President’s Message //byline Carina Mills, AIA – 2025 AIA CA President For those close to the business of AIA California you know that we’ve been working slowly and thoughtfully towards a significant organizational change. We’ve been tasked with this mission because our first and foremost responsibility as elected leaders of the institute is to be good stewards of members’ resources. For many members who are not in leadership, I suspect this is brand new information, so as your President this year I want to give you some insights into why this change is needed and why I was compelled to lead us to the finish line. I know now, after many years of observing this pattern and having others urge me to stop it, that I am drawn to big complicated organizational problems. It is truly an urge that I cannot fight and no longer try to, it’s my gift. These types of problems are intimidating and can feel unsolvable, because in most cases there is no perfect solution but there is the promise of improvement for those who have the courage to change the status quo. I have commented on the sometimes painful compulsion for architects to hold fast to our traditions. These habits are not just motivated by risk aversion, they are more often protected by the love of our legacy, which makes facilitating change a treacherous adventure filled with emotional resistance. I believe part of my gift as a change agent is that I am a very empathic person; I know when to pause and how to adapt solutions so that they are sensitive to the values and traditions we hold dear. I hope this gives you all hope, because I also know how to persist through unreasonable resistance. When I joined the AIA California Board in 2016, the very first meeting I attended offered us an activity to reimagine a new governance structure and explained that our current 60+ person board was not an ideal way to conduct business. At that time, the initiative was suspended because our long-time Executive VP, Paul Welch, was preparing to retire. So, we didn’t change everything all at once, which was an act of compassion and a smart decision to observe and learn from other restructuring efforts that would play out in components across AIA. When I joined the Executive Committee in 2020, with all that year had to offer in forcing everyone to re-evaluate our ways of doing business, the timing was apparent and the restructuring project came off the shelf. Research was conducted, consultants were brought on, and last year engagement ramped up under the stewardship of then President, Winston Thorne, AIA. It was again a compassionate decision to slow the process down with the 2024 board and make sure we were listening to important petitions to preserve the most valued traditions. We made adjustments to protect what our Directors felt passionate about, and we also pressed continual reminders of the need to evolve in a time of rapid change and limited resources. Our goal has always been to protect the legacy of the institute and better serve our members so that you can better serve our community. There is a real need to maintain relevance – and that does require change. It takes curiosity and courage to change, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to stand in this leadership role as we come to the final stages. This is the time when change agents are faced with the least glamourous and most laborious tasks, and in some cases peak emotional reaction. The AIA California Board will convene in Sacramento on April 24th to work through our last major charrette activities as we work to refine the roles and expectations of future directors, representatives, and executive leaders, as well as refining our election process that will hopefully offer enhanced engagement from our membership across California. I started on this path with AIA to meet people and develop my networking skills, but I stayed to change things, to show myself and my colleagues a courageous and tenacious leader who is willing to do the unglamorous work in support of the profession I still love. I hope these words give you the opportunity to reflect on what you are called to change in pursuit of relevance and in support of our shared legacy. Carina
The Great Reorganization
//byline
Carina Mills, AIA –
2025 AIA CA President
04.07.25
For those close to the business of AIA California you know that we’ve been working slowly and thoughtfully towards a significant organizational change. We’ve been tasked with this mission because our first and foremost responsibility as elected leaders of the institute is to be good stewards of members’ resources. For many members who are not in leadership, I suspect this is brand new information, so as your President this year I want to give you some insights into why this change is needed and why I was compelled to lead us to the finish line.
I know now, after many years of observing this pattern and having others urge me to stop it, that I am drawn to big complicated organizational problems. It is truly an urge that I cannot fight and no longer try to, it’s my gift. These types of problems are intimidating and can feel unsolvable, because in most cases there is no perfect solution but there is the promise of improvement for those who have the courage to change the status quo.
I have commented on the sometimes painful compulsion for architects to hold fast to our traditions. These habits are not just motivated by risk aversion, they are more often protected by the love of our legacy, which makes facilitating change a treacherous adventure filled with emotional resistance. I believe part of my gift as a change agent is that I am a very empathic person; I know when to pause and how to adapt solutions so that they are sensitive to the values and traditions we hold dear. I hope this gives you all hope, because I also know how to persist through unreasonable resistance.
When I joined the AIA California Board in 2016, the very first meeting I attended offered us an activity to reimagine a new governance structure and explained that our current 60+ person board was not an ideal way to conduct business. At that time, the initiative was suspended because our long-time Executive VP, Paul Welch, was preparing to retire. So, we didn’t change everything all at once, which was an act of compassion and a smart decision to observe and learn from other restructuring efforts that would play out in components across AIA. When I joined the Executive Committee in 2020, with all that year had to offer in forcing everyone to re-evaluate our ways of doing business, the timing was apparent and the restructuring project came off the shelf.
Research was conducted, consultants were brought on, and last year engagement ramped up under the stewardship of then President, Winston Thorne, AIA. It was again a compassionate decision to slow the process down with the 2024 board and make sure we were listening to important petitions to preserve the most valued traditions. We made adjustments to protect what our Directors felt passionate about, and we also pressed continual reminders of the need to evolve in a time of rapid change and limited resources. Our goal has always been to protect the legacy of the institute and better serve our members so that you can better serve our community. There is a real need to maintain relevance – and that does require change.
It takes curiosity and courage to change, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to stand in this leadership role as we come to the final stages. This is the time when change agents are faced with the least glamourous and most laborious tasks, and in some cases peak emotional reaction. The AIA California Board will convene in Sacramento on April 24th to work through our last major charrette activities as we work to refine the roles and expectations of future directors, representatives, and executive leaders, as well as refining our election process that will hopefully offer enhanced engagement from our membership across California.
I started on this path with AIA to meet people and develop my networking skills, but I stayed to change things, to show myself and my colleagues a courageous and tenacious leader who is willing to do the unglamorous work in support of the profession I still love. I hope these words give you the opportunity to reflect on what you are called to change in pursuit of relevance and in support of our shared legacy.
Carina
AIA CaliforniaRead More
