Lakisha Woods to Take the Helm at the American Institute of Architects

Portrait of Lakisha Woods, wearing a navy blue suit jacket and pearl necklace

Lakisha A. Woods, now president and CEO of the National Institute of Building Science, will be CEO and executive vice president of the American Institute of Architects, as of Jan. 31. Photo: AIA

Lakisha A. Woods will take the reins as executive vice president and CEO of the American Institute of Architects effective Jan. 31. She replaces Robert Ivy, who is leaving Dec. 31 and has been running the professional association since 2011.

In her role at the AIA, Woods will manage the national office in Washington, D.C., and oversee about 200 employees. She will also partner with the board of directors as well as work with more than 200 chapters nationwide and overseas to support AIA members. Woods also will sit on the independent board of the group's Construction Document business, which is led through a strategic partnership with True Wind Capital.

Currently at NIBS

Woods is moving to her new role from her current position as president and CEO of the National Institute of Building Sciences, which she joined in 2018. She leaves Jan. 7, according to Christine Cube, a NIBS spokesperson.

The NIBS board is now establishing a transition strategy and a board-driven committee to begin a search for a replacement, with the assistance of an executive search firm, said NIBS in a statement.

Prior to NIBS, Woods served as senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Association of Home Builders, where she led a team of 27 and oversaw a $54-million budget.

She is also the 2021-22 vice chair of the U.S. Green Building Council; 2021-22 chair-elect of the American Society of Association Executives; and chair of the latter group's foundation.

Woods, who is not an architect, has a bachelor of science from the University of Maryland.

Nadine M. Post, ENR's editor-at-large for buildings, is an award-winning journalist with 45 years of experience covering trends, issues, innovations, controversies and challenging projects. Post has written about many industry giants, including 10 ENR Award of Excellence winners. And she has covered disasters, failures and attacks, including the 1993 bombing and the 2001 destruction of the World Trade Center. Project stories include the redevelopment of the World Trade Center; the 828-meter-tall Burj Khalifa; Los Angeles’ Disney Concert Hall; and Seattle's Bullitt Center and Rainier Square Tower. In 1985, Post wrote McGraw-Hill's book Restoring the Statue of Liberty (1986) for the restoration’s architects—Richard S. Hayden and Thierry W. Despont.

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