HLW Announces Three New Managing Partners, Forming New Global Leadership Team

HLW has announced a new Global Leadership Team as the firm enters its 140th year. Established in 1885, HLW has been led by partnership since 1900, when founder Cyrus L. W. Eidlitz joined with Andrew C. McKenzie to pioneer the design of a new building typology. From that foundation, the firm has grown into a dynamic global architecture practice and steward of the built environment. The new Global Leadership team will advance HLW’s legacy of innovation through collaboration in a historic expansion of its governance, codifying the commitment to integrated leadership at an international scale.

“As HLW’s reach has widened, our approach to shaping the course of its direction has evolved,” said Susan Boyle, who has co-led the firm alongside John Gering, FAIA, as Managing Partners for 27 years. “Broadening HLW’s leadership team to reflect the scope of our practice heightens our ability to excel in all areas of the business with tighter focus and greater agility.”

The new Global Leadership Team includes the appointment of three new Managing Partners: Ed Shim, AIA, NCARB, Sejal Sonani, AIA, and Bennet Dunkley, AIA, RIBA. Joining them are John Mack, AIA, FIIDA, Senior Partner, as well as Cristen Colantoni and Bronte Turner, who have both been elevated to Senior Principal, and Patrick Kinzler, Managing Principal.

Together, this team will shepherd HLW’s next generation in navigating the unique opportunities facing the industry today, exploring ever-meaningful design solutions, and chasing climate action holistically. As part of the transition, Boyle and Gering as Managing Partners Emeritus will continue to provide guidance on strategic matters as Board Members.

“We are immensely proud to entrust Ed, Sejal, Bennet, John, Cristen, Bronte, and Patrick with the future of HLW,” said Gering. “They have each made substantial contributions to the firm’s transformational growth during their tenures, and this historic redefinition of collaborative leadership at HLW is both a celebration of their accomplishments and a testament to our confidence in their power to continue driving us and our client partners forward.”

As Managing Partners, Shim, Sonani, and Dunkley bring a fearless and relentless pursuit of excellence that will underpin this new era. In his 20 years with HLW, Shim’s creative dexterity and technical discipline has deepened the firm’s design impact and driven the growth of its multifamily and mixed-use development sectors. Sonani, since joining HLW in 2012, has been instrumental in expanding the firm’s presence on the West Coast, cultivating a sophisticated and comprehensive regional practice, while simultaneously strengthening the firmwide adaptive reuse and building repositioning portfolio. Dunkley’s international background and growth-oriented mindset have been key to advancing HLW’s culture of interdisciplinary synergy, as well as maturing its presence in the Education sector and leading the firm into new markets, including Healthcare and Critical Facilities, since joining in 2018.

John Mack, who has assumed the Global Design Director role, will continue to elevate HLW’s artistic talent and direction, strengthening the synergies between its design studios and specialty partners across all of the firm’s offices. Colantoni will oversee HLW’s company-wide culture, reinforcing the firm’s commitment to its people, while maintaining her focus on building lasting client relationships in the technology market. Turner will continue advancing the firm’s EMEA footprint, in addition to providing executive oversight of its specialty partners: Ark, BEYOND, brandx, and Spark.