Hannah Funnell joining Architecture Social was more than a team announcement. It marked the point where the business started becoming a specialist recruitment team, not just Stephen carrying everything himself.
For candidates and practices, that matters. Architecture recruitment depends on judgement, context and follow-through. As the team grows, the standard has to scale too.
Why the original announcement mattered
The original post introduced Hannah Funnell as a key part of Architecture Social’s architecture recruitment work. It also reflected a bigger shift: moving from a founder-led platform into a more capable recruitment business.
Stephen had already worked with architecture professionals and practices including EPR Architects and Ackroyd Lowrie. The next challenge was building a team that could carry the same specialist understanding into more searches, more candidates and more client conversations.
Listen: Architecture Social and recruitment trust
This Architecture Social podcast appearance gives wider context on the business, recruitment approach and why trust matters in a specialist community.
Why team growth matters
A recruitment business can grow badly if it becomes noisy, generic or transactional. Architecture Social has to grow the other way: more capacity, but still specific to architecture and the built environment.
- Candidates need honest advice, not scripts.
- Practices need recruiters who understand role level, project type and market pressure.
- Shortlists need context, not just CV forwarding.
- Clients need someone who can challenge a vague brief before the search starts.
Need specialist architecture recruitment support?
If you are hiring, the useful conversation starts before the advert goes live: role clarity, salary, market position and what the candidate pool actually looks like.
- Architecture and design recruitment focus.
- Candidate-first without ignoring practice needs.
- Useful market feedback before wasted interviews.
- Support with briefs, shortlists and hiring strategy.
Common mistakes
- Scaling recruitment by adding noise instead of better judgement.
- Treating architecture roles like generic office jobs.
- Letting founder voice disappear as the team grows.
- Forgetting that candidate experience and client delivery are connected.
Architecture Social view
Stephen’s view is that growth only matters if the service gets stronger. Hannah joining the team was part of that wider move: building Architecture Social into a serious specialist recruitment and community business.
Next step
If you are hiring, start with Architecture Social employer support. If you are exploring your next move, browse current architecture jobs and use the resources before you apply.
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