How DMC Recruitment helped an Architecture and Design firm secure a senior leader for a major project division
The Challenge
An Architecture and Design firm needed to hire a Principal Architect to lead its P3 division after securing a new project.
P3 projects, or public-private partnerships, are often large, complex assignments tied to infrastructure, transportation, hospitals, roads, airports, and other major public projects. They require experienced leaders who can manage design expectations, client relationships, project delivery, and long-term strategic direction.
Finding that person is difficult.
At the principal level, many candidates have 15 to 20 years of experience, established teams, long term project commitments, and deep roots within their current firm. In P3 work, the challenge becomes even greater because candidates can remain tied to major projects for years.
The client needed more than a strong Architect. They needed someone with the experience, credibility, and interest to build and lead a growing practice area.
The DMC Approach
Shawna Wagner approached the search by focusing on the person behind the resume.
The client needed a Senior Architect with specific P3 experience, but the right fit also needed to see a clear reason to move. At this level, candidates rarely change roles for a title alone. The opportunity needs to align with their career goals, impact, leadership ambitions, and long term path.
Through DMC’s Architecture and Design network, Shawna was referred back to a candidate she had worked with years earlier. He had the right background in transportation and infrastructure, along with the senior project experience the client needed.
At first, the candidate was hesitant. He was already involved in meaningful work and was not actively looking to make a move.
Shawna took the time to understand what would make the opportunity worth considering. The candidate wanted more than another project. He wanted the chance to build something, create structure, lead a growing sector, and have a more visible impact within both the company and the community he lived in.
That became the key to the search.
Rather than simply presenting the role, Shawna helped the candidate understand the full opportunity: the chance to lead a P3 division, contribute to business development, work closely with senior decision makers, and play a larger role in shaping the future of a growing firm.
She also helped the client understand what mattered to the candidate. The candidate was coming from a large multinational environment where many of his projects were far removed from his day to day life. This opportunity gave him the chance to work on projects closer to home, where he could see the impact on his own city, community, and family.
For a senior hire like this, access to leadership was also critical. Shawna helped create the right process, including direct conversations between the candidate and the firm’s founder. That step helped the candidate see the vision, leadership style, and long term opportunity clearly.
When a major personal situation created uncertainty late in the process, Shawna and the client handled it with patience and flexibility. Instead of pressuring the candidate to rush a decision, they gave him the time and support he needed. That response strengthened the candidate’s confidence in the firm and helped the placement move forward for the right reasons.
The Result
Shawna successfully connected the client with a Principal Architect who had the senior P3, transportation, and infrastructure experience needed to lead the division.
For the client, the hire added a proven senior leader to a critical practice area. Since joining, the candidate has helped bring in new projects and has continued to support the growth of the team.
For the candidate, the move created a stronger long term career opportunity. He gained the chance to build a business area, work closer to senior leadership, have a larger voice in decision making, and make a more direct impact through the projects he leads.
It also gave him something his previous role could not: the chance to see his work shape the community around him.
The result was a strong match for both sides: a client who gained the leadership talent needed to grow a specialized division, and a candidate who found a role more aligned with his goals, impact, and future.
Why It Matters
DMC Recruitment is often known for its work in Building Materials, but our expertise extends across the full construction supply chain, including Architecture and Design, Real Estate Development, Property Management, Construction, and related leadership functions.
This search showed the value of that broader reach.
Senior Architecture and Design searches require more than posting a role and waiting for applications. They require a strong network, industry knowledge, candidate trust, client understanding, and the ability to connect what a firm needs with what a candidate wants next.
At the principal level, the best candidates are rarely easy to move. They need a clear reason to leave, a clear reason to join, and confidence that the opportunity supports their long term career.
Shawna was able to create that connection.
Recruiter Spotlight
Shawna Wagner – Partner, Architecture & Design
DMC Recruitment
Shawna’s work on this search reflects DMC’s ability to support senior recruitment across Architecture and Design. By combining industry relationships, candidate insight, client understanding, and a thoughtful search process, she helped place a senior leader who could support the client’s growth while giving the candidate a stronger path forward.
