175: Philippe Saad, Principal @ DiMella Shaffer
Design Development
Ask Why: Core Design Advice
Philippe gives his best advice: continually ask why to reach root needs and better design solutions.
In 2008, Philippe Saad was handed his first senior living project. It wasn't the market sector he envisioned pursuing, but he had to take the opportunity in light of the great financial crisis. This decision unexpectedly became the foundation of everything he's built since.
Seventeen years later, Philippe is not only a Principal at DiMella Shaffer; he's also the Co-Founder of Project Q Communities and a Founding Board Member of LGBTQ Senior Housing, two nonprofits creating homes for LGBTQ+ older adults in Greater Boston. Philippe's works include The Pryde, The Baldwin, Orchard Cove, and many more.
Philippe co-chairs the Design for Aging Committee at the Boston Society for Architecture, sits on the board of Environments for Aging, and is a Director of SAGE (Society for the Advancement of Gerontological Environments). He has spoken at LeadingAge national conferences, the Global Ageing Network, and the University of Toronto School of Architecture.
Inside this week's episode:
- How Philippe found his way into senior living: the market's stigma, his first project, and how his father's experience in independent living changed his perspective on aging.
- What the transition to firm leadership looks like: delegation, partnership, growing talent from within, and the responsibilities that come with the role.
- How growing up in Lebanon, losing three homes during the civil war, and building a life as an immigrant in Boston shaped Philippe's understanding of community and design.
- The Pryde: a surplus Boston school becoming one of the first LGBTQ+ senior housing developments in New England.
- DiMella Shaffer: how a firm of 60 operates across multiple market sectors, why interdisciplinary practice is a differentiator, and what the next generation of leadership looks like.
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