Bespoke Careers Podcast

Bespoke Careers
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Design
  • Updated Biweekly

The Bespoke Careers Podcast brings you the career stories and insights from the people shaping architecture and design today. Tune in every two weeks for fresh conversations with designers, architects, and creatives from around the world, sharing insights, experiences, and the realities behind their professional journeys.

  1. 4d ago

    What the AIA President Wants Every Architect to Know - Illya Azaroff

    Illya Azaroff calls architecture his side gig. He's also the 2026 president of the American Institute of Architects and has spent 30 years responding to disasters around the world.His father arrived in the US as a displaced war refugee from Ukraine, and Illya grew up at a dinner table where hunger was a firsthand memory. That upbringing led to a degree in geography, then a career in disaster mitigation, and now the presidency of a 100,000-member institution.We get into what the presidency is like from the inside, why his kids are the reason he ran, the ethos he borrowed from the Kalinago people in the Caribbean, why nearly half of small businesses never reopen after a disaster, and the message he wants every architect to hear: you are more powerful to your community than you realize.

    What the AIA President Wants Every Architect to Know - Illya Azaroff

  2. Aug 11

    Inside the Mind of ZHA Architects' AI Pioneer - Shajay Bhooshan

    Shajay Bhooshan is an Associate Director at ZHA Architects and co-founder of ZHA CODE, the practice's computation and design research group, now 28 people inside a studio of around 500. He studied at the AA's Design Research Laboratory, where he still teaches, and completed his PhD with the Block Research Group at ETH Zurich. His work spans high performance geometry, robotic fabrication, game engines and participatory design, including the 3D printed concrete bridge Striatus.

    Inside the Mind of ZHA Architects' AI Pioneer - Shajay Bhooshan

  3. Jul 27

    How an Architecture CEO Hires - Scott Clement, Revel

    Scott Clement has seen thousands of portfolios. He doesn't want to see yours.Scott is the CEO of Revel Architecture and Design, a San Francisco firm that grew headcount 50% in 18 months and is sitting right at the 60-person point where he says firms start to break. We get into what an architecture CEO does all day, why Revel grows its leaders instead of hiring them in, the Colliers fit-out that ended with a giant bar the client insisted they didn't want, and the phone call that came 14 hours before we recorded.

    How an Architecture CEO Hires - Scott Clement, Revel

  4. Jul 14

    Starting a Design Studio - What's it Really Like? | WILDFLOWER Founders Cara & Robyn

    Cara Stizza and Robyn Levin run Wildflower, a Melbourne studio that owns the furniture side of a project. Selection, procurement, coordination, everything down to the cutlery in the drawers. Cara built and grew an interior design practice before this. Robyn spent years inside one of Australia's leading furniture brands. Together they sit between the creative eye and the part where it all has to get built, on budget, and hold up.This one's about the business of design. How they cut about a third out of a build-to-rent budget without gutting the design. Why furniture gets wedged in early, before it turns into an afterthought. What they look for when they hire for a job that's half taste, half operations. And what stays human when AI can knock out a mood board in seconds.

    Starting a Design Studio - What's it Really Like? | WILDFLOWER Founders Cara & Robyn

  5. Jun 30

    What I Learned Starting A Design Studio (Without a Degree) - Mitch Jones

    Want to work at amazing studios like Made For? You can browse our live jobs here: https://www.bespokecareers.com/jobs/At Bespoke we work with 1,000+ firms every year across the UK, US and Australia to find them great candidates just like you. Want to know where you salary sits in the market? Download our global Salary Guide: https://www.bespokecareers.com/salary-guide Mitch Jones built Made For, a Melbourne workplace strategy, architecture and interiors studio, without a design degree. Ten years on it's a team of twenty with a client list that runs from Starbucks to Autex to Yarra Valley Water. He started it with his wife Cara in a rundown Collingwood warehouse, and in this episode he's straight about the whole ten years. Why he's kept every pitch he's ever made. Why he wants to own less than half his own company. The hiring mistake he keeps making and regretting. How he reads a business before he designs a single desk. We get into what changed for offices after Covid, why he runs a studio that's built to not look like an office, and the part of the job he's certain AI won't touch. "Do you need a design degree to run a design business? You don't. In fact, I've got no degree at all."

    What I Learned Starting A Design Studio (Without a Degree) - Mitch Jones

  6. Jun 16

    How to Plot Your Own Path In Architecture - Selasi Setufe MBE

    Selasi Setufe came out of architecture school with two degrees and couldn't get a job. Two interviews in two years. An unpaid internship in Slovenia she'd "highly not advise." So she stopped trying to fit the mould and built her own route through the profession.Selasi is a co-director of Black Females in Architecture, the network she co-founded in 2018 that now runs to a global membership of more than 400. She's a registered architect, a Public Practice alumna, and a Principal Project Officer in the GLA's Place Unit, after years as a Senior Architect at Be First in Barking and Dagenham. In 2022 she was awarded an MBE for services to diversity in architecture.In this conversation she gets into the two years she spent outside architecture after qualifying, the advice from Elsie Owusu about being the change rather than trying to fix a broken system, why she calls strategic work "architecture with a big A," what architecture education does to the students it can't accommodate, how BFA grew from a group chat into a social enterprise, and why she hesitated before accepting an MBE with "British Empire" in the name.

    How to Plot Your Own Path In Architecture - Selasi Setufe MBE

  7. Jun 12

    The Most Underestimated Profession? - Chithra Marsh | RIBA Elections

    his summer, RIBA elect the institute’s next president. Four candidates are running to be president: Duncan Baker-Brown, Chithra Marsh, Jay Morton and Austin Williams. We sat down with all four, to hear their vision for the future of the profession. We’ll be releasing one episode per day in the lead-up to the voting opening on Monday, 15 June. Next up: Chithra Marsh.Chithra is a Director at Buttress Architects in Manchester, with over 30 years’ experience across practices of varying size. She leads on community regeneration, social value and equality, diversity and inclusion within the practice, which is both B Corp certified and employee‑owned.Chithra has served RIBA extensively at regional and national level, including on Council, committees and advisory panels. Former National Chair of Women in Property, she is recognised for her collaborative leadership style, strong governance experience and ability to build meaningful professional relationships. She is committed to strengthening RIBA as an inclusive, connected and representative professional community. Voting opens at 9 am on Monday, 15 June and closes at 4 pm on Friday, 26 June. Results announced Thursday, 2 July. For more information, head here: https://www.riba.org/about-us/governance/elections/

    The Most Underestimated Profession? - Chithra Marsh | RIBA Elections

  8. Jun 11

    Why Architects Aren't Taken Seriously - Duncan Baker-Brown | RIBA Elections

    This summer, RIBA elect the institute’s next president. Four candidates are running to be president: Duncan Baker-Brown, Chithra Marsh, Jay Morton and Austin Williams. We sat down with all four, to hear their vision for the future of the profession. We’ll be releasing one episode per day in the lead-up to the voting opening on Monday, 15 June. Next up: Duncan Baker-Brown Duncan Baker‑Brown is the founder of BakerBrown Studio, a small practice based in Brighton, and has over four decades’ experience combining practice, education, and policy. He is a university postgraduate course leader, author and internationally recognised advocate for low‑carbon, retrofit, and circular design. Duncan has represented RIBA at multiple UN COP summits and worked directly with the UK government on net‑zero, circular economy and retrofit policy, including VAT reform. His practice has delivered 100% social housing and is a Certified B Corporation. He brings a regionally grounded, research‑led perspective focused on fairness, sustainability and supporting practices across the UK and internationally. Voting opens at 9 am on Monday, 15 June and closes at 4 pm on Friday, 26 June. Results announced Thursday, 2 July. For more information, head here: https://www.riba.org/about-us/governance/elections/

    Why Architects Aren't Taken Seriously - Duncan Baker-Brown | RIBA Elections
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The Bespoke Careers Podcast brings you the career stories and insights from the people shaping architecture and design today. Tune in every two weeks for fresh conversations with designers, architects, and creatives from around the world, sharing insights, experiences, and the realities behind their professional journeys.

Information

  • Creator
    Bespoke Careers
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    40
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Bespoke Careers
  • Show Website
    Bespoke Careers Podcast

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