Brad Lockwood Joins SmithGroup as Higher Education Studio Leader in Denver

Brad Lockwood has joined SmithGroup as the Higher Education Studio Leader in its Denver office. Lockwood is a seasoned senior executive and architect, drawing upon nearly 20 years of experience in the higher education sector and most recently serving as Vice President and Managing Principal, Higher Education, at Moseley.

Lockwood’s core strength lies in strategic relationship-building and network expansion. He has developed deep networks with clients, consultants, design specialists, and contractors, leading to a strong market presence for clients in higher education. In his previous roles, he successfully led market expansion into higher education for firms with limited or no existing presence in the sector.

By leveraging program expertise and experience, Brad excels at assembling the right team and resources, aligning them with each client’s unique definition of success. He builds highly responsive teams attuned to mission-specific challenges and crafts innovative solutions that advance client goals.

In his new role, Lockwood will lead Denver’s Higher Education studio to drive growth, build expertise and support holistic design. He is adept at building and maintaining client partnerships and will play an integral role in developing and nurturing key higher education relationships for SmithGroup’s award-winning higher education market.

“Brad’s commitment to advancing education through design and his ability to develop forward-looking planning for institutions of higher learning will be invaluable,” said Chris Purdy, Director of Higher Education at SmithGroup. “We look forward to the exceptional contributions he will make to our higher education portfolio and partnerships.”

Lockwood specializes in business development, client relations, market analysis, project oversight, design-build expertise, construction administration and team building and development. His experience in these areas includes successful project outcomes with the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina State, Colorado State University, Adams State University, University of Wyoming, Duke University and various community college campuses across the country.

“Brad understands our market and has a strong foothold on the national landscape, which will greatly benefit our client partnerships in the Denver and Intermountain region,” said Brad Woodman, SmithGroup’s Southwest Region Director. “His proven ability to lead large-scale projects, develop new market sectors, and manage high-value construction projects will undoubtedly elevate our growing team and enhance our presence in Denver’s flourishing higher education market.”

Lockwood graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture from Virginia Tech and holds a Master of Business Administration from Old Dominion University. He is a licensed architect, a LEED accredited professional and involved with AIA, DBIA and SCUP. Notably, Brad is a recipient of the 2019 Building Design + Construction 40 Under 40 award and the 2021 Engineering News-Record Magazine National 20 Under 40 award.

SmithGroup (www.smithgroup.com) is one of the world’s preeminent integrated design firms. Working across a network of 21 offices in the U.S. and China, a team of 1,500 experts is committed to excellence in strategy, design, and delivery. The scale of the firm’s thinking and organization produces partnerships with forward-looking clients that maximize opportunities, minimize risk and solve their most complex problems. SmithGroup creates exceptional design solutions for healthcare, science and technology organizations, higher education and cultural institutions, urban environments, diverse workplaces, mixed-use and waterfront developments, and parks and open spaces.