Ronnette Riley
Founder & Principal
Ronnette Riley Architect
Woman-Owned Business Featured Company
What inspired you to start your firm and how has your vision evolved as the company has grown? As project architect on the Lipstick Building for Philip Johnson and John Burgee, I was the youngest person and the only woman to do a skyscraper from start to finish in the firm – and we delivered the building on time and on budget, while I was managing a team of eleven men. Yet when it came time for advancement, I was told I was “too ambitious” and “too aggressive.” At that time, the system worked even harder against women to move forward than it is today. So, I started my own firm and I’ve never regretted it. I realized it was far easier to live with success or failure when it was my own. What began as an act of necessity became a vision rooted in independence and building a practice where success was defined on my own terms.
What project, milestone, or accomplishment represents your firm’s growth or impact, and why? One defining milestone was being selected to design The Coca-Cola Company’s first flagship store on Fifth Ave. shortly after launching my firm. The project was published globally and led to national and international brand clients, including Apple’s first flagship store. After the 2008 economic downturn, we made a deliberate shift toward municipal and public sector work, focusing on projects that serve the greater good, particularly public safety facilities. While these projects may not have the same design impact as retail or hospitality, their power is significant, they shape how communities function. Today, our portfolio spans public safety, courthouses, master plans, multifamily, commercial offices, and private clients. Our firm finds deep satisfaction in designing places where people gather, and our success in the public realm is rooted in the experiential thinking we developed through and still use in our retail and hospitality work.
What advice would you share with women building or leading firms in the A/E/C industry? Women building or leading firms in the A/E/C industry need to intentionally develop the full range of skills required to run a successful business, not just design expertise. That means strengthening your financial acumen, learning how to sell your services confidently, and becoming an exceptional communicator, both in writing and verbally. If you recognize a weakness in any of these areas, don’t avoid it, immerse yourself in it. Seek out training, coaching, and courses that specifically target those gaps. Lean into your discomfort. The more you expand your capabilities, the more confidently you can lead. I often say you need every tool in your tool chest. Build a strong foundation of expertise. And then: Specialize. Find the area where you can truly lead and become known as the expert. For our firm, that’s accessibility design – we’re constantly sought after as New York’s leading expert in ADA design. That clarity of focus strengthens your brand, your authority, and your impact.
What has been the most rewarding part of your leadership journey so far? The most rewarding part of my leadership journey has been building a firm on my own terms. Backed by self-determination and sustained on knowing that what I do directly impacts the lives of my 25 staff members and their families. That responsibility is something I take very seriously. Equally rewarding is being someone others turn to for guidance. Whether it’s mentoring peers on professional practice, advising colleagues on risk and ethics, or hearing from former students that they still apply what I taught them years later, that’s deeply meaningful. For me, leadership is about stewardship of people, of standards, and of the profession itself – which beyond my firm, I most recently did as the national president of the Society of American Registered Architects.