CEO Mel Price Talks About Workplace Transparency with Inform Magazine

Workplace transparency has been central to WPA’s operations since the firm’s founding in 2010. In a recent interview with William Richards for an article about “radical transparency” for Inform Magazine, CEO Mel Price discusses why the firm adopted an open books policy early on, how that decision has shaped the business and whether she and founding partner Thom White have any regrets. Richards writes: 

“Back then [in 2010], the economy was shaky and the recovery from the Great Recession was slow-going. It maybe wasn’t an ideal time to try something radical when it came to company finances, but in that moment of uncertainty it was critical to create a culture of trust,” says Price about WPA’s founding.

Today? The firm’s approach to openness appears to be both prescient and also sustainable. 

“The recent business climate hasn’t changed our approach to transparency at all and I really can’t imagine any economic situation that would,” she says. “I think the kind of trust between staff and management that true transparency creates is critical in the current moment as well. I can’t say if transparency is right for every firm all the time. But I do believe that if more firms tried, they would see what we have seen and they wouldn’t go back.”

Read the full Inform Magazine article here.

WAVY offers a sneak peek at the new William A. Hunton YMCA in Norfolk

The William A. Hunton YMCA and Work Program Architects have revealed designs for a new facility that will support the YMCA’s ongoing role as a resource and safe haven for families living in and around South Hampton Roads. The facility, located at 1045 E. Brambleton Avenue, will also serve as a gateway and key landmark for the transformed St. Paul’s neighborhood in downtown Norfolk.

As WAVY noted in a recent segment on the project, the Hunton YMCA is the oldest independent YMCA and one of four Heritage YMCA’s in the United States, established when People of Color were denied access to other YMCA facilities. The new facility will build on Hunton’s 150-year history, promoting health and wellness while enhancing its continuing mission to provide early childhood education, as well as community meeting spaces and programs to teach life skills.

Highlights of the design include separate areas for upper and lower schools, a library, kitchen and cafetorium, reception, administrative offices, a full-size gymnasium, an outdoor swimming pool, and facilities for health services, seniors, and civic and community gatherings. A private courtyard will embrace an arbor of mature trees and feature a natural playground.

WPA collaborated with community members, as well as Hunton staff and board members, to arrive at the design for the new facility.

The project has been made possible by the sale of the previous Hunton Y to the City of Norfolk, which will be demolishing the old facility to make way for the Blue Greenway, a 22-acre resilience park that will serve the Kindred and St. Paul’s community. 

Additional funding will be provided through a capital campaign, which is scheduled to kick off later this year. It is hoped construction can begin in 2025, with completion in 2026.

View the full report from WAVY here.

View the project page here.

Work Program Architects successfully renews JUST label

Work Program Architect has earned a JUST 2.0 label, reaffirming its commitment to creating a more equitable and socially just workplace through transparency and accountability.

“Earning our first JUST label in 2022 helped us see exactly where we stand when it comes to social equity in our workplace,” said CEO Mel Price. “But that was just the beginning. This renewal has allowed us to examine where we have made progress and where we are still coming up short. It is humbling and critical to the future of our organization and our industry.”

The label, administered by the International Living Future Institute, requires participants to voluntarily disclose key organization- and employee-related indicators that show progress toward social justice and equity goals.

“Joining the Just movement means becoming part of a vibrant community dedicated to understanding the complexity and interconnectedness of our world and its impact on the human and employee experience,” read a post from ILFI announcing the new class of recipients. “These organizations take responsibility for their actions and impacts, uphold the highest ethical standards, and champion transparency and vulnerability as core principles in their operations.”

The 2024 label, which can be found here and on the “About/History” section of the WPA website, shows that the firm has made progress in several areas, including growing the size of the company (from 16 to 22 employees), improving retirement provisions and better supporting employee health. The firm has also made advances in “Freedom of Association,” based on its status as a majority employee-owned firm with open and transparent practices that provide team members with freedom and control over decisions made in the business.

WPA has maintained strong performance in gender diversity (with over 50% women), pay-scale and gender-pay equity, and providing training and education opportunities. The firm has scored low and even lost some ground in employee health benefits, ethnic diversity and inclusion. We are providing a deeper look at the JUST guidelines and WPA’s practice below.

“We are grateful to ILFI for providing this independent assessment,” Price said. “This kind of accountability is essential when pushing against the status quo of workplace culture and going above and beyond design industry standards. We are recommitting ourselves to doing better. Our next JUST label will let us know if we have succeeded.”

Below are some of the categories with more details on the guidelines and our practice to meet those guidelines.

 

WPA CEO and Co-founder Mel Price Receives Prestigious AIA Fellowship

NORFOLK, Virginia (April 5, 2024) — Mel Price, co-founder and principal at Work Program Architects, has been named to the College of Fellows by the American Institute of Architects. 

The fellowship is the highest membership honor for the organization and is bestowed on those who have demonstrated “exceptional work and contributions to architecture and society.” 

“It is a great honor to be recognized by the AIA,” Price said, “but this fellowship is also a great responsibility. I will use this opportunity to share what I have learned with my peers, to learn from them and, most importantly, to ensure that the profession grows and adapts with the next generation of architects so that we may continue to positively impact society.”

The AIA identifies mentorship as a core aspect of the fellowship program, along with providing service to society and advancing the profession.

Price is one of 96 architects in this year’s class. Only 3% of AIA members become fellows.

Visit the AIA website to read more about this year’s class.

Team including WPA wins 2020 HRACRE Merit Award

The team of Work Program Architects, Yard & Company, WPL, CVB SGA Office, Team Better Block and Stromberg/Garrigan & Associates won a 2020 HRACRE Merit Award for Best Master Planned Project for the Resort Area Strategic Action Plan in Virginia Beach.

Congratulations to all of the 2020 HRACRE Design Awards Recipients!

View the virtual awards presentation here, and look for the WPA team around the 19:13 mark.

Click here to view the pdf of the Resort Area Strategic Action Plan.

The Next Wave Campaign with The Elizabeth River Project

The Elizabeth River Project is taking up position on the frontlines of the international quest to combat impacts of sea level rise on urban waterfront communities. WPA is proud to be designing the first facility on the East Coast intentionally to be constructed as a resilience model in the urban flood plain.

Continue reading

Happy Birthday! MEGA CAKE

 

The MEGA CAKE’s journey to Burning Man is getting close to it’s fiery conclusion! Fresh off its successful test build at the Hermitage Museum and Gardens, the 50′ tall sculpture has just been listed in Forbes Magazine as on of the “Best of the Best” to watch for in 2019.

From the article: MEGA CAKE is a large scale interactive sculpture of a 4-tier birthday cake that will serve as both a singular piece of art and a place to explore and discover art within. According to the artists, “We are a diverse group of misfits who came together due to a shared love of teamwork and crazy ideas. Each of us has a different combination of reasons for traveling to the Black Rock desert to spend a week laboring to bring a 50-foot wooden cake to life, only to watch it burn shortly thereafter.”

Architect Thom White of Norfolk’s WPA has designed a 12-sided wooden structure resembling a 4-tiered birthday cake. Art glass embellishments representing the animals of the Chinese zodiac and the constellations of the western zodiac will catch the light of the sun and sparkle like sugar in the distance. Plywood panels line each faceted tier and have perforations which recall cake icing embellishments while letting wind pass through. Flexible LED light strips are draped along the top of each level, adding to the icing motif. A propane-fueled “poofer” on the top-most tier will provide flame effects that will fire off at least once per hour at night.

“Our mission has evolved since work began over a year ago. At first, the Cake was thought of primarily as a place to gather, play, and observe Burning Man’s Black Rock City. Then, as the work progressed and construction began, we realized the piece is a singular work of art with vast potential for embedded meaning. MEGA CAKE facilitates a journey through the distinct moments that people encounter along the arc of one’s lifetime.”

Installations: The Best of the Best

Forbes Magazine article Jul 13, 2019

 

 

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