134: Architecture, And: Growing a Tech Start-up out of an Architecture Firm

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Episode 134 • 2nd November 2023 • Practice Disrupted by Practice of Architecture • Evelyn Lee

Episode 134: Architecture, And: Growing a Tech Start-up out of an Architecture Firm

How does architecture support a CEO stepping out and into a specialized tech start-up space?

On this episode of Practice Disrupted, we sit down with Zach Soflin, AIA, the Founder and CEO of Layer, the first and only flexible and mobile-friendly building management software. First, we learn how the company was created in response to the Nebraska State Capitol Building where Zach and his previous firm, BVH, were looking to connect field data to their designs. Zach built his own solution, which would become the prototype for Layer. Zach shares what he’s learned about being a CEO and how an architecture background (and mindset) shows up in day-to-day operations.

“Critical thinking and skills I learned in architecture have helped immensely in building this business, particularly around designing product and user experience. Those skills have definitely translated and given us an opportunity to provide a different software experience than what architects might be used to working with.” - Zach Soflin

Then, we dive into Layer: its focus on design as an entry point toward its target market, and Zach shares how customers utilize the software to link different parts of their projects together. We also ask Zach about hiring prioritization in a highly technical field and his process for navigating the talent pool outside of Silicon Valley.

To wrap up the episode, Zach shares the biggest obstacle for architecture to overcome, and the role technology plays in shaping the future of the practice. With potential entrepreneurs in mind, he illustrates a step system to understand if creating a product is, in fact, the best solution for a problem at hand.

Tune in next week for another episode in our Architecture, And series with Melodie Yashar, Space Architect.

Guests:

Zach Soflin, AIA, is the Founder and CEO of Layer, where he leads company operations and product development. With a decade of experience practicing and leading computational design and innovation initiatives, Zach’s passion for improving the building lifecycle drives the vision and energy behind Layer — a multi-platform app and Revit add-in that makes it easy for architects and engineers to connect rich building data to BIM. Zach speaks regularly about BIM and complex building data, including at the APT International Conferences, AEC Tech Symposium, AIA National Conference on Architecture and BILT Digital Week.

📍 Show Links:

Learn more about Layer

See what Layer is up to on LinkedIn

Read The Next Normal in Construction McKinsey Report