About us.
Datum Design Build is a design-build firm based in Minneapolis, working across the Upper Midwest. We're led by hands-on management and built on long working relationships with the people who make good buildings happen.
Why I started Datum
I got into design and construction to improve the world around us. A thoughtful space creates a better experience for the people who use it.
Over my career, I've been fortunate to design restaurants, offices, warehouses, and apartments. The projects that stayed with me were for clients whose focus is other people. That focus shows up in many building types, but it's clearest in senior care, in childcare, and among the people who live in and manage apartment and condominium buildings. I've never met an owner in these fields whose mission wasn't centered on the lives of the people inside. Working alongside them is how I want to use my talents: to help and care for people.
That's also why I built a design-build company. The heart of the business is the clients we serve. We take the time to understand their goals, their passions, and what a new building means to them, and then we guide them through the entire process instead of handing them off. We want to be part of their story, not a forgotten bump in the road. Their success is our success.
Jeff Schuler, AIAPrincipal
Our values
People are our reference point.
Buildings come and go, but people are what matter to us. A building only lasts as long as it's useful to the people around it, and without people and their ambitions, we wouldn't have anything to build. That commitment extends to our own team. As a company, we're only as good as our people, and the people on our team are the heart of our business.
Listen first.
Our first conversation goes beyond square footage. We want to understand your goals and what you need to fulfill your mission, including the dates you can't miss. Most of all, we want to understand how you and the people who use your building will spend their days there, so we can design around them.
Honesty.
When everyone is fair and honest with each other, we get to the best outcome. You'll get straight answers from us about cost, schedule, and the tradeoffs in between.
Your success is our success.
We care about people above all else, and that means helping you succeed. The most successful building is the one that meets your goals and serves the people inside it. Whether that's an efficient, no-frills building or the Taj Mahal, we design and build to what you need. A building doesn't have to be beautiful to accomplish your goals, but with us, it can be both.
Lasting relationships.
Our relationship doesn't end at move-in. After a project with us, we'll be your first call: a resource you can rely on, whether we help directly or point you to someone who can.
“After the success of this project, we have reached out to Jeff for several other things.”
“I would gladly work with Jeff Schuler again.”
Everyone at the table
Architects, construction professionals, engineers, and landscape architects work at the same table from the start, and our subcontractors help shape design and planning for the best result.
Everyone has a voice. A tradesperson may know a faster, better way to build something because they've seen it work in the field. That direct, unfiltered feedback keeps our designs improving with every project. See our process
Relationships and partnerships
Our subcontractors and consultants are long-term partners who know how we work and what we expect. As we grow, we hire people who share our values.
Those relationships extend to our clients, too. Many of the owners and managers we work with return for their next project, and that trust is the foundation we're building on.
Leadership
Jeff Schuler, AIA
Principal
"As a company, we're only as good as our team."
Jeff Schuler has spent 15 years designing and building places where people live, learn, and are cared for: memory care and senior living communities, childcare centers, apartments and condominiums, along with hotels, restaurants, churches, clinics, and offices.
He's worked on both sides of the table, as the architect drawing the building and as the project manager building it. That's what led him to design-build. He's seen how much gets lost when a project is handed back and forth between design and construction, and how much better it goes when the same people carry it from the first conversation to the keys.
Jeff leads Datum the way he runs a project: hands-on, close to the work, and honest about the budget. He'd rather spend a first meeting learning about your goals and the people who will use your building than talking about square footage. And when the project is done, he wants to be the first call you make for the next one.
- Licensed architect in Minnesota, California, and North Dakota
- Member, American Institute of Architects
- Minnesota contractor registration IR818026
What owners and partners say
“Jeff served as our guide throughout the entire process. Construction projects are never easy, but Jeff consistently provided thoughtful design solutions, excellent advice, and careful attention to our budget. I would gladly work with Jeff Schuler again.”
Work with us
We're always glad to meet designers, builders, and trade partners who care about the people a building serves as much as we do. If that sounds like you, get in touch. Subcontractors and suppliers can prequalify here.
Have a project in mind?
Tell us what you're working on, even if it's early. Your first conversation is with our leadership, not a salesperson.