022 REPORTER
PROFILE
Matt Jackson
FX catches up with Matt Jackson one year after he took over as CEO of BDG architecture + design, discussing everything from his origins in the industry, his first steps on his career ladder, and what he now intends for the future as he brings more than two decades of experience at different practices to his new leadership role
WORDS BY EMILY MARTIN
MARCH WILL mark the one-year anniversary for Matt Jackson as CEO of BDG architecture + design, taking over from Gill Parker who left after an impressive 25 years with the practice. From first joining BDG as a graduate in Bristol, and then re-joining BDG as director of workplace some six years ago at its South Bank location, Jackson has more than 20 years industry experience and finds himself at the top of his career at a practice, which he says, is one of the most exciting places he’s ever worked. From taking those tentative first steps as a graduate to leading teams both in London and New York, Jackson talks about the importance of learning, regardless of level, and how team work really does make the dream work.
Graduating from a specialist design college in Maidenhead in the early 1990s, Jackson and his peers found work hard to come by. He entered various competitions, with one awarding him with an accolade; a needed boost for his portfolio that helped stand him out from the swathe of junior design applicants for the few vacancies going. With this, he landed his first graduate job at BDG in his hometown of Bristol. ‘I spent a couple of years down there;
very exciting times to be in Bristol for a start because it was, you know, it’s a very musical city, a cultural city with lots going on’, says Jackson. ‘But I learned a lot [and got to experience] what real work is about and, from my experience, every time we take on a graduate, I know that graduate probably won’t really know what the real world of work is because college is very different.’ Working as part of a small team of five people, Jackson was shown the ropes during a less digital time. There were more sticking materials on board and taking huge portfolios to client presentations. He thrived in this muti-role workplace, absorbing as much as he
could from the experience. A keen learner, Jackson knew a time to move on would come. ‘I knew that if I was [to] really accelerate my learning, I’d have to try and come to London and work for one of the big companies where you have the really big budget projects,’ he says. ‘Back then London was still very much a centre of design, and all the big companies were doing work out of London after supporting the regional cities. So, I knew that I had to do it and came up [to London] with no job to really go to. It was quite a gamble.’ He worked at MCM Architecture for 15
years, describing it as a ‘career milestone’ which delivered retail projects and award- winning legal practices. Joining as a junior designer, he left as design director. He then took a job at Gensler.
‘I learned so much about how design and business work together and did some fantastic projects,’ says Jackson about his time with Gensler. The role allowed him to expand his knowledge within the business of architecture in a practice with great resources. ‘I mean, I’ve never worked in a business that was about 4,500 people globally, highly connected and had an amazing amount of data and research,’ he continues. ‘I picked up different ways of doing things and every design business has different strengths and there were so many things that I could take forward.’ He stayed at the practice for six years, but
a move back to a business with a workplace focus was something he was ultimately seeking, describing it as being his core area and strength. Meeting different companies at a time, he recalls the moment he came to BDG: ‘I just walked into the BDG studio down here on the South Bank: there was cool music playing, I think a dog walked up to me and it felt like it was full of life. I smiled straight away, and I thought “what a great entrance to this
Right Matt Jackson, CEO of BDG architecture + design
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