NBBJ, a global architecture and design firm, announced today the appointment of Juli Cook as Chief Operating Officer. She will oversee the firm’s global operations across ten offices and manage the firm’s administrative, financial, legal, information technology, and human resources functions. She will start on December 3, 2014, and will be based in NBBJ’s Seattle office.
A dynamic leader, Cook is widely credited with introducing innovative new business models across a range of professional services and creative industries. Prior to joining NBBJ, she served as Executive Vice President of Corbis Images and as its Senior Vice President of Media Products & Global Operations. Founded in 1989 by Bill Gates, Corbis Corporation is a leading digital content, entertainment, and licensing company. Cook most recently led Corbis Images’ diversification efforts, successfully acquiring multiple new business lines including Splash and Demotix. Prior to her role at Corbis, she was Vice President of Product Management at Washington Mutual, where she was responsible for developing new products and services for retail bank customers. She also held management roles at Deloitte Consulting and Sotheby’s.
“Juli brings an ideal combination of skills. She has an intimate understanding of how creative cultures thrive, and she has successfully delivered business growth at scale for global companies,” said Steve McConnell, NBBJ’s Managing Partner. “Adding a leader of this caliber is a major step toward our goal: building the leading next-generation architecture and design firm. Over the last two years, we have had top talent join the strong team already here at NBBJ to ensure we continue to bring great value to clients. Our industry is adapting constantly to a fast-changing economic and real-estate climate. Juli has worked across all corporate functions from marketing to leadership development and has a holistic understanding of operational excellence.”
“There is a dynamic mix of innovation paired with service excellence at NBBJ,” said Cook. “I am  drawn to the way NBBJ addresses major issues in its client work and its own business, such as the need for sustainable solutions, population density in emerging cities, and the proliferation of digital services and devices. I am thrilled to join a highly creative enterprise that is harnessing data and science for intelligent building design.”
Cook holds a BA in Art History and BFA in Painting from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.
About NBBJ: NBBJ creates innovative places and experiences for organizations worldwide and designs environments, communities, and buildings that enhance people’s lives. Founded in 1943, NBBJ is an industry leader in healthcare and corporate facilities and has a strong presence in the commercial, civic, science, education, and sports markets. The firm has won numerous awards and has been recognized as one of the world’s “Top Ten Most Innovative Architecture Firms” by Fast Company magazine. NBBJ has more than 750 employees in 10 offices worldwide, including Beijing, Boston, Columbus, London, Los Angeles, New York, Pune, San Francisco, Seattle and Shanghai. Clients include Alibaba, Amazon, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Boeing, Cambridge University, Cleveland Clinic, GlaxoSmithKline, Google, Massachusetts General Hospital, Microsoft, Reebok, Salk Institute, Samsung, Stanford University, Starbucks, Telenor, Tencent, and the Wellcome Trust. (https://www.nbbj.com)