Capacity for the project in front of you.
Deadlines, surges, a project that needs hands now. CFA refers independent architecture and design consultants for exactly as long as the project needs them, with none of the long-term overhead.
Who it’s for.
CFA refers per-project architectural consultants for deadlines, workload surges, leaves of absence, and specialized project needs. It is built for a firm with a project-duration need: surge capacity for a deadline, a specific project, or a gap to cover. You want skilled hands on the work now, scaled exactly to the workload, without adding to permanent headcount.
How it works.
Tell us the need
Discipline, software, level, and timeline, on site or remote.
Vetted contractors, fast
Self-employed architects and designers, referenced, with a CFAeX assessment available at the client’s request, ready for the project duration.
Scale to the work
Up for the deadline, down when it passes. You pay for productive hours, not idle headcount.
Vetted, even for a sprint.
A short engagement is no reason to lower the bar. Project contractors clear the same vetting as a permanent hire — professionally referenced, with client-driven CFAeX assessments available at the client’s request — so they’re productive from the first day, not the second week.
Speed doesn’t mean a keyword search. Our matchmakers review every opening first, then CFA Match Intelligence recommends people whose past project work fits yours — and our matchmakers review every recommendation. We never rely on AI alone.
The real cost of a hire
Complete the projects on your timeline.
Design work moves in peaks and valleys. A permanent headcount is a flat line through all of it — short-handed in the crunch, overpaying in the lull. Project placement follows the curve: scale up for the deadline, down when it passes, with no severance and none of the turnover cost a layoff-and-rehire cycle keeps re-incurring.
A model built to hold up.
Worker classification is decided by law, not preference — the IRS weighs behavioral control, financial control, and the relationship of the parties, while the Department of Labor and some states apply their own, stricter tests. Genuinely project-based, independent work supports contractor status, but the model has to be built and maintained correctly. CFA has done exactly that for four decades.
For forty years we've structured project placements as genuine independent-contractor engagements: self-employed architects and designers engaged by the project, billing through CFA and responsible for their own taxes and insurance. We build each engagement to fit how the work is really done, and we'll coordinate with your counsel to confirm the right classification for your firm.
This is general information, not tax or legal advice.
Billing.
Project work is billed as a single combined rate through CFA — the contractor’s rate plus our fee, quoted as one number. You approve a weekly time record (Monday–Sunday), and invoices are due within 30 days. No benefits load, no severance, no idle-time cost — you pay for productive hours and nothing else.
Not sure which model fits? Compare all three placement types — or read about the other two: Permanent · Project-to-Perm. Client-driven CAD assessments are available for every referral, and our Salary Guide shows the market rate.
Common questions
Do you refer per-project architecture consultants?
Yes. CFA refers architects, designers, and technical staff for a defined project, deadline, workload surge, or short-term project need. Engagements may be structured as project placement or project-to-permanent placement, depending on the firm's needs and the applicable worker-classification requirements.
What is a project-based referral?
CFA refers self-employed architects and designers for a specific project or period, billed through CFA. You get capacity for exactly as long as you need it.
Does project placement save money versus a permanent hire?
Often. You pay the project fee and reimbursables, with no benefits load, severance, or idle-time cost, and you scale down when the deadline passes.
Are project contractors classified correctly?
Worker classification is set by law. CFA has structured genuine independent-contractor engagements for four decades and coordinates with your counsel to confirm the right classification.