Margi Kaminski

“Forge meaningful relationships with colleagues and clients as this is a significant currency of your career.”

#WomenWhoBuild meet Margi Kaminksi,

Margi is the co-director of CannonDesign’s Healthcare Interiors Practice. She brings more than 30 years of experience and expertise to the firm where she supports market initiatives and strategy, focuses on business growth and client engagement, and leads a thirty eight person national team. Prior to joining CannonDesign, Margi had her own business , which she sold and helped grow into the largest independent Senior Living Design firm in the Midwest.

ArchNative sat down with Margi (virtually of course) to discuss her current role, how she balances work and family life, how she sees health design evolving in the future, and what advice she has for women entering the field.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey in Design? What made you decide to pursue it as a career choice? 

In my senior year of high school I took an elective class that had an interior design component to it.  I can still remember the studio apartment that I designed, complete with a hand-drawn rendering & floor plan.  It was then that I was hooked!  At the time I had a swimming scholarship to go to Purdue University to study nutrition. So I did an about-face and changed the trajectory of my life.  I gave up my scholarship and went to The Harrington Institute, here in Chicago.  It was really one of the best decisions of my life!  I poured myself into the world of design & architecture and graduated at the top of my class three years later.  My next move was starting my own business so that I could have the flexibility necessary to balance a career and family.  Back then there was very little the corporate world had to offer for work-life balance so I created my own.  It was a difficult road but my husband was extremely supportive.  It was during those years that I realized that there is no perfect balance.  Sometimes work takes up more time than anticipated and sometimes family situations take the forefront. It’s a juggling act, so flexibility is key.

 You are currently a Co-Director for the Health Interiors Practice at Cannon Design. Can you tell us a little bit about your role and what it entails? 

Margi’s Chicago Health Interiors Team

Yes, I lead a thirty eight person national practice with my partner, Jocelyn Stroupe, who is an icon in health interior design.  We are largely responsible for practice strategy, business development, client engagement and staff development.  This, in addition to leading & managing projects!  It’s a wonderful role that challenges me every day.  I am very blessed to work with amazingly creative people on projects that push the boundaries of design excellence.  Add to that the client encounters that stretch my perspective of healthcare delivery . . . I truly have a fantastic job!

What does your day to day look like? 

Busy!  I get up around five so that I have time for prayer and yoga to really center myself mentally and physically for the day ahead.  I average about 5 meetings per day but since working from home a year ago it’s more like back-to-back meetings all day.  Every day I will have some staffing as I am involved in projects across the firmwide health practice.  Business development is on-going as there are always pursuits, RFP’s and interviews that need to addressed.  About 65% of my time is spent on projects.  I am very involved at the front-end with visioning and design strategy.  I am particularly interested in project management and Lean processes.  So I am looking at scope, schedule and process to make sure they are aligned.  My in-between time is spent breaking for a healthy snack or lunch.  I also try to get some walking in if only on the way to and from work as part of my commute.  After dinner, I typically spend a couple of hours returning email.

Margi and her husband attending the ASID Illinois Chapter Celebration of Design Awards 

How do you approach each project you work on? 

I am fairly process oriented so I like to start with understanding the scope, schedule and our delivery for each project.  Equally important is understanding the client’s roles and expectations.  But the most important consideration is the perspective of the people that will be using the space, Patients, Residents, Staff and Visitors; to weave their experience into the design.  This really factors into what we, at CannonDesign, call Living-Centered Design; a wholistic approach that challenges us to view each design problem through the lens of a broader ecosystem; people, business, community, society and environment.

What has been your favorite project to work on and why? 

Northwestern Medicine PEDS Clinic – Glen Ellyn, IL

It’s always the one that I am working on now  I have been working on the Veteran’s Home of California – Yountville for almost a year now and I love it! This project has more heart and soul than anything that I have worked on in my 30+ year career.  We worked together with our design-build partner as part of a design competition and captured the prize at the end of 2020.  It was intense, challenging and all-consuming at times.  Our submission was over 1000+ pages plus a video fly-through of our proposed building. At the interview we presented the design and ended with a video of all the veteran sub-contractors that contributed to the project, including a 95-year-old WWII vet!  There wasn’t a dry-eye in the room when it was over. So now the work continues for the next 2 ½ years until ribbon-cutting . . .

What has been the biggest challenge of your career? What has been the biggest triumph? 

The biggest challenge was balancing work and family life with my husband and four children.  I mentioned that I started my own business which I owned for 15 years.  The business was successful and I needed to grow.  That growth came in the form of an acquisition.  I sold my business and stayed with the firm for five more years to see it grow to the largest independent Senior Living Design firm in the Midwest. I then took a few years off to focus on my family as my children were all launching into adulthood.  After four years, I returned to design. My first day back was my youngest son’s first day of college.  So I went from being in a small firm for twenty years to being a part of a 1000+ person firm!  I worked my way up from being a senior designer to Vice President and Director of Interiors for Health Sciences.   I never dreamed this would be my career path but it has been the most exciting time.  And now at CannonDesign I have this incredible role that is the culmination of my life work.

How do you ensure that you are always growing in your role/position? 

Penn State Health –Hampden Medical Center

By asking questions, being curious and doing new things that are outside of my comfort zone.

How do you see health design evolving in the future?

So glad you used the term “health design” because the industry is really focusing on health right now.  One example is the Healthier Hospitals Initiative that is a coalition of  health care providers that are concerned about the health, safety and sustainability of their environments. It’s important to note that Hospitals will continue to treat the very sick; acute care.  But more care will be delivered in outpatient settings and even at home.  So technology will play an important role in how care is delivered, especially for chronic conditions.  And after this past pandemic year, we are also learning that flexibility is key.  That said, we have more clients asking us about modular design; pods, structural elements, demountable partitions, casegoods, etc.

What advice do you have for women entering the field? 

Be curious and BE CONFIDENT!  You have the knowledge, technology and resources to create designs that impact lives . . . the rest is up to you!  Forge meaningful relationships with colleagues and clients as this is a significant currency of your career.