Crafting a Legacy: James Fuex's Journey of Innovation and Mentorship at Kirksey
For James Fuex, Kirksey's Director of Quality, architecture is the culmination of a lifelong passion for creativity and technical problem solving. In his newly created role, James leads firm-wide initiatives to uphold Kirksey's longstanding reputation for quality across multiple regional offices, ensuring consistency, excellence, and risk reduction. His goal is to continue Kirksey's reputation for quality and improve efficiencies by developing and implementing processes to support Kirksey's continued growth.James' mother, an artist, encouraged his creative side from a young age. He immersed himself in sketching and drawing, finding himself drawn to the technical details and sparking his interest in architecture. In high school, James took hand-drafting and CAD classes, earning awards for excellence in drafting. With an architectural medium to blend his creative passions and technical precision, he never looked back.
Eleven years ago, it was Kirksey's reputation for both design excellence and workplace culture that initially drew him in, and now he has worked his way to partner status. James' extensive career highlights include his work on the One Bridgeland Green Mass Timber office building, the first of its kind in the greater Houston area and a landmark in sustainable innovation, the Stephen F. Austin State University Ed & Gwen Cole STEM Building, which required tailoring a mix of educational spaces, and the Hewlett Package Enterpirse Corporate Campus, one of the region's largest corporate complexes.
James complements his technical acument with a passion for mentorship. Advice and guidance from colleagues early in his career helped shape the archiect he is today, so he aims to return the gestture with develoing professionals. "I really enjoy helping the next generation of architects grow. It's my way of paying it forward."
Outside of work, James enjoys shooting clays and traveling across Europe with his wife and their two children, Audrey and Wesley. He shares his home with a fiercely loyal Russian Blue attack cat named Mischa.
James' goal as he embarks on this new chapter as Kirksey's Director of Quality is to reinforce the firm's legacy of design excellence and further the firm's culture of collaboration and growth. His commitment to mentorship and dedication to the details ensure that Kirksey will continue to push the boundaries of innovation and quality. With his experience and dedication, the future looks bright for both the firm and the aspiring architects he inspires.