Celebrating 10 Years with Ben Franceschi
MMA Principal Ben Franceschi just recently celebrated his 10th anniversary with the firm. We checked in with him to see what has changed, what has stayed the same, and what he hopes to see in the future!
1. When you think back to your first days at MMA, what stands out most?
The office had just recently moved from Tom’s place into our current space. What stands out is how I could tell a nucleus of something special had begun. You could sense this company was onto something. It was in the air.
2. How has your role evolved over the past 10 years?
In some ways, not much. I find myself thinking about design and actively collaborating with people in the same way. With that said, we’re a larger company, and we do a lot more projects. So I serve in a supporting manager role for lots of projects.
3. What project or moment best represents your journey here?
I’ve gotten to work on so many projects. I think the early design work for the Dune Forest Retreat captures something I’ve been privileged to experience a lot here at MMA, where the final result is very close to sketches we came up with at the beginning. That kind of freshness is key to successful projects. Projects that are over analyzed often risk feeling tired or confused. Projects where the central idea was strong enough from day one survive easily from start to finish because they have a life of their own that everyone can feel and is excited to be a part of.
4. What has been the most rewarding part of being a principal at MMA?
Hands down it’s working with smart, sensitive, and talented people who care - on our team and with our clients.
5. What’s something about MMA that hasn’t changed?
Our culture is much the same from when I started.
6. How would you describe your leadership style today compared to 5 years ago when you became a Principal?
My leadership style is always evolving. I always try to focus on listening. Paying close attention and waiting to decide about your observations tends to be extremely fruitful.
7. What do you believe makes MMA a special place to work?
The people and their vision, and what they care about.
8. What excites you most about the future of MMA?
Continuing to be as authentic as possible. Having the privilege, more and more, to pass through some of the downsides of this industry, by setting the framework, goalposts, and context for our work ourselves.
9. What is something that people might not know about you?
Hmm... Perhaps how much I love doing mundane things. For example, I love washing dishes, sweeping the floor, or organizing our garage. I’m not sure why!
10. What’s something you hope to be saying when we check in at your 20th anniversary?
I think at that time I’ll be more excited than ever about our team and culture. More and more, we want our firm to be a place of active curiosity and experimentation, while getting sharper and sharper at delivering for our clients. We want to continue to blend the attributes of a think tank, an active creative studio, and a place where hard design problems are a joy to solve, and our clients feel sense of great care, and ease, simultaneously.