Matt and Joelle Rise to New Responsibility

That’s why we are delighted to announce the promotion of two of our fantastic team members, Matt O’Neill and Joelle Lim, to Junior Associate roles.

Matt and Joelle bring leadership, expertise and enthusiasm to Solari’s busy practice. From meeting daily design challenges to strategising efficient long-term project delivery, these two are forces to be reckoned with!

We chatted to Matt and Joelle about their new roles and their visions for the future.

What is the significance of taking on this Junior Associate role?

Joelle: As a graduate, it can feel like you should just be focussing on project work. To me, this promotion is an assurance that it is valuable to keep stepping up and helping out in a leadership role.

Matt: It’s an exciting opportunity. Solari is a great place to develop my work and collaborate with the strong team that we’ve got here.

What does your everyday workday look like?

Joelle: My previous title was Architectural Graduate, which normally means activities like assisting project leads and running projects. In response to the challenges of the last few years, my role has shifted into more leadership responsibilities and supporting the wider team.

Right now, I’m leading three jobs, working with a team of happy and enthusiastic people. I’ve also been working with James [our Director] around developing office processes to ensure that people have the right level of resources and support to work on their projects (i.e: How can we make it easier for people to run projects? How can we streamline processes around design, delivery and construction?).

Matt: Working at Solari is great because you have the opportunity to drive progress in areas that you’re interested in. For example, I do a lot of work with BIM (building information modelling) processes. It’s been great working to improve the way that we do our drawings, 3D modelling and other work in that technology space.

The other side of my work is developing internal systems to make it easier for everyone in the office to produce consistent and high-quality work.

What opportunities are you most excited about looking into the future?

Joelle: I’m finishing my architectural registration process at the end of September! Once that is put to bed, I would like to continue my focus on internal research and development to assist with ongoing challenges within the industry while continually supporting my team.

For example, there are a lot of challenges in the construction industry right now, especially with material supply shortages. How can we improve our processes and collaborate in that area to help our clients and stakeholders to achieve their goals? How do we use local government directives to facilitate higher density living and create better architectural outcomes?

One of the projects I’ve been working on has just gone through a challenging resource and building consent process. It’ll be very exciting and fulfilling to see something I’ve been working on actually get built!

Matt: I really like working in the social housing area. In New Zealand, there are more and more social housing providers coming forward that are looking to work in the medium-density residential space we specialise in. I’d like to continue enabling us to take on diverse developments from both private and social developers.

Congratulations, Matt and Joelle! We truly value your contributions to Solari and look forward to seeing your knowledge and experience grow in this new, exciting chapter for our practice.

If our workplace sounds like a good fit for you, please reach out. We currently have several vacancies to fill. To find out more, contact Catherine on +64 49 744 562 or emailing [email protected]