Design, Leadership, and Life Lessons: An Exclusive Interview with Maybeck Design’s Founder, Danielle Harbeck

How Maybeck Design’s founder blends vision, leadership, and community impact through design

Behind every thriving design firm is a story of resilience, vision, and leadership. For Maybeck Design, that story begins with its founder, whose passion for architecture and interiors grew into a practice now shaping multifamily housing, luxury residences, and commercial spaces. In this interview, the conversation moves beyond design trends to explore the leadership lessons, pivotal moments, and values that continue to define Maybeck’s work today.

1. What inspired you to start Maybeck Design, and what was the vision behind it?

I started Maybeck to bridge a gap I kept seeing, not just between interior design and architecture, but also functionally from the clients perspective: beautiful concepts that didn’t translate to business results. Our vision is simple—design that moves the needle. In multifamily that’s faster lease-ups; in office it’s productivity and talent retention; in healthcare it’s calmer patients and efficient staff flow; in hospitality it’s better RevPAR and guest sentiment. We pair elevated aesthetics with clarity, speed, and buildability.

2. How would you describe your design philosophy in just a few words?

Timeless, outcome-driven, and buildable.

3. Real estate developers and business owners often see design as a numbers game. How do you balance the commercial side with creativity?

We design inside “smart guardrails”: target budget, schedule, lead-time risks, and a few non-negotiables. Every option is shown with cost, schedule, and ops impact. Creativity thrives when owners can make confident, data-backed decisions—so we present A/B alternates, live cost matrices, and renderings that are procurement-ready.

4. What has been one of the most challenging projects you’ve taken on, and what did it teach you?

A fast-tracked workplace where scope grew midstream while lead times shrank. We responded with weekly page-turns, early release packages, and pre-approved alternates. It reinforced a core belief: proactive coordination beats heroic rework. Process is a design tool.

5. On the flip side, what’s been one of your proudest moments as a designer and entrepreneur?

Seeing clients measure tangible wins—lease-ups ahead of plan, teams choosing to come back to the office, patient scores improving, F&B dwell time increasing—and hearing, “the space changed how we work.” That, plus growing a team culture that delivers reliably without burning out.

6. Where do you find your personal inspiration outside of work?

Hotels, galleries, and great restaurants—how people move, gather, and cue behavior. Also Dallas’ adaptive-reuse scene and travel between markets; regional specificity keeps our “timeless” from becoming generic.

7. On a personal note—what’s one thing people might be surprised to learn about you?

I’m as obsessed with operations as I am with finishes. Spreadsheets, SLAs, and checklists are part of our design kit—because predictable delivery is a client luxury.

8. If you could design any space in the world (without budget limits), what would it be and why?

A hybrid hospitality-health space: part boutique hotel, part community clinic, part wellness lab. Imagine hospitality comfort with healthcare rigor—human, efficient, and dignified.

9. What’s the number one design mistake you see people making most often in their homes /offices/ commercial spaces?

Treating acoustics and lighting as afterthoughts. If people can’t hear, focus, or feel comfortable from day to night, the most beautiful palette underperforms. We start with sound, light, and circulation, then layer materials.

10. Coffee, tea, or something else entirely—what fuels your creativity during long project days?

Coffee for concepts, tea for details, water for page-turns. And a well-timed site walk beats a third latte.

11. What’s your go-to way to unwind after a big project wraps up?

A quiet dinner, a long walk, and then a short retrospective with the team: what to repeat, what to refine. Recovery and learning are both part of the closeout.

12. Many readers are design enthusiasts or smaller studio owners. What advice would you give them as they grow their careers?

Treat process like a product: clear phases, defined revision rounds, and response SLAs. Show options with cost/schedule impact. Build supplier relationships early. And remember—design is a business of trust; predictability is a competitive advantage.