People First
Our firm recognizes that different backgrounds and vantage points can enrich our work and our relationships with clients beyond what conventional skills alone can accomplish. We’re committed to making HKS – and the design industry as a whole – more reflective of the communities we serve by making our workforce more diverse and by knocking down barriers to joining and rising in the design profession.
As a firm, we must look like our communities and clients in order to provide them the best quality product.
Public Interest Design
Transform lives with us. Citizen HKS, our philanthropic initiative, connects our design expertise with communities that need it most, from a Chicago high school looking to better serve students with special needs to a Ugandan town with an outdated maternity ward. We partner with nonprofits, civic leaders, like-minded contractors and design industry peers to get projects built, outfitted and operational.
Spin The Globe
With 24 offices worldwide, we find creative ways to build bridges among our teams. Every year, our Xchange Fellowship sends 12 full-time employees — architects, interior designers and other professionals — to one of three HKS host offices for a three-month stint. Xchange exposes promising staffers to new ideas, projects and work styles and connects them to colleagues they may know only electronically.
Fellowships
We want our employees to be limitless thinkers, so we leave room outside of project work for our emerging talent to mine their curiosity. Our regional and firmwide design fellowships team up young professionals with our design and research leaders, offering them mentorship and freedom to explore their ideas. HKS, a worldwide leader in health care design, is also home to one of the industry’s most prestigious health design fellowships, offered to recent graduates committed to improving the experiences of patients and health care workers.
My mentors were very much focused on making sure I was doing what I wanted to do and not trying to push me into some pre-designed objective.
What’s It Like to Work with Us?
Just ask our team members past and present. We’re an OpenCompany on Glassdoor, which means that we embrace transparent reviews.
97%
Approve of CEO
90%
Recommend to a Friend
4.2
Total Glassdoor Rating
In accordance with the transparency in coverage rules published in November 2020 by the United States Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor, and Department of Health and Human Services, UMR creates and publishes the Machine-Readable Files on behalf of HKS. Click here to read them.
Our Benefits
Flexible Work
We empower you to excel at your job while making room for your personal life. Our firm offers opportunities to log in from home in addition to working from the office.
Time Off
When you work hard, you need time to recharge. We want you to go on that getaway or hit the pause button to take care of your family using our paid time-off options.
Professional Growth
We lead with knowledge. HKS supports your career development with continuing education programs and allowances for licenses, certifications and professional memberships.
Health and Well-being
Your physical and mental well-being are important to us. Our benefits package includes comprehensive medical coverage and other resources for you to manage your health.
Family Care
Parents, we’re here for you. Whether you’re welcoming a child through birth or adoption, paid parental leave is available to eligible employees.
Festive Culture
We love to celebrate milestones, yours and ours. HKS hosts a flurry of parties and events throughout the year to recognize our employees and to treat our friends and families.