Case Study: Recruiting the Architect of the Capitol

At a glance

• Client: the United States Congress, acting through a twelve-member bipartisan, bicameral commission
• Role: Architect of the Capitol, steward of the U.S. Capitol campus
• Organization: more than 2,000 federal employees responsible for the Capitol, the House and Senate office buildings, the Library of Congress buildings, the Supreme Court building and the U.S. Botanic Garden
• Outcome: a unanimous appointment to a ten-year term, the first under the Architect of the Capitol Appointment Act of 2023

The challenge

Until recently, the Architect of the Capitol was nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. In December 2023, following a leadership transition that drew national attention, Congress changed that. The Architect of the Capitol Appointment Act gave the power to appoint, and to remove, the Architect to a commission of congressional leaders: the leadership of both chambers and the chairs and ranking members of the House Administration, Senate Rules and House and Senate Appropriations committees.

That created a search without a playbook. There was no previous appointment under the statute to follow, no single hiring manager, and a decision that had to be reached by a majority of twelve members from both parties and both chambers, each with their own staff and priorities. The role itself is unusual: part chief executive of a large federal organization, part steward of a national landmark, part host to millions of visitors a year, working for the institution that would be watching most closely.

Our approach

One profile for twelve decision makers. In a committee-driven search, the most important work happens before the first candidate call. The search was built around a single leadership profile that reflected the commission's shared priorities: large-scale facilities and construction management, preservation of historic buildings, leadership of a large workforce, and the judgment to serve a bipartisan, bicameral client.

A process designed from scratch. With no precedent under the new law, the search process itself had to be designed, agreed and documented, from how candidates would be identified and assessed to how the commission would receive and consider finalists. Every candidate was evaluated against the same agreed standard, so the commission's decision could rest on a common record.

Discretion throughout. Senior leaders considering a high-visibility public role need to know their interest will be handled carefully. Candidate identities were protected at every stage, and nothing about the slate was shared outside the commission and its designated staff.

A national, cross-sector search. The strongest candidates for a role like this can come from federal service, the military, large institutions and the private sector. Outreach reached across all of them rather than relying on the usual public sector networks.

The result

In May 2024 the commission announced its unanimous choice, and the new Architect took office on June 24, 2024, the first appointed under the 2023 Act. The appointment was covered by Roll Call and other national outlets. Read the announcement.

"The Architect of the Capitol may be the most important non-elected individual on Capitol Hill. The AOC preserves and maintains the Capitol complex, ensuring that Congress has a safe place to conduct its business, visitors have a welcoming experience and the American people, for generations to come, are able to enjoy the heart of our democracy." Marshall Reffett, Managing Director

What any search committee can take from it

• Agree on the profile before you see candidates. Twelve decision makers can reach a unanimous choice when they are evaluating against a standard they already share.
• Write down how the decision will be made. Who receives finalists, in what form, and how the final vote works should be settled at the start, not improvised at the end.
• Treat confidentiality as part of the design. The candidates you most want are often the ones with the most to lose from early exposure.
• When there is no precedent, create one carefully. A documented, defensible process protects the decision and the people who make it.

Reffett Associates holds GSA Schedule contract GS-02F-0194W and has recruited for federal agencies, the legislative branch and public institutions for more than three decades.