 04:00 Business Strategy & Growth Episodes 04:16 Most Popular Business Strategy & Growth Episode 06:28 Hidden Gem in Business Strategy & Growth 08:50 Personal Favourite Of Mine 11:59 Wrap Up — Key Takeaways You can break big goals into smaller parts Instead of planning your whole year at once, divide it into 90-day chunks. This makes it easier to see where you're going and change direction if you need to. It's like planning a road trip in stages rather than trying to map out everything at once. You will make mistakes, and that's okay When you run a business, you'll mess things up sometimes. You might waste money or make poor choices. The important thing is to learn from what went wrong and move forward. Don't be too hard on yourself about it. You need to create urgency to get people to buy If your service is available all the time, people will think they can buy it later and they'll forget about it. You should use special launches or limited-time offers to give people a reason to act now instead of putting it off. — Subscribe on YouTube (for upcoming video episodes!) 📺 Send a Voicemail to the show (we listen to every message!) 📢 Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 And if you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode.

14 min

FEB 26

How To Avoid Structural Issues In Home Extensions with Sam Dean | 118

Architecture Business Club host Jon Clayton interviews structural engineer Sam Dean of Porthouse Dean about common structural design pitfalls in home extensions and how to avoid spiraling costs. They discuss ground conditions as a major uncertainty (especially clay), the influence of nearby large trees and desiccation, and the use of low-cost desktop geological reports based on British Geological Survey borehole data to flag risk. They cover ceiling downstands and why beam position is often a cost-and-aesthetics decision between homeowner, architect, and builder, with installation complexity increasing when first-floor joists run into the beam. Sam explains cantilever “rules of thumb” and how corner bifold-door cantilevers can drive up steel and foundation demands, sometimes requiring columns and large foundations due to uplift forces. They address adding an extra storey and the case for trial holes. They also highlight risks of building onto existing, undocumented steelwork from previous extensions, which can force intrusive investigation or replacement when later loft conversions are planned. Sam explains how the architectural design can affect structural costs and outlines what to expect from a good structural engineering service. They touch on AI-generated architectural information, Sam’s launch of an AI review service, and he shares the software tool his business can’t work without. Today’s Guest Sam Dean. He started out as a materials scientist and structural engineer, spent a year in the nuclear industry, then teamed up with his friend Chris Porthouse to start PorthouseDean structural engineering. Sam then got hooked on building business systems and automations - to cut out the boring stuff and let his team do better work. When he’s not solving process problems – he’s cycling to work, playing and watching football, or baking crusty bread and homemade pizzas. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Introduction 00:39 Introducing Sam Dean 01:38 Managing Risk with Groundworks 03:08 The Clay Problem 04:08 Trees Near Extensions: The Hidden Foundation Cost Driver 04:30 When Is a Site Investigation Worth It? Practical Triggers 05:10 Low-Cost Desktop Geology Reports: A Smart Early Warning 05:49 Designers Missing Key Site Info (Like Trees) 06:59 Case Study: The 20m Oak That Shows Up Too Late 07:55 Using Maps + Clay Likelihood to Spot Risk Early 08:48 Removed Trees Still Matter: Clay Desiccation Explained 10:32 Ceiling Downstands vs Flush Beams: Set Expectations Early 11:33 “Where Do I Put the Beam?” Why Engineers Don’t Always Decide 12:13 Joist Direction Changes Everything (and Can Add Thousands) 13:01 Goalpost Frames & Rear Wall Openings: What’s Cost-Neutral? 14:00 Builder vs Client vs Architect: Who’s Steering the Decision? 14:37 Protecting the Homeowner: Budget Trade-Offs in Plain English 15:36 When Architects Aren’t On Site: How Design Intent Gets Lost 18:06 Roles, Responsibility & the Principal Designer Confusion 19:38 Why Small Projects Are So Cost-Driven (and Getting Worse) 21:07 Cantilevers 101: The Rule of Thumb That Saves Your Budget 23:12 Corner Bifolds + Floating Roofs: The Cantilever Trap 25:23 Engineering Workarounds: Columns, Anchors & Uplift Forces 27:34 Adding a Storey: Foundation Reality Checks 29:32 Building on Existing Steelwork: The Missing Calculations Problem 33:37 Prevention Playbook: Trial Holes, Checks, and Lightweight Options 36:46 Quick Wins to Avoid Spiraling Costs (Wind Posts, Pillars, Layout) 41:45 What Great Structural Engineering Service Looks Like 46:49 The Rise of AI 48:55 The One Piece of Software Sam Can't Live Without 50:18 Final Thoughts — Key Takeaways Check the Ground Early to Avoid Big Surprises Learn what's under the ground before you start building. Clay soil can be a big problem. If there are large trees near your building site (especially within 20 metres), they can make the situation worse. The tree roots dry out the clay, which means you might need to dig much deeper foundations. This can cost thousands extra. Even if you remove a tree, the clay takes about three years to go back to normal. You can get a cheap report to check if clay is likely on your site or dig trial holes, which can help you plan ahead. Think About Where Beams Go Before You Build Help your client decide if they want the steel beam to show below the ceiling or to hide it inside the ceiling. If you hide it and the floor joists run into the beam, the builder may need to cut the joists and fix them to the side of the beam. This may cost more money. You should talk about this early with your client and builder. It's a trade-off between how it looks and how much it’ll cost. Plan Cantilevers Carefully to Keep Costs Down A cantilever is when part of your building sticks out without support underneath. There's a simple rule of thumb: if you want one metre sticking out, you need two metres anchored back inside the building. If you don't follow this rule, you might need heavier, more expensive beams. Corner bifold doors with cantilevers look great, but to keep costs reasonable, make one side shorter (say 1 to 1.5 metres) with the other side being longer (up to 3 metres for example). — Subscribe on YouTube (for upcoming video episodes!) 📺 Send a Voicemail to the show (we listen to every message!) 📢 Connect with Sam Dean on LinkedIn 🤝 Learn more about PorthouseDean 🖥️ Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 And if you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode.

52 min

FEB 12

Building Confidence Through Mentorship with Joshua Ayettey | 117

In this episode of Architecture Business Club, Jon Clayton introduces Joshua Ayettey, a chartered architect and founder of JADC Studio and Scattered Hub, a mentorship community for aspiring architects. Joshua discusses his personal struggles through architectural training, leading to his passion for mentoring and creating Scattered Hub. The group focuses on providing support, confidence boosts, and guidance to new graduates navigating the architectural field. The conversation covers the group's organic growth, its impact on members, and Joshua's inspiration and future aspirations for Scattered Hub. This episode also highlights practical advice for building community groups and the importance of tackling failures positively. Today’s Guest Joshua Ayettey is a chartered architect and creative problem solver who is passionate about improving the way people live through good design and mentoring the next generation of problem solving designers. He’s also the founder of JADC Studio and Scattered Hub. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Introduction 00:31 Our Guest: Joshua Ayettey 01:07 Joshua's Background and Scattered Hub 01:45 Organic Growth of Scattered Hub 02:02 Mentoring Journey and Early Struggles 03:09 Helping Others and Building Confidence 04:54 Founding JADC Studio 05:45 Formalising Scattered Hub 06:08 Personal Struggles and Mental Health 07:37 Failures as Catalysts for Growth 08:27 Jon's Struggles That Led To This Show 09:20 Setting Up the Group and Formal Arrangements 10:13 Creating a Peer-to-Peer Platform 11:38 Expanding Beyond Architecture 13:01 Community and Collaboration 14:12 Wins and Success Stories 14:22 Building Confidence and Self-Esteem 17:16 Personal Motivation and Influences 20:09 Future Vision for Scattered Hub 20:49 Collaborative Projects and Ecosystem 24:17 Encouragement to Test Ideas 26:14 Final Thoughts and Takeaways 27:25 Encouraging Young People in Architecture 28:56 Resource Recommendations and Learning 29:40 AI and Future of Architecture 31:39 Connecting with Joshua Online — Key Takeaways Don't Be Afraid to Fail You can learn a lot from your failures, even if you can't see it at the time. Joshua failed his final year and had to repeat it. He also failed his part three exam the first time. But these failures taught him important lessons that helped him later. When you fail, it doesn't mean you should give up. It means you're learning something that will help you in the future. Help Others Along Your Journey When you're struggling with something, you can still help other people who are facing similar problems. Joshua struggled during his training, but he still helped other students with their work. By helping others, you build confidence in yourself and create a positive effect that spreads to more people. You don't need to wait until you're perfect to start helping others. Surround Yourself with the Right People When you're going through tough times, you need people around you who can support you and remind you of your strengths. Joshua almost quit everything, but people around him helped him see that he was being too hard on himself. Find people who reflect where you want to be and who can help you see things clearly when you're struggling. — Subscribe on YouTube (for upcoming video episodes!) 📺 Send a Voicemail to the show (we listen to every message!) 📢 Connect with Joshua Ayettey on LinkedIn 🤝 Learn more about Joshua Ayettey’s practice 🖥️ Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 And if you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode.

34 min

JAN 29

What Does Burnout Mean & How Can I Avoid It with Anna Wolas | 116

Jon Clayton discusses the issue of burnout with career and wellbeing coach Anna Wolas. The conversation digs into what burnout is, how to recognise its signs, and how it differs from stress. Anna explains the reoccurring nature of burnout and its connection to a misalignment between personal values and external expectations. She also outlines common causes of burnout, such as organisational changes, unrealistic workloads, and lack of recognition. Anna shares her DCP framework (Discover, Create, Perform) that helps professionals recover from burnout, prevent it in the future, and activate their full potential. Through practical strategies and real-life success stories, this episode aims to equip architects and business leaders with the tools they need to thrive in their careers without succumbing to burnout. Today’s Guest Anna Wolas is a Career & Wellbeing Coach who helps architects and leaders achieve (& earn) more. Anna's approach helps reduce stress, prevent burnout, and create a sustainable, values-driven definition of success. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Introduction 01:22 Understanding Burnout 02:02 The Burnout Cycle 05:30 Burnout vs. Stress 06:27 Healthy Stress Management 09:27 Signs of Burnout 09:45 Physical Symptoms of Burnout 10:04 Psychological Symptoms of Burnout 10:32 Behavioural Symptoms of Burnout 11:00 Occupational Symptoms of Burnout 11:25 Personal Symptoms of Burnout 11:51 Common Causes of Burnout 11:56 Organisational Factors 12:42 Personal Factors 13:07 Lack of Recognition 13:47 Fear-Based Performance 14:15 Conflict in Relationships 14:34 Overcoming Burnout 14:55 Ineffective Solutions To Burnout 18:45 Effective Strategies For Burnout 18:55 The DCP Framework 19:34 Step 1: Discover 22:32 Step 2: Create 25:00 Step 3: Perform 28:03 Success Stories Of The DCP Framework 28:11 Case Study: High-Level Professional 29:15 Achieving Clarity 30:55 Promotion and Beyond 31:55 Main Takeaways 32:21 Act Now 33:32 Final Thoughts — Key Takeaways Burnout is a cycle, not just tiredness You need to understand that burnout isn't the same as feeling stressed. Stress can actually help you get things done if you have time to rest afterwards. But burnout happens when stress goes on for too long without recovery. It keeps coming back again and again if you don't fix the real problem. Burnout means you're living by other people's rules and goals instead of your own. When this happens over and over, your body and mind get worn out. Spot the warning signs early You can notice burnout in five main areas of your life. Physical signs include feeling tired all the time, headaches, and sleep problems. Mental signs include brain fog, forgetting things, and feeling hopeless. You might also get more emotional, angry, or eat differently. At work, you lose your passion and make more mistakes. In your personal life, your relationships suffer and you feel like you're not doing well anywhere. The sooner you spot these signs, the easier it is to fix the problem. Quick fixes don't work - you need a proper plan Taking holidays, doing more exercise, or waiting for a project to finish won't solve burnout on their own. Even changing jobs won't help if you don't fix the real causes. You need a proper strategy that helps you understand yourself, create healthy boundaries, and use your real skills and strengths. Don't wait to deal with burnout - the longer you leave it, the harder it becomes to fix. — Connect with Anna Wolas on LinkedIn 🤝 Learn more about Anna Wolas’s work 🖥️ Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 If you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode.

36 min

JAN 15

The Difference Between AI and Automation with Tim Lewis | 115

Jon Clayton welcomes Tim Lewis, a seasoned podcaster and content creator who's been exploring AI and automation. Together, they discuss the distinctions between AI and automation, practical applications in day-to-day business, and the benefits of locally hosted AI over cloud-based tools. They also address common fears about AI replacing jobs. Gain valuable insights on leveraging AI for tasks like image and video generation, project management, and client presentations. Tim shares various tools and strategies to enhance productivity and maintain privacy when using AI. Learn how AI can help you build a better, more efficient business. Today’s Guest Tim Lewis is a long term podcaster and content creator. Tim’s background is in books and publishing, but he’s recently deep dived into AI Automation and AI Image and Video Generation, and how it can be used to help small business owners in their day to day work. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Introduction 00:54 Meet Tim Lewis: AI and Automation Expert 01:40 What's The Difference Between AI and Automation Tools? 03:10 Practical Examples of AI in Automation 04:19 AI's Role in Simplifying Tasks 06:37 There's More To AI Than ChatGPT 07:35 Use Cases for AI Tools for Architects 10:23 Advanced AI Tools for Visualisation 12:18 Organizing Information with AI 14:22 Locally Hosted AI vs. Cloud-Based AI 16:51 Privacy and Security in AI 22:59 Using AI for Client Presentations 24:26 Should We Be Worried About AI Replacing Us 28:55 Embracing AI and Automation 29:43 Additional AI Tools and Resources 30:38 Connecting with Tim Lewis 31:12 Conclusion and Final Thoughts — Key Takeaways AI and automation are different tools that work together AI is like a computer programme that thinks a bit like a human. It can look at a picture and tell you what's in it, or help you create images and videos. Automation is different - it's about setting up steps that happen automatically, like "when I get an email, add it to a spreadsheet." The exciting part is when you put them together. AI can now do the thinking parts that used to need a person, which makes automation much more powerful. You can use AI for more than just writing Most people think AI is only good for writing text, but that's just the start. You can use AI to create pictures and videos from your sketches, organise your notes and research, and even make presentations faster. For example, if you draw a simple building sketch, AI can turn it into a realistic image showing what it would look like in real life. This is really helpful if you work with designs or need to show ideas to clients. AI won't replace you, but someone using AI might You don't need to worry about robots taking your job. But you should pay attention to other business owners who are learning to use AI tools. They can work faster, finish projects quicker, and offer better prices because AI helps them save time. The key is to start learning about these tools now, so you can use them to do the boring tasks faster and spend more time on the important work you enjoy. — Subscribe on YouTube (for upcoming video episodes!) 📺 Send a Voicemail to the show (we listen to every message!) 📢 Connect with Tim Lewis on LinkedIn 🤝 Visit Tim Lewis's Website 🖥️ Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 And if you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode. — Next Episode Next time Jon is joined by Anna Wolas to learn how you can thrive in your career without burnout.

33 min

JAN 1

2025 Reflections and Exciting Plans for 2026 | 114

Jon Clayton reflects on the challenges and achievements of 2025, highlighting milestones in his podcasting journey and personal life. Jon shares his Christmas break activities, introduces a new service aimed at enhancing your online presence, and outlines exciting updates for the Architecture Business Club in 2026, including fortnightly episodes, YouTube content, and potential sponsorships. He invites listeners to contribute their thoughts and challenges to shape future content, all while offering a special gift to kick-start the New Year. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Introduction 02:05 Personal Highlights of 2025 02:48 Christmas Break Activities 03:34 Exciting New Service Announcement 03:50 What's New for Architecture Business Club in 2026 05:41 Special Gift for the New Year 07:42 Engage with Us and Share Your Challenges 08:21 Wrapping Up and What's Next — Key Takeaways It is good to look back and learn from the past year. Jon shares both the hard times and the happy moments from 2025 - it’s normal to have ups and downs. Trying new things and making changes can help you grow. This show is adding video episodes, changing how often episodes come out, and offering new services - being open to change can bring new opportunities. Staying connected with your audience is important. Jon invites you to share your challenges and ideas, and encourages you to subscribe and join in, so you can be part of this community. — Subscribe on YouTube (for upcoming video episodes!) 📺 Send a Voicemail to the show (we listen to every message!) 📢 Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 And if you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode. — Next Episode Jon is joined by Tim Lewis to explore the difference between AI and Automation.

10 min

12/25/2025

Merry Christmas and Podcast Highlights of 2025 | 113

Jon Clayton delivers a brief special episode to thank listeners for their support. He shares notable statistics from 2025, including the release of 52 episodes, the 100th episode celebration in September, and record downloads in October. He also recounts the top three episodes of the year based on download numbers, highlighting listener favourites. Jon encourages you to take a break from the podcast to enjoy the festive season. — Episode Highlights 00:00 Introduction and Holiday Greetings 00:35 Podcast Achievements and Milestones 01:29 Top Episodes of 2025 02:57 Future Plans and Guest Invitations 03:54 Holiday Sign-Off and Advice — Key Takeaways Keep Going, Even When It’s Hard If you keep working on something, like making a podcast every week, you can reach big goals. You might even do better than most people if you don’t give up. People Like to Hear Real Stories When you share true stories about your life or work, others want to listen. You can help people by telling them what you have learned and what you have gone through. Take Time for Family and Friends It’s good to stop working sometimes and spend time with people you care about. You should enjoy special days, like Christmas, with your family and friends. — Subscribe on YouTube (for upcoming video episodes!) 📺 Send a Voicemail to the show (we listen to every message!) 📢 Curious about podcasting? Click here to book a chat with Jon 🎧 Follow or Connect with Jon on LinkedIn 🤝 — 👇 And if you enjoyed this episode… Please leave a 5-star review or rating wherever you listen to podcasts, and don’t forget to hit the subscribe button so you never miss an episode. — Next Episode Tune in next week for a New Year's episode previewing 2026.

6 min

Architecture Business Club with Jon Clayton

What is Succession Planning & Why Does It Matter with Kevin Crawford | 120

Navigating Our 100+ Episodes: A Guide to Discovering Hidden Gems | 119

How To Avoid Structural Issues In Home Extensions with Sam Dean | 118

Building Confidence Through Mentorship with Joshua Ayettey | 117

What Does Burnout Mean & How Can I Avoid It with Anna Wolas | 116

The Difference Between AI and Automation with Tim Lewis | 115

2025 Reflections and Exciting Plans for 2026 | 114

Merry Christmas and Podcast Highlights of 2025 | 113

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