Name: Melissa Clinch
Job title: Director, WilkinsonEyre
What I do: I’m an architect. A typical day will include some design time, analysis and sketching, working with my team to support their work, and research which can be technical or involve talking to clients and other stakeholders.
Why I got into the built environment industry: I saw an opportunity to affect tangible change. Good architecture has its finger of the pulse of culture and reflects our values and aspirations. We also have a serious responsibility – we shape our buildings and our buildings shape us.
How I did it: A lot of studying! It took a very long time to qualify as an architect, but I’m glad that new routes are opening up into the profession.
My first proper job: Architectural assistant at a tiny start-up.
My first big break: Getting a job at Foster + Partners straight out of my postgraduate course.
My inspiration(s): Charles and Ray Eames, Eileen Grey, Sejima, Gaudi and Eliado Dieste.
The biggest challenge I’ve encountered to date: Being underestimated (but that can also be a secret weapon!)
My greatest achievement/proudest moment to date: Raising a toddler and a building at the same time (during the pandemic).
The biggest misconception people have about the property industry: The one-dimensional view people have of it. The property industry is so varied. It’s an interesting space where lots of really different people come together to deliver positive change.
My biggest bugbear about the industry/the one thing I would change: Our industry is broad, encompassing a diverse range of professionals and specialisms, each with significant legal and statutory responsibilities. Consequently, innovation and radical change often take a long time to realise. Take ESG for example. We all share the same goals: designers want to deliver low-carbon solutions, clients want to build best-in-class ESG assets, and we strive for our project teams to reflect our diverse society. However, progress remains slow. In the meantime, we must seize every opportunity for incremental change to shift the trajectory of our shared future.
Why I’m so passionate about DE&I: It’s too easy to conflate good fortune with meritocracy.
Why I’m so passionate about ESG: Because there is still time to make a real difference to the lives of our children and lessen the burden they will inherit.
Where I’d like to be in five years’ time career-wise: Finding the right balance between designing, mentoring our team and research and innovation.
Who I’d invite, living or dead, to a dinner party: Olivia Coleman, Nick Cave, Elizabeth Taylor and David Lynch.
The job I’d be doing if I was not doing this: Struggling artist.
My advice for someone just starting out: Say yes – you’ll only regret the nos.
My motto/mantra: Be brave: ‘There is hope in honest error – none in the icy perfections of the mere stylist’ – Charles Rennie Mackintosh
