A scion's test.

Some of the world's best-known architects wait years to see their designs built. Frank Gehry was 68 when the Bilbao Guggenheim made him a star. Daniel Libeskind sketched striking forms until finally, at age 52, he saw one constructed.

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Today, in an industry that rewards gray hair, the man running one of the world's largest architecture firms is just 34. Peter Morrison has no formal architectural training and no built structures in his portfolio, but he could reshape the business of design.

"Our goal is to become a superpower in the architectural industry," says Morrison, CEO of RMJM Group, headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland.

By some measures, RMJM has already achieved that aim. It employs about 1,200, runs 16 offices worldwide, and its 2007 revenues reached nearly $200 million. The group's commissions include a tower for energy giant Gazprom in St. Petersburg, Russia, and the East River Science Park in New York City. About one-quarter of its $8 billion in projects under construction is in Asia.

Family money helped Morrison to the corner office. In 2002 his father, Sir Fraser Morrison, bought a majority stake in the architectural practice after selling one of Britain's largest construction companies. In 2005, Peter Morrison took the top job when RMJM's CEO resigned. He had an MBA from Imperial College in London and had served as an officer with the Royal Scots in Northern Ireland, but he recalls, staff at the 50-year-old firm didn't think they could trust him. "They reacted in exactly the same way as the soldiers did in Northern Ireland. My attitude was, well, OK; let me prove to you that I can deliver what I set out to deliver."

Then he filled a gap in the firm's global reach. In 2007, RMJM acquired Hillier Architecture, a 40-year-old firm founded in Princeton, N.J. The $30 million deal brought RMJM a recognized brand in the U.S., where it lacked a presence; a portfolio of award-winning projects; and about 300 architects.

Morrison named Sir Fraser CEO of the U.S. subsidiary. He also serves as non-executive chairman of the corporate group, but reports to Peter.

Today, Peter Morrison calls the group's business model "evolutionary." It boils down to organizing management responsibilities so designers are freed from finance, legal and other administrative tasks to concentrate on creating buildings.

Morrison would like to see that model change, and earlier this year RMJM donated $1.5 million to Harvard University Graduate School of Design to establish a program to train architects to integrate business management, advanced technologies and design skills.

The RMJM Group is huge compared to most other stand-alone architectural practices. Most firms employ fewer than 10 people, says Morrison. He believes size is a competitive advantage as developers of the most lucrative commissions offer them to firms with a range of expertise. But firms that can afford specialists in curtain wall technology and cold weather construction also have large payrolls. The economic downturn in the U.S. and concerns about a global recession have U.S. architects concerned about hard times, according to the Architectural Billings Index, which tracks the architectural services market. In March, the measure hit its lowest level in 12 years with firms reporting weak demand.

Morrison admits RMJM's commercial and residential sectors have been hurt, but he believes the group's geographic mix will provide a shield against economic turmoil: "We have strong businesses in Europe, in the U.S. and in Asia. And it's unlikely the markets in all three regions will go down at one time."

[Full disclosure: Royal is a former Hillier employee.]