When the American Institute of Architects names a new leader, it is more than an administrative decision. It is a signal to the profession about its values, its priorities, and the direction it intends to take in uncertain times.
The appointment of Carole Wedge, FAIA, NOMA, LEED AP, as the next Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the AIA is such a moment. For an organization representing nearly 100,000 architects, designers, and allied professionals, the choice of Wedge underscores a commitment to equity, sustainability, and cultural transformation.
Her career path, her leadership style, and her longstanding service to the profession make her uniquely suited to guide the AIA through a period of profound change.
“On behalf of the Search Committee, I would like to express our immense gratitude to the AIA community for entrusting us with this responsibility, and for providing the vital input that shaped our criteria. We are pleased with the outcome of this search and excited to see how Carole’s leadership will foster AIA’s future success,” says Kimberly Dowdell, AIA, NOMAC, LEED AP BD+C.
From Mailroom to CEO: A Career of Persistence
Wedge’s biography is itself a story of perseverance and possibility. She began her career at Shepley Bulfinch, one of the nation’s oldest and most respected design firms, not as a designer or project manager, but in the mailroom. Over nearly four decades, she rose through every tier of the practice, from junior designer to an architect, associate, then principal to President and CEO, a role she held for 17 years.
During her tenure, she transformed the Boston-based firm from a regional practice into a national presence, opening offices in Phoenix, Houston, Hartford, and Durham, while diversifying its portfolio across healthcare, education, research, and urban development.
Championing Sustainability and Equity in Practice
But expansion alone did not define her leadership. Wedge worked to reposition Shepley Bulfinch as a firm that reflected the values of the twenty-first century. She pushed for the adoption of sustainable design long before it became mainstream and was one of the firm’s earliest LEED-accredited principals.
Under her guidance, the practice formally became a women-owned business, a move that reflected her deep commitment to equity and representation within the profession. Colleagues frequently describe her not just as a capable executive but as someone who reshaped the firm’s culture to be more inclusive, transparent, and aligned with broader social goals.
A Longstanding Leader Within the AIA
Her influence extended beyond her firm’s walls. Within the AIA, Wedge has long been a visible and active leader. She helped launch the Women’s Leadership Summit, which has become one of the most important gatherings in the profession for advancing gender equity. She has chaired the AIA Large Firm Round Table — a committee of the 60 largest firms in the country — offering insight on how big practices can balance scale with culture.
She has served on the boards of the Boston Society of Architects and the Boston Architectural College, and contributed to architecture’s public discourse through advisory roles and mentorship. Her service has been recognized at the highest levels: she is a Fellow of the AIA and a 2020 recipient of the AIA Edward C. Kemper Award, given for distinguished service to the profession.
“Carole is such a positive and powerful role model, so steadfastly committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion, in her service and in her firm leadership,” wrote Kate Schwennsen, FAIA, 2006 AIA president, in a letter supporting Wedge’s Kemper award nomination.
Why Wedge—and Why Now?
The question, then, is why she is the right leader for the AIA now. The challenges facing the Institute are urgent and wide-ranging. Architects are being asked to confront the climate crisis through design, to respond to the affordability and housing shortage in American cities, to make the profession more equitable and representative, and to demonstrate the continuing relevance of architecture in public life.
At the same time, the AIA itself faces internal pressure to remain useful to its members, particularly younger professionals who often view traditional associations as slow to adapt, and in some instances prefer unionization rather than joining professional associations.
Walking the Talk on Reform
In each of these areas, Wedge’s career offers an instructive example. Her record on equity is not theoretical; she has implemented structural change to make architecture more inclusive. Her embrace of sustainable design is not rhetorical; it was integrated into her firm’s practice decades before it was industry standard.
Her capacity to guide a 150-year-old firm through modernization demonstrates a skill that mirrors what the AIA itself must do: balance history and tradition with innovation and reform. And her focus on mentoring and cultivating new generations of leaders reflects an understanding that organizations thrive when they invest in their people.
A Symbolic and Strategic Appointment
There is also symbolic weight to her appointment. Architecture remains a profession in which women and people of color are underrepresented at the highest levels. By choosing Wedge, the AIA is making a statement that leadership is not limited to familiar archetypes.
Her rise from the mailroom to the helm of one of the country’s oldest firms, and now to the leadership of its most visible professional organization, sends a message to emerging architects that their trajectory need not be confined by traditional barriers. Yet symbolism alone is not what defines her. Wedge is known as a leader who translates values into action, insisting that organizations not only declare their priorities but embody them.
Looking Ahead: AIA’s Future Under Wedge
Her more recent work, through her consultancy Heaths Bridge LLC, has focused on mentoring leaders and advising organizations on governance and strategy. In that capacity, she has shifted from leading one firm to equipping many organizations with the tools to lead better.
That broader vantage point is likely to inform her tenure at the AIA, positioning her to think not just about the profession’s challenges in the present but about how to build its resilience for the future.
A Leader for a Defining Moment
The AIA’s decision to appoint Carole Wedge as Executive Vice President and CEO is ultimately a bet on experience coupled with reform-minded leadership. Her career shows that she is capable of guiding an institution through growth, transition, and cultural change.
Her values align with the profession’s pressing priorities of equity, sustainability, and relevance. And her story embodies the kind of inclusive, aspirational leadership that the next generation of architects is demanding.
At a time when the profession is being asked to do more than design buildings—when it is being asked to design equitable, resilient, and sustainable futures—Carole Wedge appears to be the right leader at precisely the right moment.
