Live virtual presentation

Remote work has changed how we live, work, use, and share our homes and workspaces. The clever interventions of citizen designers to optimize their at-home workspaces have persisted and shifted behavioral expectations and workplace priorities. This presentation will address new realities and expectations for today’s workspaces and employees. We will share first-hand accounts and collected evidence to understand better how people from various fields and locations have improvised and redefined workspace by considering how, when, and where they work. By evaluating the spatial, digital, and behavioral needs met without the support of a designer, participants will be able to speculate design trends that foster healthy hybrid work environments now and into the future.

Live virtual presentation

Kodak is the ultimate example of a company that went out of existence because it failed to realize the shifts in the market and user demands. Corporate real estate companies face that prospect if they don’t recognize the shifts that are already occurring and seize the moment. From the need to go beyond just being sustainable to understanding user expectations; from how technology is evolving and impacting workplace to the need to innovate; from ownership to access. As Stephen Shapiro noted, “When the pace of change outside your organization is greater than the pace of change within, you will be eaten.” The challenge is to look beyond today and see what lies ahead so we can adapt accordingly.

Live virtual presentation

The pandemic has created new paradigms for a reimagined normal that puts into question the successes of the old normal while at the same time creating two camps of thinking about the future of the workplace. On one side there is the hybrid workplace while on the other, returning to the physical workplace should be expected.

Strategies are being explored that reimagine the future. This presentation will look at how these strategies should not be viewed purely as a response to conditions created by the pandemic but as opportunities to reinvent perspectives around work and place and to question many of the assumptions that have driven workplace strategies pre-pandemic. We will look at those elements of the old normal that design solutions arising from a pandemic and post-pandemic perspective have proven to be ill conceived and what opportunities exist now to create a new vision driven by redefining an organization's definition of both work and place. More importantly we will explore if our polarized discourse around the post-pandemic workplace is really solving the right problem.

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In the midst of all the past year’s upheaval there is real opportunity to learn from the social sciences and transform our organizations and their workplaces in socially meaningful and economically beneficial ways. Social cohesion is proven to have the highest correlation to team productivity, and is significantly tied to individual performance, motivation, engagement, learning outcomes and reducing anxiety and stress. The act of designing physical workplaces can contribute to strengthening social cohesion: in both in what is recommended and in how the organization is engaged during the design process. This session will share the research behind social cohesion and its components: fairness, authenticity, partnership and belonging; and how unwritten rules help us uncover and address where we fall short. Examples of how workplace design improve social cohesion and lead to organizational success will be reviewed.

Live virtual presentation

In spite of the rash predictions of doomsayers, the office is not dead: there will always be a need for in-person work modes and collaboration. But some of the movement toward remote work is inevitable, and concerns of how to best support that will likely be with us for decades. Led by director of workplace for Dyer Brown Architects and featuring a co-presenter from a major global corporation, this session focuses on strategies for understanding the office of the future: what it needs, what it looks like, and how it will function. The session will function as a roadmap, presenting applicable methods for understanding what the optimized office could be, and how that will differ from company to company. In addition to a discussion of space realignment for a hybrid remote-work model and associated technology approaches, this session will explore organizational needs and change management.

Live virtual presentation

Our world has collectively experienced a major trauma. Given that, how can employers provide physical spaces to accept their teammates where they are and provide them with a place to thrive rather than just survive? Studies have proven that a huge part of making these employees feel comfortable, safe and productive has to do with their environment. Together, Kristin Cerutti and Jill Pable will bring a more empathetic perspective to creating workplaces that are more inclusive for everyone, including the neurodiverse workforce. Let's show that designing for those who need us most will truly benefit all involved.

Live virtual presentation

WELL v2 represents a new paradigm for supporting and advancing human health through better buildings. This session explains how WELL differs from other rating systems and documents how one Chicago office became the first project in Illinois to become WELL™ Certified to the Platinum level under WELL v2 Pilot, resulting in an office design that was well positioned for the unexpected COVID-19 pandemic. The presenters will share the implementation and documentation process; benchmarking results from pre- and post-occupancy surveys; the WELL v2 Pilot’s impact on an organization’s environment, staff, operations, policy, and financials; how the WELL rating system has complemented best practices for physical and mental health that have emerged from the COVID-19 response, and how the process can add to a project’s resilience.

Live virtual presentation

COVID-19 has helped show us the importance of managing our indoor air environment. Studies have shown that exposure to some chemicals and particles in the indoor environment can lead to serious health concerns. Chemical Insights’ advanced toxicology lab will help you understand how chemicals and particles impact the indoor environment and human health. To mitigate risks, exposure reduction best practices will be shared including design decisions, increased air ventilation and cleaning practices. This session will describe the landscape of the indoor environment, reveal the research process, and present research findings. Attendees will then be able to apply what they learned as best practices.

Live virtual presentation

From decreasing stress to improving physical health, nature has a significant influence on well-being. Design can be a tool to solve the challenges of an increasingly digitized society and help end users find balance between nature and built environments, especially commercial spaces. Fractals are intricate patterns that occur naturally throughout our surroundings, from clouds and trees to blood vessels and neurons. Research has shown that stress levels can reduce by as much as 60% when an occupant of these spaces experiences and views mid-complexity fractal patterns. Their harmonic repetition triggers a natural relaxation effect. Attendees of this presentation will explore this approach to design by using fractal concepts, and learn how to integrate finishes and overall structures based on stress-reductive patterning using real-world examples.

Live virtual presentation

The pandemic has uncovered new opportunities that will influence how the design of future spaces will focus on human health. Rising concerns around returning to public spaces (interior/exterior) have led to a renewed interest in fresh, open air design solutions, increased emphasis on modalities, and purposeful, flexible spaces that support physical/mental health. This discussion will explore the must-have tools and ideas needed to create rejuvenating spaces that are socially conscious to recently established health concerns. Attendees will learn about tangible, forward-thinking design strategies – with an emphasis on the outdoors – that they can use to create healthier lifestyles and workplaces that lead to a fit future for design.

Live virtual presentation

The workplace has been a catalyst for sustainability, but the battle between ESG and a world-class workplace is ongoing. The commercial interiors refresh cycle aimed at attracting and keeping talent is at odds with achieving a better carbon footprint. Commercial interiors drives 11.8 million tons of furniture to the landfill (5% of total domestic waste).

This session will introduce a better way -- one that doesn’t lean on ownership or down-cycling, but instead builds on the notion of stewardship and the promise of infinite reuse for heirloom-calibre furniture and fixtures. Attendees will learn how workplace creators, manufacturers and end-users can change the paradigm.

Live virtual presentation

Verda Alexander, co-founder of Studio O+A, and Jon Strassner of ASID share a very special narrative compiled of over 30 episodes of their podcast, "Break Some Dishes." Going back through their very special curation of conversations and interviews, Verda and Jon share a story focused on bringing Green Science innovations and inspirations to the interior design industry. Designers can and should act now to make changes to how they specify product and materials. Break some dishes with Jon and Verda to broaden your perspective on Sustainability!

Live virtual presentation

Every year, through the products they specify, designers impact $429 Billion of US GDP, generate 170 million tons of construction waste, and contribute to 39% of global carbon emissions. Learn to harness that power for good in this session. You’ll hear about the Living Product Challenge, the only product framework for manufacturers to create products that are healthy and net positive for people and the environment, allowing designers to select products that do good rather than harm. You’ll explore handprinting: the only way to quantifiably measure the positive impact a product makes. Attendees will hear how manufacturers are using this framework to reimagine how they design and create products. Walk away with an understanding of how to source products that make a true impact.

Live virtual presentation

Living in a world that generates more waste than it recycles, Generation Scrap explores Gen Z’s attitudes and design solutions to the global climate crisis. Through a collaboration between Ohio State’s Interior Materials course and Mohawk Group’s Product Development team, students research and identify sustainability challenges impacting their generation to develop macro design trends that are translated into speculative carpet designs. From ocean plastic to fast fashion waste and even climate refugees, topics address circular design with a real-world understanding to develop innovative carpet design solutions that positively impact the natural environment and the human experience. This partnership project highlights the importance of collaboration between educational institutions and industry to create designs that support the growing demands and values of Gen Z.

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In an increasingly digital world, designers and facility managers seek to limit life-cycle impacts of furniture and building materials beyond the use phase. With sustainability goals in mind such as reducing embodied carbon and diverting waste from landfills, the presenters outline existing alternatives to cradle-to-grave product life-cycles, as well as new ideas for minimizing environmental impact and supporting various communities. A discussion of how furniture specification and product life-cycle contribute to a project’s carbon footprint sets the stage for a look forward at innovative reuse solutions, including those that leverage smart connected technology integrated with wall systems, furnishings, equipment, and more to revolutionize the ecosystem of offices, coworking spaces, and other workplaces today.

Live virtual presentation

In March 2020, as the Coronavirus pandemic was spreading around the globe, Hometown Health Center, a rural healthcare provider in Maine, engaged Harriman to design a new healthcare clinic, a community wellness center, a child and adult day care facility as well as their administration offices. This session will share lessons learned about how designers and health providers worked collaboratively to create a resilient facility that meets the unique needs of this rural community. The presenters will discuss how a technology-driven process bridged geographic divides, how they achieved a holistic program, how the design enhances patient and staff safety, and overall how they were able to design a state-of-the-art facility for a rural community in a virtual world.

Live virtual presentation

“Place” is an integral part of treatment creating positive energy and dynamic interaction. Patients need hope, confidence, and positive distractions. Flexibility and engagement are essential for healing. Good design promotes the inoculation of stress in the experience of all users. This session focuses on transforming spaces into multimodal healing environments and will illustrate how two projects, starting with similar design challenges, resulted in two distinctive design solutions. Both pediatric units successfully created a sense of “place” for caregivers, families, and diverse patient populations by emphasizing playful and inviting designs, while maintaining highly functional spaces.

Live virtual presentation

Considering all cultures that frequent a healing space is mandatory to helping people thrive in their environment of care. There are cultural impacts on Designing for Wellness. With an increasingly diverse population, it is very hard to consider everyone’s customs and rituals, but not researching them in advance of designing a space can lead to failure in many ways; of retention rates, new customers, returning patients and residents enrollment. We live in a very competitive healthcare environment now and people can choose where they go to heal, have surgeries, retire and sadly end in palliative care. By investigating what cultures are prevalent in the area you are designing for, you can create an inclusive healing space and the general public feels welcome that you have accommodated them and thought about their customs and traditions in the space they are in. When you consider the cultures in the region you’re designing for, you are truly helping the population heal in a space they find comfort and trust in. Long standing customs are an integral part of our familiarity and sense of self. Losing this piece of the puzzle will reduce, and, in some cases, negate the healing process. We all want what is best for our community, so let’s be more cognizant of who it comprises. We need to use language surrounding customary traditions to make for a more inclusive environment and teach each other about one another in these areas aimed at our health and wellbeing.

Live virtual presentation

The United States has a National Pandemic Strategy and an implementation plan centered on three pillars: preparedness/communication; surveillance/detection; and response/containment. While most of these plans are concentrated on protocols/procedures that hospital staff and administration follow, few US hospitals are designed with flexibility allowing immediate physical change to enhance infection control during pandemic outbreaks. This presentation demonstrates planning and design strategies of 3 international facilities from Canada, the UK and Southeast Asia. The lessons learned during the SARS outbreak in 2002 results in a unique approach to hospital design. These facilities have features designed to contain airborne infections, including instantaneous flexing from normal operation to pandemic treatment mode through spatial and mechanical system changes. This understanding is vital with the current Covid-19 global pandemic and future new infectious diseases.

Live virtual presentation

Our times demand an intergenerational community model that supports elders, youth, families, and those who serve them in environments that foster a sense of purpose and social cohesion through learning, innovation, and pathways for personal growth. Promising new collaborations between senior living and higher education entities show a brighter path for elder populations with reduced isolation and improved access to quality care. This path leads to successful supportive environments for all ages by shifting from the existing elder care paradigm towards one facilitating research, training, and pursuit of shared affinities and commonalities. The process starts with stakeholder engagement in an integrated programming process to understand resident needs to design supportive environments reflecting health and wellness combined with access to services, amenities, and ‘family’ development.

Live virtual presentation

The question about color that often arises is: “How do color trends impact the lifespan of a product, a setting, interiors and exteriors? How do you select the long-lived colors? What hues are considered timeless? The answer is that there are classic colors included in a group of hues called 'crossovers.'” They are the colors that appear so frequently in natural settings that the human eye becomes accustomed to seeing them in many applications and contexts. They are considered classics, basics and staples, and, as such, they enjoy a long shelf life and greater longevity. This illustrated talk will give you a “macro view” of how the classics and crossovers can help you in the selection, application, marketing, design and presentation of color.

Live virtual presentation

Poor acoustics are a source of frustration, distraction, and dissatisfaction in the work environment. The way we work is evolving. Design trends will continue to change but the impact of those changes on acoustics is often not considered. When acoustic implications aren't considered, spaces are likely to be more distracting, less productive, underutilized, and unhealthy for workers. This session will offer clarity to the complexity of acoustical design and explore measuring success through user satisfaction rather than outdated metrics. The goal is to make spaces that work.

Live virtual presentation

Incorporating Experiential Graphic Design (EGD) into your projects can set them apart, elevating them into spaces that are memorable, interactive, and bespoke. But incorporating EGD into your process can be… tricky. In this talk, hear how two designers have successfully integrated their process to create eye-catching projects that clients love. Jules Naujoks (Experiential Graphic Designer) and Melissa Wortman (Interior Designer) will discuss the complexities of merging these two disciplines — including strategies for when and how to incorporate EGD, effective collaboration and communication techniques, as well as several examples of how they have gone far beyond the basics while creating standout cohesive designs (and streamlined project schedules).

Live virtual presentation

Principal Karen Herold of Studio K Creative speaks on the interior design process, describing her method of concept development, focusing on the experience that each guest has and how to create a ‘from scratch’ concept instead of replicating current designs found online. Stemming from her background in fashion design, Karen walks through her process of creating a concept from a fashion image / an inspiration image, describing the image and the emotions one feels. Her insights on this process help advise on how to empathize with a client and provide a tool that creates a clear design direction for a project.

Live virtual presentation

Lighting designers bring a unique mix of technical and creative expertise, bridging the gap between science and art. Learn how professional lighting design consultants can help you – from solving technical roadblocks to proposing lighting design concepts you didn’t know were possible. As people passionate about lighting, lighting designers can help you tap into resources with specific product knowledge, relationships, and project experience to make your next project stand out. This course also gives an overview of the lighting design process and technical aspects of lighting design.

Live virtual presentation

Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) has proven to be an incredibly powerful project delivery method, prompting designers to re-think the traditional creative process. Using Penn Medicine’s Pavilion as a case study, this discussion will focus on how interior designers can drive consensus and optimize project outcomes in IPD by focusing on three main tracks: Experience, Performance and Execution. What is the vision for the space and the message it sends? How does the space respond to the needs of those who use it? How can the IPD team deliver a final product that fulfills the collective vision? This presentation will demonstrate the power of IPD driven by collaboration and common purpose.

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Design is all about intentionality—how can we apply design principles and thoughtful design to the creation of a talent pipeline to infuse our industry with a rich, wide-ranging supply of diverse talent? We’re starting from the ground floor—yes, kindergarten—to build a robust pipeline for the designers of tomorrow. Many of us in design are confronting the profession's lack of diversity and wondering how we can effect change. Through an open, revealing discussion with three speakers at the heart of our industry who are also at the forefront of working for greater inclusion in the design world, this session will examine key aspects of the challenge and explore real-world, actionable solutions.

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This course provides knowledge about BIFMA’s mission and work. The course explains Why Standards Matter to all involved with furniture procurement to ensure decisions are informed by safety, wellness, and sustainability. In this course, you’ll learn about the historical context that drove the need for developing industry-wide furniture performance standards and understand the impact of social, economic, and technological trends on the bottom line for business owners. You'll identify how testing procedures simulate actual use over the life of the product and you will know how to access LEVEL and BIFMA Compliant as the tools to evaluate your furniture selections.

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If simply being good stewards of our environment and designing inspiring spaces for the well-being of the occupants and company culture weren't enough to motivate a designer and a client, then perhaps ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) criteria is. If your client hasn't dropped these three letters to you or if you aren't familiar with the world of investors, ESG Criteria are values-based and investors who employ this strategy examine the criteria within the three categories to analyze stocks and their potential return. ESG investors are more interested in what happens during the next decade than the next quarter. Is your company sustainable? So, what does this mean to you: the client, the designer, the developer, the building owner or facility manager? While this is a type of qualitative and quantitative transparency tool developed primarily for company investors - it's also a great guide and reference to influence design. To better understand what ESG Criteria is and the value to both company stakeholders and shareholders, this session will explore companies that have a high ESG score and specifically look at metrics that are heavily influenced by design. We will also look at different market industries to better understand the concept of ESG impact.

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Designing offices where people achieve their professional objectives requires information about users and how they work best, space-in-use experiences and expectations, and a range of other important topics. Research tools and technologies are evolving to meet the data needs of designers but material about available research tools/technologies and how they are best used is difficult for both practitioners and researchers to obtain. In this session, individuals pioneering the use of important research tools/technologies will discuss them in a straightforward way. Attendees will leave with the information they need to use valuable research tools/technologies in practice and to work effectively with data collected to develop powerful design solutions.