Office management provides an overall framework within which individual projects are commissioned, designed and completed.
Office management involves the allocation and financing of resources, principally premises, trained staff and computer systems, and on establishing and charging appropriate fees for the services rendered.
The essence of architectural management is to ensure that work on a project is cost-effective, to achieve a balance between profitability and design quality.
Standard management techniques and tools, borrowed mainly from repetitive industrial processes, have not always fitted comfortably with the image of the architect as a creative individual, rather than a professional member of a business team.
Project management is increasingly a role played by an independent consultant, especially during the construction phase.