General Questions How much does it cost to join The 1%?
The 1% is a free program open to design firms and registration takes no more than 1% of your day, that’s roughly 4.8 minutes. Click here to register.
What constitutes pro bono service?
The 1% program defines pro bono service to be professional service rendered: a) without expectation of a fee, or b) with a significant reduction in fees for organizations that support stronger communities. Pro bono service can take many forms; it is any contribution of designers’ knowledge, skills, judgment, and creativity that serves the public good.
What if our firm already does pro bono work?
That’s great! The 1% program does not ask for pledged hours above and beyond what you are already doing; instead, it’s an organized program to promote the good work that is already being done by architecture firms.
If your firm is already doing pro bono work, we encourage you to add your hourly contribution to the pool by becoming a registered participant, post your completed pro bono projects to the website, and let us know if there is anything else we can do to help you promote your work. You can register for The 1% program by clicking here . What is the role of Public Architecture once we have registered?
Once you are registered, Public Architecture is here to promote the good work being done by your firm and help provide you some supporting resources to help improve your firm’s pro bono efforts. All firms receive a welcome kit, an introductory call, and a yearly call making sure you have no outstanding questions about the program and are posting and promoting your pro bono projects through the website's Project Gallery .
Is this an annual pledge?
Yes, the commitment we ask from firms, and the tallied hours on the participants page is an annual pledge to fulfill pro bono work each year.
Does each person have to fulfill 20 hours of pro bono work individually to meet the firm’s pledge?
While we encourage full firm participation from all individuals in the office, we are all too happy to be inclusive of the various studio models out there regarding pro bono projects in offices. The firm’s committed hours goes towards their overall pledge to do pro bono work. That pledge can be filled individually on a per person basis, or collectively by a team working on a pro bono project.
For Example: 50 Person Firm
1% Pledge= 50 x (20 hours per person) = 1,000 annual pledge to The 1%
Can be fulfilled by:
50 employees each contributing 20 hours
A team working on a pro bono project contributing a total of 1,000 hours
A single individual working part-time contributing a total of 1,000 hours
How are pledges tracked (tracked?) or verified?
Total hours pledged from all participants are tracked on the website. That said, this entire program depends on the good will of firms and individual professionals to see that their firm’s pledge is fulfilled. Barring any obvious cases of misrepresentation, we will rely on each participating firm to track its own hours and progress. In time, we hope to be in a position to share best practices related to internal documentation of pro bono activities.
Should employees be compensated for the time they spend on pro bono work?
The 1% program can only hope and recommend that firms compensate their employees for at least 20 hours of work annually. A number of firms are even more generous – 100 hours in the case of Oglesby Greene (Dallas, TX) for example.
Can individual architecture professionals pledge?
At this time, The 1% program focuses on firms rather than individuals in recognition of the fact that the policies and practices of firms are key to the ability and willingness of individual employees to undertake pro bono work.
Do only registered architect members of the firm count towards the pledge?
Definitely not, all employees within a firm are encouraged to be an equal participant in the firms pledge towards The 1% program.
Can we use your logo on our website and in our marketing materials?
All registered participants of The 1% program have permission to use the logo in all marketing and published material, both online and in print. Please email us your preferred digital format for the logo and we will email to logo to you for your use.
How is The 1% program of Public Architecture funded?
The 1% program of Public Architecture is made possible thanks to the crucial support and generosity of a variety of organizations, our participating firms, and individuals. We continue to look to add new partners, and would welcome all ideas for that. Please see our Supporters page for more information
Pro Bono Projects
Who are appropriate clients to receive pro bono services?
The 1% focuses primarily on 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations as appropriate pro bono clients. These organizations have been relieved of their tax burden in recognition of the societal benefit they provide.
If a firm pledges hours, is it that firm’s responsibility to go out and find pro bono projects?
Yes, but we are here to help. In October of 2007, The 1% launched our matching portal, allowing nonprofits in need of design services to post their projects allowing architects to find potential pro bono projects.
What is the liability associated with pro bono project?
The liability associated with pro bono projects is equal to the level associated with full fee projects. We have additional resources including a rider for pro bono services that can be attached to contract documents for our 1% participants. To have full access to these resources you must be registered, for free, with the program by clicking here .
How do we explain what pro bono services our firm offers to potential nonprofit clients?
Similar to a firm’s for profit clients, most nonprofits will go through a learning curve learning about the variety of services an architect can offer, the value of those services, and the firm’s ability to currently provide the services they need as a client. It is equally important for firms to spend this time up front with their nonprofit clients making and setting expectations for the project.
How do I look for nonprofits on your website to see if I want to work on a potential project?
Access to The 1% current nonprofit project listing requires registration. Once registered and logged in, there’s an additional dropdown menu that appears next to the nonprofit one titled “My 1%” from which you can search for projects. To register for free, click here.
What is the role of Public Architecture during the course of a project and upon completion of a project?
Public Architecture works with some nonprofits to help scope the projects prior to posting on The 1% program. We are currently developing a system to be in contact with both firm and nonprofit participants at various points within the project to see if things are progressing along as planned.
What if we do not want to be a part of the matching process?
We realize that a lot of our participants are already doing their part to fulfill their pledges to The 1% even prior to registering with the program. We are currently working with our Web Developers to give firms the option to opt-out of the matching process should they choose to do so.
Should we have a contract with a pro bono client?
While it is not required or monitored by Public Architecture, we do recommend that participating firms establish a contract with a nonprofit client. At a very minimum the contract can help establish the scope of work associated with the pro bono project. We have additional resources including a rider for pro bono services that can be attached to contract documents for our 1% participants. To have full access to these resources you must be registered, for free, with the program at the following link.
Why should we track our hours and submit invoices to pro bono clients?
While it is not required, nor is it monitored by Public Architecture, we highly recommend that firms track hours and submit invoices to pro bono clients for several reasons whether or not a reduced fee or fee free arrangement is decided upon. Invoices and hours spent on the project help a nonprofit realize the design value that is going into each individual project. Likewise we find it helpful for firms to track pro bono projects as they would their full fee projects. Not only does this show the firm’s commitment to pro bono work, we’ve also found that it helps to encourage consistent practice of pro bono work within the firm.
If we provide some services at no cost, can we charge for later services?
It goes without saying when working with any client that good work generally leads to more work. As with all clients, it is important to clarify the original scope of services up front, and make sure those are fulfilled in full before starting new work for later services at a different rate.
Still have questions?
Email info@theonepercent.org. |
