After Tet holidays and everyone gets back to work already, we would like to introduce to you Thanh Ha – Structure Manager is one of those who has been working at Atlas for the longest time. Ha will share with us what is like to work here for a long time and how a perfect day should be.

How long have you been at Atlas?
I have been working for Atlas for almost 17 years.

What were you doing before you discovered Atlas? 
I worked at M&C Corporation as a structural engineer.

What brings you to Atlas? 
I searched on the internet and found that Atlas is a large outsourcing company, with a professional working environment.

What’s the focus of your role?
I am a structural engineering manager. I usually manage a team of around 10 staff working on 2-3 projects at the same time. I discuss directly with the client about their requests and assign the proper tasks for each member/senior. I make a program for these projects and ensure we meet the deadlines.

What makes you happy about working at Atlas?
The friendly working environment. All the team are willing to support, share knowledge, and to help each other complete the work effectively. 

Can you describe a typical day?
First task in the day is to read all the emails and prioritize the workflow
Assign the task to the seniors/teams- arrange the internal meeting if necessary
Arrange a meeting with clients/ Third parties
Check the status of work to the program/deadline
Ensure all the staffs work effectively
Review the monthly invoicing 
Doing the estimation for the coming proposals…

What (if anything) surprised you about Atlas?
Atlas always welcomes back former workers. Their additional experience brings valuable skills and productivity for our company.

What is the most interesting project that you have been working on so far?
Hong Kong Airport, Gate 219 to be modeled from Point cloud data to create a digital twin of the facility.

What advice would you pass to someone entering the industry?
In the construction industry deadlines are really important, you must be willing to work late/under pressure. 

Show your willingness to learn (from colleagues, clients, self-learning…) can be effective for proving to employers that you are motivated to take on new challenges and develop in your role.

How do you spend your spare time? 
I usually enjoy reading a book to learn something every day.

What’s your idea of a perfect day?
To me, a perfect day should be a day that you bring value to someone.

With children, they have something to learn from me and feeling happy every moment we are together.

With family, we see the smiles and the happiness when we arrive back home. We leave all the stresses behind us.

With work, achieving most of the daily plan is important and satisfying.

I have something positive to share with other people that I meet each day.

Tell me one thing your colleagues don’t know about you (yet?)
I can share with people how to be more healthy/young/nice.

Thank you for taking the time to speak with us Ha!

Paul talks about his experience from the UK to Vietnam. 

How long have you been at Atlas?
I joined Atlas in 2016 as an Architecture Manager, looking after a number of key Architect and Interior Design 1 deposit casino nz.com client accounts in the UK, Australia and New Zealand markets. My current role is Architecture Group Manager, managing a team of up to 50 very talented local Architects and Technicians, and overseeing delivery of large projects in multiple sectors and regions, including the Middle East.

What were you doing before you discovered Atlas?
I’m a UK Chartered Architect with 18 years post qualification experience. I spent many of those professional years as a Project Leader and later Associate for a London based Architecture Design Practice, working on mostly large scale residential projects from concept design, through detailed planning and technical design, to working drawings on site. Before that, I completed my Architecture Degree and Diploma in Edinburgh and Berlin.

What brings you to Atlas? / How do you know about Atlas?
During my previous London life, we used Atlas services for a number of years on a large urban regeneration project in the UK. As an Atlas client, we developed a strong working relationship with the Vietnam based Atlas documentation team and benefited from their high quality and cost effective support. I recall having Atlas VN staff working in our London office for a couple of months, which really helped cement the Atlas ‘one team’ approach between the project delivery teams in London and Saigon.

What makes you happy about working at Atlas?
The Vietnamese staff here are simply great. They are talented, bright, eager to improve, and focused on learning from each project. Those who get the opportunity to work with our clients abroad or study overseas are bringing back a different mindset for problem solving and are actively involved in helping their fellow colleagues who haven’t had similar opportunities. The predominantly young staff are interested in working with our international clients and learning best practices, new techniques, and fresh skills, and are generally quite honest about the challenges ahead.

What’s the focus of your role?
As Group Manager, my main role is to manage the staff under my supervision to complete projects on time, on budget and to the satisfaction of the client’s scope and brief.

GMs have a pivotal role in communications with clients, supporting BDMs to win work & proposal generation, reporting on commercial & operational matters to senior management, and providing guidance and support to the project delivery teams.

Can you describe a typical day?
I’m often reviewing progress or trouble-shooting on current projects with my teams, attending client calls and operations meetings, or meeting new potential business partners. I can also spend a day working on proposals for new work, negotiating variations, or doing a forecast on pipeline for the coming weeks. It’s all about prioritization and planning. You make your own schedule, so time management is really important.

Which technology excites you the most?
Working for a global company such as Atlas, you see the world changing faster than ever. The emergence of 3D scanning and printing, augmented reality, Building Information Modelling (BIM), drones, autonomous equipment and advanced building materials – all of which are now adopted by our industry. Companies can boost productivity by exploiting such technology, enhance quality and safety, and streamline their management and procedures. That’s pretty exciting.

What is the most interesting project that you have been working on so far?
An emblematic Towers project, designed by a well-known Starchitect.

One last question, how do you spend your spare time?
I love exploring the city- each district has its own vibe and charm. The vibrant café culture in Vietnam is strong- and so is the coffee! The effort put into design of these popular Instagrammable spots is staggering, and very creative. In between café hopping around Saigon, I’m discovering the incredible cuisine and diversity of the local street food. Or if I want to get out of the city, the beach is never far away…

Thank you for taking the time to speak with us Paul!

Minh Anh talks about his experience, challenges and what makes him happy about working with Atlas for almost 20 years.

How long have you been at Atlas?
As of November 2020, yes I’ve been 18 years with Atlas. I joined Atlas in November 2002, starting as an 1 deposit casino canada.com Architect doing 2D documentation drawings before being promoted to a Team Leader role, which was “Project Lead” title at this time. Eventually I was became an Architecture Manager, then Group Manager, currently managing a group of 30-40 staff working within various region including UK, Australia, NZ and UAE.

What were you doing before you discovered Atlas?
I used to work for a few international firms in the local Vietnam market before joining Atlas. They were SPCC (Sino-Pacific Construction Consultancy Co.Ltd) and NQH Architects Ltd, who did a major residential development in District 7, Saigon South, HCMC.

What brings you to Atlas? / How do you know about Atlas?
I had a Structural Engineer colleague who used to work with me at SPCC before she joined Atlas. She is the one to introduce me to the Atlas recruitment team and it didn’t take much time for me to decide to join the Atlas family. This was an opportunity for a young architect (me) to work closely with some of well-known architectural firms in UK on various international projects across the globe. How often people would say “no” to this!

What makes you happy about working at Atlas?
Joining Atlas was a good decision. Staying with Atlas for almost 20 years of my life has been rewarding. I have stuck around that long because Atlas provides an international professional working environment, provides a close “family” atmosphere from the very top management level down to each team member. At Atlas, you receive enough trainings, for both languages and software, and are also provided fair opportunities to develop your own skills and strength through actual project work, with tireless support from the senior management team to help with challenges during your career path within Atlas.

What’s the focus of your role?
As Group Manager, my role is primarily to manage client accounts from UK, New Zealand & Australia, to work closely with client design teams from Planning/ Concept Stage through Design Development to Construction Documentation Stages, to ensure client delivery programme and quality requirements are all met. We see ourselves here in Atlas as an extended delivery team providing support and depth at skills to the client design team. My job is also to manage team communications and client instructions between Atlas and the client team, doing this thoughtfully and effectively.

Can you describe a typical day?
Starting my day by checking my inbox, getting through all email correspondence coming through over a night, prioritizing tasks to ensure I have sufficient time during a day to respond to urgent requests. Talking to my management teams (Architecture Managers and Seniors) to follow & catch up on their project progress, discuss and agree with them a way moving forward to ensure our project delivery is going smoothly & effectively. I also assist the Atlas Proposal Team to review and work up fee proposal for new projects, often communicating with Atlas Business Development Teams to clarify Atlas scope of work and client expectations in order to provide the most appropriate proposals.

Which technology excites you the most?
Having a technical background, I find BIM technology is absolutely a great tool to develop the industry further to a next level. “3D printing” potential is exciting. To “print a house” rather than “build a house”! How cool is that! This technique is definitely the most efficient way to turn a design on paper into reality. 

What is the most interesting project that you have been working on so far?
My first documentation project, Bridge Water Place in Leeds, UK, which is a mixed-use residential skyscraper building, having 40,000 sqm (430,000 sqft), 200 flats and 400 car parking spaces. It is the tallest building in Leeds with 32 storeys (112m height), 2 underground floors for car parks, 10 for office spaces and 20 for apartments. Its construction was completed in 2007.

What advice would you pass to someone entering the industry?
Learn tirelessly, work smartly, play faithfully & always stay positive.

One last question, how do you spend your spare time?
Managing my own team at home: Lucas 5 and Ryan 2 year-old.

Thank you for taking the time to speak with us Minh Anh!

Every month we’re portraying a different Atlas employee, so you can learn more about the person behind the role. In this issue, we focus on Phuong Pham, an architecture manager based in our Ho Chi Minh City production office.  She shares with us what enticed her to join Atlas, why Atlas has a big impact on her career, and her thoughts on architecture in many aspects.

How long have you been at Atlas?
Roughly 10 years from 2004, with a break of 6 years in between when I came to London for my master degree and a couple years of working with UK practices.

What were you doing before you discovered Atlas?
Designing private houses in my hometown, with a small group of young architects.

What brings you to Atlas? / How do you know about Atlas?
Atlas had a reputation for being a good place for young graduates so one of my friend convinced me to give it a try even though I was not confident about my English at the time.

What makes you happy about working at Atlas?
Having the opportunities to approach cutting-edge projects – from schools to airports, from department stores to high-end hotels, etc. at various design stages – concept through to construction. Technical knowledge & software skills gained from working on these projects are invaluable. What also equally amazing is that you achieve all those with a team, not on your own! 

What’s the focus of your role?
As an architecture deliver manager, I consider myself a bridge between the design team (clients) and documentation team (Atlas) – That is interpreting the clients’ requirements into a clear map of tasks and making sure the final documentation package is well received.

I highly value the QA/QC process, especially how to prevent mistakes before they occur. In order to do that, a clear communication channel needs to be maintained at all time.

I know I do it right when we have happy client and happy team.

Can you describe a typical day?
Checking clients’ e-mails then talking to my (various) project teams and making sure our thoughts are aligned on what we need to do during the day. At this point, I will answer as many questions I can, then other queries will be put on RFI forms and sent to the clients for further clarification. Once the teams finish their work, I will do a final check before we confirm completion to the clients.

Which technology excites you the most?
I am not a tech person but I found that BIM has a great impact on our workflow. It is the power of managing all information in one place to allow different teams to work and update instantly. This tech requires a certain level of knowledge that we use within Atlas, however it is not widely used yet in the consulting industry.

What is the most interesting project that you have been working on so far?
A mix-used scheme in the Middle East – The site comprises a residential tower, a hotel and its facilities, luxury villas, a cinema complex, restaurants and retails promenade. It takes us nearly 4 years from schematic design to tender stage with numerous design changes, technical coordination, etc.

What advice would you pass to someone entering the industry?
Focus your mind into what you do, do your best and never stop learning.

Thank you for taking the time to speak with us Nam Phuong!