It is not always often that we are asked to review our life’s work – but when submitting for Fellowship to the American Institutes of Architecture in 2015, I had to do just that. Over the last 21+ years, I have been very fortunate to have a great career with Perkins+Will – an architecture firm that had 400 people in 1996 and has grown to employ well over 2000 talented individuals – becoming the second largest architectural firm in the United States. Much of my time at Perkins+Will has been spent growing the Science & Technology market sector – which in 2016 is the largest sector of it’s kind in the United States.
When creating my submittal for Fellowship, I was very pleased to see that I have been able to work with many great clients and great project teams, developing many outstanding projects around the world. I thank Henry Mann and Lewis Nix for my initial opportunities at Perkins +Will and the current CEO, Phil Harrison, for his outstanding leadership over the past 10+ years.
And now it is time to share my knowledge, expertise and passion to help others in developing countries where they need the help the most.
The idea of an encore career came to me as I watched over the years, my father-in-law, Phil Ponder, move from 30 successful years in sales to becoming a celebrated artist, active city councilman, volunteer, board member and community role model. Based in Nashville, many people know him for all his work in his encore career. Watching Phil continue to contribute on a daily basis made me realize how important it is for each of us to figure out what we want to do when we “retire”. While these goals differ from person to person, I have discovered that my intent is to have a significant encore career that focuses on improving the lives of others.
At Perkins+Will, I was fortunate to design many complex and difficult research facilities around the world. And now, I intend to take on some of the toughest challenges in developing countries with the hope that I can be a part of teams that help communities expedite their growth and advance to a more developed level. Those in developed countries typically live 20 years more than those in developing countries – but by 2100, it is projected that life expectancies in developing countries will be able to match those of developed countries. So let’s make sure that happens.
In talking with friends and colleagues, I have found that many of the baby boomer generation – who are now reaching retirement age – do not simply want to retire, but want to contribute to society and help others. A key goal of 4GlobalGood is to partner with other people and organizations with the same values to find opportunities that make a global difference. And together, we will continue to make positive change.
It is time to grow encore careers!!!
