Having completed 30 successful years in business, Smith Design Associates are delighted to announce our transition to Employee Ownership. The change to an Employee Ownership Trust completed on Thursday 15th of February, making 2024 an extremely exciting and significant year for the Practice.
Employee Ownership will allow our dedicated members of staff to continue providing a high quality service for our clients into the future, whilst creating an enhanced collaborative working approach across the company.
The team have worked together for a very long time, many for 20-25 years or more, and we are a close-knit and happy group. Over the years colleagues have become friends and collectively we are all excited about the future of the Practice under Employee Ownership.
A number of new appointments have been made as part of this transition, which we are pleased to announce as follows:
Brian Smith has stepped back from his role as Managing Director and is now Chair, reducing his working week to three days. Brian will continue to support his existing clients and contribute to their development programme for the next five years.
Norrie Ross is the new Managing Director with responsibility for the strategic approach and performance of the Practice. Norrie joined the company in 2005 and has been a Director since 2007.
Andrew Goody has been appointed as a Director and has been with the company since 2011. Andrew is the first board appointment since 2019 and brings youth and enthusiasm to his new role as the Practice evolves for the future.
Douglas Allan has been appointed as a Technical Director and has been with the company since 1998. Douglas has unrivalled expertise in drawing and specification management, in addition to his proven track record in project delivery.
Helen Cassidy has been appointed as an Associate as part of the new management team. Helen has been a key contributor since 1999 and brings attention to detail and scrutiny of all possible design solutions to her work. Our younger members of staff benefit from her experience.
Stewart McKenna Maxwell has also been appointed as an Associate having joined the Practice in 2006. Stewart is a very experienced Architect in food retail development and highly valued by his clients.
Scott Jordan joined the Practice in 2014 and has been appointed as an Associate. A qualified Architect, Scott has taken a key role with a national food retailer contributing to all aspects of their development programme in recent years.
Smith Design Associates have embraced the potential of Employee Ownership and look forward to providing continued service to our existing clients and welcoming new clients in the years to come.