At the 2021 Associated General Contractors of Connecticut Industry Recognition Dinner, Jeff Wyszynski, Principal and Chief Operating Officer for Tecton, was selected as Designer of the Year.

Jeff has been with Tecton for more than 15 years and has served in various capacities, initially as a senior project manager, then principal and ultimately chosen to help guide the firm as Chief Operating Officer in 2012 as part of the leadership succession plan. As COO, he is engaged in Tecton’s overall firm management, overseeing day-to-day operations and the development of the firm’s professional staff. Since the leadership transition, the firm has seen 50% growth in both staff size and revenue, with active work throughout the Northeast. Always a steadfast leader, but particularly throughout the COVID-19 crisis, Jeff’s unfailing guidance while navigating changing operational, legal, financial and health considerations have been instrumental in keeping the firm and its staff safe and stable.

Prior to joining Tecton, Jeff spent the first 10 years of his career with Massachusetts firm Alderman & MacNeish, until their closure in 2004. Joining the firm out of college, Jeff credits his experience there with teaching him not only how to detail, manage projects and design buildings, but also how to be a well-rounded architect, a skilled designer and an effective listener.

Jeff’s experience with A&M also instilled a passion for academic design that has carried with him throughout his career. Since joining the firm, he has personally built Tecton’s school design portfolio from the ground up, with K-12 projects totalling nearly $250 million in overall project costs in the last five years. This includes recent work like the Oxford Middle School, Ocean Avenue Learning Academy, Colchester’s William J. Johnston Middle School and Brookfield’s new Candlewood Lake Elementary School, set to be the first school in Connecticut to use insulated concrete form construction when it opens in 2022. He has also been at the helm of master planning and study efforts for school districts throughout Connecticut, including Simsbury, Suffield, Weston, Sherman, Ellington and Regional School District 17.

Jeff’s academic work also extends to higher education and independent schools. He has guided major campus design projects for the State of Connecticut including the LEED Gold Certified Southern Connecticut State University School of Business, Asnuntuck Community College Student Center, Western Connecticut State University Student Center and the renovation of Norwalk Community College. He also has a strong body of work with private institutions like Trinity College, Rumsey Hall School, Suffield Academy and Loomis Chaffee School.

Jeff has led the firm in the design of major workplace projects like the consolidation of 2,200 employees into a downtown high rise for the State of Connecticut, as well as collaboration with Otis Elevator, COCC, Connecticare, PeoplesBank, Farmington Bank and Windsor Federal Savings. He was also a hands-on contributor as Tecton took on the unique and oftentimes daunting challenge of designing the firm’s new Hartford studio, which opened in 2020.

Jeff’s devotion to design excellence and ability to inspire the best in his team members and peers have led to many long-standing personal and professional relationships. In particular, he has cultivated strong bonds with several high-end luxury and mixed-use developers in southern Connecticut and Westchester County, including Gatto Development, Alfred Weissman Real Estate and Paul Varsames Development.

Jeff holds a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from Roger Williams University and is a licensed Architect in Connecticut, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island, New York and Massachusetts. His past and present affiliations include the American Institute of Architects, ACE Mentor Program, the Board of Advisors for the Construction Institute, Connecticut Health Council, Hartford Youth Scholars, the International Council of Shopping Centers, the Society of College and University Planners, The Alternative Board, WALKS Consortium and MetroHartford Alliance.