Welcome to Work Design Flex: Back to the Office • Summer 2021
The dust of the pandemic has not yet settled and it’s becoming increasingly clear there is no magic solution. Going forward, organizations will rely deeply on culture, trust, and new management styles to make things work. Metrics of the past will be replaced with performance and corporate goal measurements. Developers are thinking one thing, while coworking insiders envision another. We’ll explore all of this and more through our interactive forum, packed with pro-to-pro conversations, ultimately culminating in a virtual guide for corporations on creating the next work environment.
Plan to join us every Wednesday (mid-day Eastern Standard Time) beginning June 30 – July 28th
This series is the prelude for The Next Office 2.0, an in-person retreat, and more advanced version of this summer’s interactive conversation.
Why make time for Work Design Flex?
- We’ve rounded up the heads of leading organizations to debate and advance the knowledge base across the industry.
- Flexible and low-commitment — sessions will be spread out over five weeks so you can pick and choose the right content for you.
- This series will address relevant information your organization needs to know now.
The Overview
Week 1: Heads of Research on What’s Really Happening Now
Week 2: Workplace Health & Safety + The Options: How will choice and flexibility work?
Week 3: A&D Firm Leaders Discuss What the New Office Looks Like
Week 4: Organization, Workplace and the Individual: How do they connect?
Week 5: Is this a stop & reset time? What we should be thinking about
The Line Up with Registration by Session
Choose the session(s )that will be most meaningful to you and register below. Click the title to view the details. Have a conflict? No worries – sign up for a session and you’ll automatically receive the recording plus follow-up interviews with the presenters.
JUNE 30
There are different perspectives from organizations on whether they are going back or staying remote. How are different organizations responding? What patterns are occurring? What are the lessons learned from the data analyst and research perspective? What the data is telling us?
Keynote Speaker: Calandra Cruickshank, StateBook
Plus an Audience-Driven Discussion of What Matters Most
To kick off our series with a comprehensive review of the workplace, we need the hard facts and data. What is really happening? Many of the survey results that you see have a bias – that promotes a specific interest. We have assembled the best research and data minds in the world that focus on talent, distributed work, use of technology, work patterns, and corporate office space. They will present their observations and discuss the shifts that are occurring.
Following a brief presentation from each of our panel of experts, our moderator will focus the discussion on what real-time audience polls vote to be of greatest interest. Don’t just come to listen. Come to define the conversation.
Moderator: Calandra Cruickshank, StateBook
Speakers:
- Ben Waber, Humanyze
- Kate Lister, Global Workplace Analytics
- Peggie Rothe, Leesman
- Bryan Berthold, Cushman & Wakefield
JULY 7
What are the requirements of a safe environment? What type of engineering is required? Can we create really health work environments? Managing risk and cost, what’s the best way to keep people safe and healthy? What does it take to keep people safe? A guide for the design of the office and office building.
Moderator: Jessica Cooper, IWBI
Speakers:
- Kim Pexton, JBG Smith
- Kevin Cahill, Interface Engineering
- John Campbell, Francis Cauffman
The workplace ecosystem is expanding and blending with our homes and local neighborhoods. An emerging landscape of options for where employees may choose to work will present challenges for individuals and companies to navigate. What are the practical implications, opportunities, and risks?
This session is sponsored by:
Moderator: Nick LiVigne, Incendium Consulting
Speakers:
- Mark Gilbreath, LiquidSpace
- Andrea Pirrotti-Dranchak, officeevolution
- Linda Foggie, Turner & Townsend
JULY 14
If I can work from anywhere why should I go to the office? How does the office need to change? How healthy is healthy? What types of work spaces will become a priority? What is going to make me want to be there? What do those considering new space need to consider?
Moderator: Caitlin McKenna, JLL
Speakers:
- Tom Polucci, HOK
- Erik Lucken, IA
- Pablo Quintana, Stantec
- Jamie Feuerborn, Ted Moudis Associates
JULY 21
Organization, Workplace and the Individual: How do they connect? What pain points should be considered? How has the employee-employer relationship changed with remote work? How do we help people who are returning with a heightened sensitivity to sensory elements? What strategies can be leveraged in reducing stress by design and in the change management process?
This session is sponsored by: 
Speakers:
- Kay Sargent, HOK
- Rex Miller, Go mindSHIFT
JULY 28
A conversation with the leading workplace experts from the world’s foremost real estate firms to share their perspectives, ideas, and questions on the full range of issues and challenges that surround getting back to the office. The conversation will look beyond the physical environment to the drivers that shape our environment. Traditional standards are no longer valid and there are more questions and increasingly rapid change. As a result, the workplace is receiving more consideration and scrutiny than ever before.
The panel will examine how are corporate leaders and occupiers are thinking about the workplace in the post-pandemic world, including the CEO’s perspective and how it is different from the people returning to the office, as well as, the biggest concerns, questions, and challenges facing the workplace. It will include topics such as diversity and inclusion, inequity, urban infrastructure, the digital divide, and where there are opportunities to improve, and the risks returning from over a year of remote work.
This session is sponsored by: 
Moderator: Bob Fox, Work Design Magazine + FOX Architects
Speakers:
- Antonia Cardone, Cushman & Wakefield
- Lenny Beaudoin, CBRE
- Lori Louis, JLL
Have a conflict? No worries – sign up for a session and you’ll automatically receive the recording plus follow-up interviews with the presenters.
We are actively seeking sponsors with leading solutions that support returning to the office to join us. Is that you?
Contact [email protected] to explore the best alignment option for your organization.
