Voices of Design Leadership. Ken Sanders

work in the most value-driven way for our clients in each and every instance. And that’s good.

      KS: One last question. You were born in Switzerland and came to the US as a young child. Do you still retain cultural connections to that region of the world, to your birthplace, that inspire or influence you? Do you still have family there?

      PH: I do. My mother is Swiss American. She was born in Switzerland and is a dual citizen. And her brother still lives in Lausanne, in the French part of Switzerland. I was born in Lugano, the Italian part of Switzerland. And that’s because my father was a musician. He was an orchestral conductor and he lived central in Europe because they would go to Austria one week or France another week to do orchestral concerts.

      Switzerland’s an amazing country. If I’d been born in a less amazing country, maybe I wouldn’t have these warm feelings, but it’s kind of easy to like Switzerland. There are many things that symbolize the country which I like. Because of that, perhaps, I’ve taken on some of Switzerland’s ethos. I like being peaceful, I quite like structure, and I’m always on time.

      And people say, “You’re so Swiss, Phil.” You know, being on time I think matters. I think being neutral is good for people in management roles. I’ve learned that in my job, I have to often mediate between different groups. Even in a firm that is very aligned, there still are different personalities on different sides, and I just basically believe there’s truth and good in every perspective.

      And also, life should have fun in it. I love to ski and be outdoors and hike and those kinds of things. Switzerland is an amazing country because you can be in Geneva one day, and that afternoon you can go swimming in the lake or you can go mountain biking, all in one day. So, there’s lifestyle issues as well. Who knows? Maybe one day I’ll retire to Switzerland.

      KS: Phil, I can’t thank you enough. This has been a great conversation. Great to see you again!

      Notes

      1 1 Hugh Hochberg is a Principal with The Coxe Group, a multi-discipline management consulting firm focused on architecture, engineering, and other design professions.

      2 2 Brad Perkins is a founding partner of Perkins Eastman, an architecture, interior design, urban design, planning, landscape architecture and project management firm headquartered in New York.

      3 3 The Capulets and Montagues are the two families featured in the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. The Capulets believed in showcasing their wealth and power, while the Montagues in comparison were humble and reserved.