Architect and Interior Designer Lauren Rottet pays tribute
to Women’s History Month
Rottet’s ongoing commitment to her profession is female-forward
Lauren Rottet, FAIA, FIIDA, internationally celebrated architect, designer, and founding principal/president and owner of Rottet Studio, acknowledges Women’s History Month, and her continuing commitment to the design industry and to women who create public and private spaces.
A WBE-certified business, Rottet Studio occupies a unique place in the industry – over 60% of their full-time staff are female. Rottet is also the first woman in history to be elevated to Fellow status, the highest membership honor, by both the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and International Interior Design Association (IIDA). In the past two decades, Rottet has broken new ground with award-winning furniture, office, workplace, and hospitality design. Her firm’s output totals more than 65 million sq. ft. of built design.
“I was raised by a father who told me that there wouldn’t be a difference between men and women in my generation, and I needed a career so that I wouldn’t need to rely on anybody else.” This is how Rottet described her decision to study architecture, after forgoing a career in medicine. “Fewer than 10 percent of women graduated in my class, but I didn’t really think consciously about being a woman in architecture. I never really thought about it as a male field,” she adds.
“I think probably the best career advice I ever received, was just to listen. You want to immediately come up with a solution or an idea, and instantly respond, but I think if you sit back and listen to the parameters,
to what the client wants, what the surroundings tell you about a project, I think that’s probably the most helpful professional advice one can give.”
“They always say, ‘Hire your replacement, because then you can do bigger and better things,’” she says about the hiring and mentoring process. “The key to being a good mentor is recognizing when you can’t do it all by yourself, and that you have to teach someone else how to do it. The education of our staff, and of our clients is absolutely key.”
