Pope Design Group Honored with Empowering Women Award
Friday, October 9th, 2026
Pope Design Group is excited to share that Finance & Commerce honored the firm with an Empowering Women Award.
Finance & Commerce’s Empowering Women Awards recognize Minnesota companies and organizations that are committed to supporting, advancing, and empowering women in the workplace. The awards celebrate employers that are creating opportunities for women to lead, grow, and succeed through mentorship, leadership development, and inclusive workplace practices.
Honorees are selected by Finance & Commerce and an independent panel of business leaders. Pope Design Group stood out to the panel for approaches in employee recruitment, retention and advancement of women, as well as workplace initiatives, mentorship and an overall commitment to supporting the next generation of women leaders.
Currently the firm’s makeup includes women as:
- 42% of leadership
- 60% of Associates and 54% of staff
- Leading 4 of our 7 design studios
One of the firm’s most significant accomplishments is the elevation of women in leadership as well as supporting them in the development of their careers. Pope Design Group prioritizes selecting the best candidate for each role, and the outcome of this commitment has contributed to a workforce where women have consistently represented 50% or more of the company.
To remove barriers to achieving professional license, the firm offers multiple professional development benefits: Continuing Education Funds & Hours, ARE/CID Licensing Hours, Exam Fees & Renewals, Access to Amber Book ARE 5.0 Prep Course. Through these offerings, the firm has helped support over 8 current women employees to professional licensure while employed at Pope Design Group.
Promoting from within reached a new historic milestone, with the promotion of the company’s first female President, Erica Larson, in 2026. Erica was the company’s first intern (you can ask her when), and also the youngest and first female Owner in 2014.
In addition, the firm has established important scholarship programs with the University of Minnesota and Iowa State University to provide scholarship funds to students pursuing architecture and interior design degrees. Six out of 10 of the scholarship recipients to date, whom are selected by the Universities, have been women.
Finally, Pope Design Group maintains a robust mentorship program, co-lead by a woman, and this year 32 out of 55 participants are women representing each department and facet of the company.
We are honored by the recognition from Finance & Commerce’s annual Empowering Women program.
