Architectural Designer / Drafter – Fast-Turn Concept Floor Plans & Elevations

We are a commercial real estate development company looking for an architectural designer/drafter who is exceptionally fast without sacrificing design quality. This is not a traditional architectural role focused on construction documents or lengthy design processes. We use architecture as part of our sales and visualization process. We meet with prospective buyers who are considering purchasing and customizing commercial buildings. During those meetings, we discuss how they might configure their building based on their business, team, aesthetic, and space requirements. After the meeting, we want to be able to quickly show them: A customized conceptual floor plan A simple front elevation Potentially a basic 3D exterior/interior view when appropriate We already have base building footprints, architectural plans, dimensions, elevations, and design standards. You will generally NOT be designing a building from scratch. Instead, you may receive something like: “Here is our standard 3,840 SF building. The client is a financial services company. They want 8 private offices, a large glass conference room, reception area, employee lounge, podcast studio, and a more dramatic entrance.” Your job is to take our existing building/template and rapidly turn those ideas into a compelling architectural concept. Speed Is Extremely Important Our goal is often to meet with a client in the United States during the afternoon and have a concept ready to send them the following morning. Because of this, we are particularly interested in designers located in a time zone that creates an advantage with U.S. Central Time. Ideally: We meet with the client → send you notes/files → you work while we're offline → we wake up to the concept. Typical turnaround should be 12–24 hours, and sometimes faster for simple concepts. What We're Looking For You should be highly proficient in architectural design/drafting software such as Revit, AutoCAD, SketchUp, or similar tools. More importantly, we're looking for someone who: Understands commercial architecture and space planning Can work from existing architectural files Can interpret rough notes and quickly turn them into a design Has a strong eye for modern, high-end architecture Understands that these are conceptual sales drawings, not construction documents Communicates extremely well Can handle revisions quickly Values speed AND quality Is comfortable with recurring, ongoing work We don't want someone who needs five days to produce something that could reasonably be completed in five hours. At the same time, we don't want speed at the expense of presentation quality. Long-Term Opportunity We are not looking for a one-time freelancer. Our goal is to find one primary designer who learns our buildings, architectural language, standards, and preferred layouts. Over time, you will build a library of our: Standard building footprints Office configurations Elevations Conference rooms Executive suites Reception concepts Wellness spaces Studios Lounges Other frequently requested spaces The better you learn our product, the faster these projects should become. For the right person, we anticipate consistent ongoing work and potentially a dedicated/full-time relationship. To Apply Please send: Examples of commercial floor plans you've personally produced Examples of exterior elevations or architectural concepts The software you primarily use Your location and time zone Your normal working hours Your typical turnaround time for a conceptual floor plan based on an existing building Your hourly rate and/or suggested fixed price per concept Confirmation that you are comfortable regularly completing concepts within approximately 12–24 hours IMPORTANT: Please begin your application with the words “12-HOUR DESIGN” so we know you read the entire description. Paid Test Project Our preference is to select several strong candidates for a paid test project. We will provide each candidate with the same existing architectural floor plate, client requirements, and design direction. We will evaluate the work primarily based on: 1. Speed 2. Design quality 3. Accuracy 4. Ability to interpret our instructions 5. Communication The strongest candidate will have the opportunity to become our go-to architectural concept designer for ongoing projects. One thing I would definitely do on Upwork: hire 3 people for the exact same paid test, rather than trying to identify the winner from portfolios. Give all three your existing Interurban floor plate and the same fake client brain dump at, say, 4 PM Central, and tell them you need it by 8 AM Central the next morning. That test will tell you almost everything. The person you're after isn't necessarily the most credentialed architect. You're looking for the person who wakes up while you're going to sleep, understands what you're asking for without 15 questions, and has something sales-ready sitting in your inbox when you wake up.