From Inquiry Chaos to Structured Project Coordination
The moment a vague architectural inquiry is transformed into a structured brief containing project type, site status, budget range, timeline, and current phase intent — before a principal ever takes a call. This is the Phase-Ready Brief.
Recommended starting point:Foundation Package
The Problem
Architecture firms don't struggle with creativity or technical skill — they struggle in the 'Context & Coordination Gap.' Inbound inquiries arrive vague ('We're thinking about building…'), incomplete (no site survey, no budget clarity), and misaligned (wrong project type, wrong phase, wrong timeline). Principals and senior architects spend enormous time acting as Human Translators — repeatedly clarifying scope, re-explaining process, and chasing missing documents instead of designing. As firms scale, the problem compounds: clients don't understand phases (Concept → SD → DD → CD), consultants aren't looped in cleanly, zoning and permitting questions flood inboxes, and administrative staff route messages manually with limited context. Without a system to capture Project DNA and Phase Intent at the point of entry, architecture firms scale friction, liability, and burnout — not leverage.
System Architecture
Meet Your New Team
Operator isn't just software. It's a verified swarm of specialized AI agents working in concert to run your operations.
Intake Specialist
Routing Manager
Engagement Lead
Policy Expert
System Logic: Inbound inquiry received via phone or web
Intake Specialist
Qualifies intent and gathers core requirements.
Policy Expert
Checks internal SOPs for case-specific compliance.
Routing Manager
Assigns to appropriate department with full context.
Engagement Lead
Schedules automated follow-up sequence.
Where Most Architecture Firms Start
Most architecture firms begin with the Foundation Package, which installs the core, private infrastructure required to run Operator locally — ensuring drawings, feasibility studies, budgets, and proprietary process knowledge stay on-premise.
What's Included
- Operator Node (Mac Studio) — on-prem runtime (as scoped)
- OperatorOS activated (control plane app)
- Core Stack (Lite) included — baseline intake → routing → handoff loop
- One core HQ (Chat / Intake HQ embedded on the firm website, or Voice HQ for firms handling phone-based inquiries or institutional clients)
What It Can Do
- Acknowledge 100% of inquiries 24/7 — capturing high-intent prospects researching after hours or during early feasibility stages
- Capture Project DNA: project type (Residential / Commercial / Institutional), site status (Owned / Under Contract / Researching), estimated budget range, timeline urgency, stakeholder role (Owner / Developer / PM / Institution)
- Identify Phase Intent: Feasibility / Concept, Schematic Design, Design Development, Construction Documents, Permitting / Advisory only
- Route Phase-Ready Summaries: deliver clean administrative briefs to the appropriate principal, PM, or business development lead
What it intentionally does NOT include: What it explicitly does NOT include: Design decisions or architectural recommendations. Code interpretation beyond documented policy retrieval. Stamping, permitting approval, or engineering judgments. Cost estimating or contractor selection. All professional judgment remains human-led.
Capability Expansion Path
HQ Pro applies phase and fit intelligence: phase-aware routing (concept inquiries to BD/Principal, CD-phase coordination to PM/Ops), fit filtering (flags out-of-scope budgets or project types), and stakeholder mapping (identifies who controls budget vs approvals, prevents late-stage 'surprise decision makers').
Senior architects protect design time while maintaining responsiveness.
The Core Stack shares memory and context:
Project continuity (client inquires months later, Operator remembers prior discussions). Friction detection (where prospects stall). Cross-channel integrity (chat, voice, email unified).
Custom Operator is designed for multi-office firms, large institutional practices, or design-build organizations requiring maximum governance and IP protection.
Policy & Standards RAG (SD deliverable lists, code consultant timing). Multi-project siloing. Audit-ready logs.
Every tier increases operational leverage — higher tiers add phase-aware routing, practice memory, and ultimately unified firm-wide coordination.
Outcomes (Modeled / Typical)
Practices deploying Operator may experience:
Outcomes vary by deployment level, but the system consistently shifts firms from inquiry chaos to structured project coordination.
Pricing Notes
Packages cap scope, not capability.
SCOPE BOUNDARY (Non-Negotiable): OperatorHQ supports administrative intake, coordination, and communication only. It improves clarity, speed, and operational leverage. It NEVER designs. It NEVER interprets code beyond documented policy. It NEVER replaces licensed professional judgment. All design and professional decisions remain human-led.
Practice Overlays
The following overlays address specific practice types within architecture. Each is additive to the core use case and explicitly scoped to administrative and workflow coordination.
Studio Type Overlay: Residential / Commercial / Institutional
OperatorHQ can be configured to recognize and route differently based on project type and client profile.
- Residential: Private homeowner communication patterns. Family decision-maker identification. Budget sensitivity awareness. Emphasis on design intent capture over technical specification. Permit timeline expectations for single-family or multi-family.
- Commercial: Developer and owner's rep routing. Lease-back and ROI-focused intake. Tenant improvement vs. ground-up distinction. Fast-track schedule awareness. Consultant coordination complexity flags.
- Institutional: RFP and RFQ intake tracking. Committee and board decision-maker mapping. Multi-phase campus planning awareness. Public funding and compliance documentation. Long-horizon project lifecycle support.
- Shared Infrastructure: All overlays run on the same on-premise hardware with project-type-specific routing and intake flows.
BIM-Heavy Firms Overlay
For firms with significant BIM (Building Information Modeling) investment, OperatorHQ can extend administrative coordination into BIM-adjacent workflows.
- Model Coordination Scheduling: Administrative scheduling for clash detection reviews, model update deadlines, and consultant coordination sessions. No model editing or design decisions.
- LOD (Level of Development) Awareness: Intake can capture expected LOD requirements and route accordingly to appropriate project managers.
- BIM Execution Plan Reference: Staff can query the firm's BIM standards and execution plan templates through the Policy & Standards RAG.
- Consultant Model Submission Tracking: Administrative tracking of when consultant models are due and received. No model validation or technical review.
- Scope Boundary: OperatorHQ tracks administrative BIM coordination only. It does NOT create, edit, validate, or issue BIM models.
Design-Build Firms Overlay
For integrated design-build practices, OperatorHQ can support the expanded coordination requirements between design and construction phases.
- Pre-Construction Intake: Captures budget, schedule, and owner requirements before design begins. Routes to appropriate design-build leads.
- GC / Trade Coordination (Admin): Administrative scheduling for bid reviews, subcontractor meetings, and value engineering sessions. No cost estimating or contractor selection.
- Design-Build Phasing Awareness: Distinguishes fast-track vs. traditional delivery. Routes inquiries based on current project phase.
- Owner Communication Unification: Single intake thread for owner communications that spans design and construction phases.
- RFI Administrative Routing: Routes incoming RFI-related inquiries to appropriate team members. Does NOT answer RFIs or provide technical responses.
- Scope Boundary: OperatorHQ supports administrative coordination across design-build phases. It does NOT estimate costs, select contractors, or make construction decisions.
All overlays are administrative enhancements. OperatorHQ does not design, stamp, estimate, or make licensed professional decisions. Design and construction decisions remain human-led.
Examples only. Capabilities vary by scope, data quality, and integrations. Not legal, medical, or financial advice.
Ready to Deploy?
See how OperatorHQ can work for your specific needs.