DALLAS – H. Ralph Hawkins, FAIA, FACHA, LEED AP,current chairman, president and CEO, named Dan Noble FAIA, FACHA, LEED AP, his successor as president and CEO, effective January 1, 2014. Noble will serve in this role for HKS, Inc., one of the top six architectural/engineering firms. Hawkins will continue to serve the firm as chairman for the transition.
“This leadership transition has been part of an eight-year plan,” said Hawkins. “When selecting the next president, I looked for someone who reflects our HKS values, has extensive success designing and managing projects, possesses good people skills and demonstrates a level of authentic, servant leadership. My selection of Dan Noble was based on these criteria, and more.”
As president and CEO, Noble’s responsibilities will include directing the 28-office, 1,000-person firm’s administrative, financial, management and strategic planning services. Under his leadership, the firm will continue to be a global leader, providing the highest level of professional design services, technical expertise and business performance to continue to create environments that enhance the human experience.
Noble, a 32-year veteran of the design industry, is a widely recognized international leader in the practice of architecture; a sought-after designer, planner, educator and practitioner both nationally and internationally; and a thought leader on conceptual design, evidence-based design and healing environments.
Noble has collaborated with nationally and internationally prominent architectural, research, strategic and healthcare consulting firms. He has been responsible for more than 125 projects representing more than 30 million square feet, 10,000 beds and over $5 billion in construction cost – working with some of the world’s most prestigious clients such as Emory Health, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Hadassah Medical Center of Jerusalem, University of Miami, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Sanford Health, RadioShack, Fina and JC Penney. His projects have received multiple awards from associations and publications.
Noble is dedicated to excellence in the architectural industry. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Architects (ACHA). He is the immediate past president of the AIA Academy of Architecture for Health (AAH) and currently sits on the national boards of the ACHA and the AIA/AAH – the only person serving on both boards. Noble has demonstrated leadership on a national level, creating and developing the national AIA/AAH Design Awards as well as developing the AIA Dallas Art by Architects event, which has grown into Architects’ Week including Retrospect and other events.
A writer and speaker, Noble represents HKS speaking worldwide on topics of conceptual and evidence-based design, innovation and the direction the design and construction industry is heading. He lectures throughout the U.S. and has published numerous articles on many additional design-related issues. In addition, he participates on national and local design award juries and contributes as a guest critic and lecturer with many universities.
He also is a devoted community advocate. He helped develop the HKS Design Fellowship, HKS Green Week and other community initiatives. He currently is working with The University of Texas at Arlington to provide a collaborative architectural studio in the firm’s Dallas headquarters.
Noble joined HKS in 1983. Beginning as an intern architect, he moved up the ranks through the commercial and healthcare design studios. In 2001, he was elected a principal and shareholder. In 2009, he was elected to the HKS Executive Committee. He served as the director of design for the entire firm from 2001 through 2013.
“His leadership as director of design has been exemplary in terms of emphasizing design in our practice,” said Hawkins. “During his tenure, HKS has garnered more AIA design awards than any other design department leader in the history of our firm. In addition, he has actively shaped the firm through his participation on the HKS Executive Committee and Management Council.”
Noble earned a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from North Dakota State University. He was honored by the North Dakota State University Alumni Association with the 2010 Alumni Achievement Award. He and his wife, Ann, have two children and live in Dallas.
Stouffer succeeds Beale as director of healthcare practice
In other news, Craig Beale, FAIA, FACHA, FACHE, has named Jeff Stouffer, AIA, his successor as director of HKS’s healthcare practice, effective January 1, 2014. Beale, who has served as director for the past 12 years, will continue to lead the firm as part of its four-person Executive Committee and oversee its international healthcare practice.
As director of the healthcare practice, Stouffer’s responsibilities include directing group’s administrative, financial, management and strategic planning. Under his leadership, the firm will continue to be aglobal leader in professional healthcare design services, providing the highest level of services, design, technical expertise and business performance to continue to create environments that enhance the human experience.
As the practice leader for academic and pediatric health facilities, Stouffer has been responsible for master planning, programming and design of regional and national projects totaling over $10 billion in construction. By integrating Lean process improvement principles, applied in-house research and lessons learned from past projects our team’s designs maximize the value of our clients’ facility assets, raise patient/staff satisfaction and help improve patient outcomes.
HKS, Inc. is a leading architectural design firm ranked among the top six architectural engineering firms, according to Building Design+Construction magazine. Since its founding in 1939, HKS has completed construction projects totaling more than $75 billion in more than 1,263 cities located in 80 countries. The firm operates from 28 offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.hksinc.com or contact Trish Martineck at tmartineck@hksinc.com.
Related Stories
Resiliency | Aug 19, 2021
White paper outlines cost-effective flood protection approaches for building owners
A new white paper from Walter P Moore offers an in-depth review of the flood protection process and proven approaches.
Urban Planning | Aug 16, 2021
Building with bikes in mind: How cities can capitalize on the pandemic’s ‘bike boom’ to make streets safer for everyone
Since early 2020, Americans have been forced to sequester themselves in their homes with outdoor activities, in most cases, being the sole respite for social distancing. And many of people are going back to the basics with a quintessential outdoor activity: biking. Bike sales absolutely skyrocketed during the pandemic, growing by 69% in 2020.
Senior Living Design | Aug 13, 2021
Designing with dignity for senior living, with Mike Rodebaugh, LEO A DALY
In this exclusive interview for HorizonTV, Mike Rodebaugh, AIA, Senior Living Sector Leader with LEO A DALY, describes how his firm applies "hospitality magic tricks" in its senior living communities, using design to lend dignity to residents, staff, and residents' families and social circles.
Architects | Aug 5, 2021
Lord Aeck Sargent's post-Katerra future, with LAS President Joe Greco
After three years under the ownership of Katerra, which closed its North American operations last May, the architecture firm Lord Aeck Sargent is re-establishing itself as an independent company, with an eye toward strengthening its eight practices and regional presence in the U.S.
Architects | Aug 5, 2021
Lord Aeck Sargent's post-Katerra future, with LAS President Joe Greco
After three years under the ownership of Katerra, which closed its North American operations last May, the architecture firm Lord Aeck Sargent is re-establishing itself as an independent company, with an eye toward strengthening its eight practices and regional presence in the U.S.
Office Buildings | Aug 4, 2021
‘Lighthouse’ office tower will be new headquarters for A2A in Milan
The tower, dubbed Torre Faro, reimagines the company’s office spaces to adapt to people’s ever-changing needs at work.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 30, 2021
Multifamily housing for a post-COVID world
A trio of multifamily design experts presents concepts for post-pandemic apartment developments.
Architects | Jul 23, 2021
NCARB releases demographic breakdown of licensing exam pass rates
The organization is launching initiatives to figure out what’s causing disparities among candidate groups.
Wood | Jul 16, 2021
The future of mass timber construction, with Swinerton's Timberlab
In this exclusive for HorizonTV, BD+C's John Caulfield sat down with three Timberlab leaders to discuss the launch of the firm and what factors will lead to greater mass timber demand.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 15, 2021
Economic rebound leads to record increase in multifamily asking rents
Across the country, multifamily rents have skyrocketed. Year-over-year rents are up by double digits in nine of the top 30 markets, while national YoY rent growth is up 6.3%. Emerging from the pandemic, a perfect storm of migration, enhanced government stimulus and a hot housing market, among other factors, has enabled this extremely strong growth.