Executive Leadership Transition for SHP

After more than 35 years with SHP, President and CEO Lauren Della Bella will retire at the end of 2023. Jeffrey Sackenheim will succeed Della Bella as SHP’s President and CEO, and Charlie Jahnigen will assume the role of Executive Vice President.

Della Bella joined SHP in 1988 and held several other roles during her tenure with the firm, including Vice President of Marketing and Business Development. The first woman to hold the role of president at SHP, Della Bella is credited with growing SHP from a small regional practice to an award-winning national design firm with work in 26 states. She has expanded the firm’s disciplines and services beyond traditional practice and has cultivated a diverse and welcoming organization where everyone on SHP’s talented team can thrive. Della Bella is staying with SHP through 2023 to assist with the executive transition.

“Some leaders have to look far and wide to find their successor. SHP is doubly lucky to have two strong leaders who are already so integral to our culture. Jeffrey and Charlie have an incredibly collaborative partnership and they’re surrounded by 125 incredibly passionate, creative and technically savvy people that I know will help them carry forward the legacy of this firm.”
– Lauren Della Bella

Sackenheim joined the firm in 2002. A licensed architect, he has played a pivotal role in leading the firm’s creative and market diversification efforts. He holds a Master of Architecture from the University of Cincinnati and a BA in architecture from Miami University. Sackenheim is the president of the Board of Directors for the Children’s Home of Northern Kentucky, chairs the Fort Thomas, Kentucky Design Review Board and is a past president of AIA Cincinnati.

Jahnigen, also a licensed architect, joined SHP in 2000 and has led the planning and design of more than $1.5 billion in educational projects across the country for SHP. He holds a Master of Architecture and BA in architectural engineering from the University of Cincinnati. Jahnigen is a member of the University of Cincinnati College of Engineering Industrial Advisory Board and serves as the appeals chairman for the City of Wyoming Board of Zoning.

“The firm has grown so much under Lauren’s leadership. Charlie and I are incredibly thankful for the caring and familial culture she has fostered here. That commitment to empathy and understanding translates directly to our work, and it’s one of SHP’s key differentiators. We are grateful for the opportunity to advance the firm’s rigorous commitment to design, research and advocacy.”
– Jeffrey Sackenheim
“We envision taking SHP’s tradition of creating transformational solutions for our clients and continuing to expand upon it – with authenticity and entrepreneurial thinking. Jeffrey and I know that our team is the real key to the continued success of our firm. There’s a deep appreciation for all that we’ve accomplished together throughout SHP’s history, but we don’t rest on that. Our eyes are set clearly towards the future.”
– Charlie Jahnigen

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