International design, architecture, engineering and planning firm HOK has recently announced its plan to acquire 360 Architecture, a firm specializing in sports facility design. With HOK’s global influence and 360 Architecture’s expertise, the acquisition could bring about significant advances in sports facility design and expand the market reach for each firm. When it comes to the business of architecture, acquisitions such as this often enable large corporate firms to take on a wider variety of projects, giving them a competitive edge against famous designer names in the industry. But what else can we learn from the growth of the world's largest firms?
In recent years the number of corporate mergers has increased, with 2011 and 2012 setting domestic and international records for the industry according to A/E/C management consulting firm Morrissey Goodale. [5] This may suggest a growing trend in recent years for architecture firms to take advantage of mergers, acquisitions, and strategic partnerships to sustain growth in a volatile global economy and manage increasingly complex international projects. This trend may be further evidenced by the AIA Foresight Report for 2014, which states: “More than half of the respondents of the AIA Work-on-the-Boards survey felt that merger and acquisition activity among architecture firms would increase.” [1]
