A Living Legacy

Excerpt from the Architect’s Newspaper-

“In smaller firms, succession can happen through buyouts between partners, like in the case of Boston-based Machado Silvetti, where design principals Stephanie Randazzo Dwyer and Jeffry Burchard took over after the founding partners retired. Both Randazzo Dwyer and Burchard have been at the firm for more than 20 years. In 2016, they broached the topic of succession with Rodolfo Machado and Jorge Silvetti. Burchard mentioned that timing was key to the transition. Other partners had started conversations in the past, but the founders were not ready to move on at that time. “It was a 10-year conversation, a very long, open, and communicative one, but they were certainly more open to it towards the last five years,” said Randazzo Dwyer.

Burchard and Randazzo Dwyer were initially minority stock owners in the firm. Their transition agreement incorporated a plan for the founders to transfer ownership to them as their stakes vested over time. “This is a real challenge, because employees of architecture firms don’t usually have the capacity to amass a purchase price or cash to outright purchase stock,” Burchard said. He noted that this structure allows the founders to benefit from the firm’s work for a time, but there is a term limit to this as well.

The duo also chose to retain the name Machado Silvetti to signify their own role in the firm’s legacy and its studio culture. “I think in the end, we wanted to build on Machado Silvetti,” Randazzo Dwyer said. Nearly all the firms interviewed evaluated name changes or soft rebrandings (like RAMSA and Viñoly) during their succession planning. Most decided to stick with the brand or tweak it ever so slightly. “Name has recognition, and part of the motivation for any new partner or principal to buy into or take over the responsibility of a legacy firm is the legacy of that firm,” said Burchard.”

Jerry Elengical is a journalist who has covered art, design, real estate, and politics for The Architect’s Newspaper, The New York Times, STIRworld, The Intercept, and City Limits.