What Is Perkins&Will? Understanding a Major Global Architecture Firm

If you're researching architecture firms—whether you're a business seeking design services, a job seeker exploring career options, or simply curious about how large professional firms operate—you may have encountered Perkins&Will. This article explains what the firm is, how it works, and the context you need to understand its role in the architecture industry.

Who Is Perkins&Will? 🏢

Perkins&Will is one of the world's largest and most established architecture and design firms. Founded in 1935, it has grown into a global practice with multiple offices across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions. The firm operates as an employee-owned company, meaning staff members hold ownership stakes in the business—a structure that shapes how many large professional firms are governed.

The firm's name reflects its origins: William Pereira and Charles Perkins founded the practice, and the partnership name persisted as the company evolved and expanded far beyond its two founders.

Scale and Scope

Perkins&Will is classified among the largest architecture firms by revenue and headcount in the United States and globally. This scale matters because it affects what kinds of projects the firm pursues, how it's organized, and what services it can deliver.

Large architecture firms like Perkins&Will typically handle:

• Major institutional projects (universities, hospitals, civic buildings)
• Large commercial developments (office towers, mixed-use complexes)
• Master planning (entire campuses, urban districts, neighborhoods)
• Workplace strategy and design
• Sustainability and research-driven design

The firm also operates multiple specialized divisions and studios focused on different building types and services—a structure common in firms of this size.

How Architecture Firms Like Perkins&Will Work 📋

Understanding Perkins&Will means understanding how large architecture practices operate, since the model shapes how they serve clients.

Service Model

Architecture firms generate revenue by selling design and planning services to clients who need buildings or spaces created or renovated. Unlike a retail store that sells products, an architecture firm sells expertise, drawings, coordination, and oversight.

Clients typically hire a firm for:

• Concept and schematic design (early-stage planning and visualization)
• Design development (detailed refinement of the concept)
• Construction documents (detailed drawings builders use to construct the project)
• Project management and administration (oversight during construction)
• Specialized consulting (sustainability strategy, workplace planning, research, etc.)

Project Types and Market Focus

Large firms like Perkins&Will often specialize in certain market sectors—categories of building types where they've developed deep expertise. Common sectors include:

• Education (K-12 schools, universities, research facilities)
• Healthcare (hospitals, clinics, medical research buildings)
• Corporate and workplace (office design, headquarters, workspaces)
• Civic and cultural (libraries, government buildings, museums)
• Sustainability and resilience (green building, climate-adaptive design)

The firm's actual portfolio and emphasis may differ from this general framework—that depends on their current business strategy and client base.

Organizational Structure

A firm of Perkins&Will's size typically operates with:

• Multiple geographic offices (each serving regional markets)
• Practice groups or studios (organized by building type or service)
• Cross-disciplinary teams (architects, engineers, planners, sustainability specialists, interior designers)
• Leadership and management layers (partners, principals, project directors, and staff)

This structure allows the firm to pursue large, complex projects that require deep expertise and significant staffing.

Why Size and Reputation Matter 🎯

If you're considering working with Perkins&Will or evaluating it against other firms, size brings both advantages and considerations.

Advantages of a Large Firm

• Experience and depth: Large firms have completed hundreds or thousands of projects, giving them extensive knowledge of what works and what doesn't
• Specialized expertise: They can assemble teams with deep focus on specific building types or challenges (healthcare design, for example)
• Resources and capacity: They can handle complex, multi-year projects requiring large teams and sustained coordination
• Regional reach: Multiple offices mean they can serve clients across different geographic markets
• Research and innovation: Larger practices often invest in research, testing new approaches to design problems

Considerations

• Scale and responsiveness: In a large organization, communication can be more layered; the relationship may feel more institutional than in a small firm where you work directly with founders
• Project fit: Large firms typically pursue projects of significant scope and budget; very small or specialized projects might not be their focus
• Cost structure: The overhead and staffing of a large firm generally results in higher service fees than smaller practices, though project scope and complexity also drive costs

How Perkins&Will Differs From Other Architecture Firms

The architecture industry includes firms of many different sizes and specializations. Where Perkins&Will sits on this spectrum:

None of these categories is inherently "better"—the right fit depends entirely on your project type, budget, geographic location, and specific needs.

What Perkins&Will Actually Does (And Doesn't)

A critical distinction: Perkins&Will is an architecture and design firm, not a retail store or service that directly employs building users.

• What it does: Creates designs, produces drawings, leads teams, advises clients on building strategy and planning
• What it doesn't do: Build buildings itself, employ the contractors who construct projects, or operate the finished buildings

The firm's value is in knowledge, creativity, coordination, and oversight—services that clients (typically institutional, corporate, or real estate development entities) purchase.

How to Learn More About Perkins&Will's Specific Work

If you're researching the firm for a particular reason—whether as a potential client, employee, or industry observer—here's what you can examine:

• Portfolio: Most firms display completed projects online, showing building types, locations, and outcomes
• Market focus: Review recent projects to see which sectors and project types the firm is actively pursuing
• Geographic presence: Check where offices are located and whether the firm serves your region
• Thought leadership: Architects and firms often publish articles, case studies, and research that reveal their design philosophy
• Client base: Public projects (schools, universities, government buildings) often have documented information about who designed them

The Bottom Line

Perkins&Will is a large, established architecture and design firm with global reach, deep expertise in specific building types, and significant capacity to manage complex projects. Like all architecture firms, it sells professional design and planning services rather than products or direct consumer services.

Whether Perkins&Will is the right fit for a project, career opportunity, or other consideration depends entirely on your specific circumstances—your project type, location, budget, timeline, and the particular expertise you need. The landscape of architecture firms is diverse; understanding how firms differ in size, specialization, and approach helps you evaluate whether a particular firm aligns with what you're seeking.