WORKTECH 17: Learning From Industry Leaders in Technology, Innovation and Design
Image above courtesy of WORKTECH
One of our lead interior designers, Kelly Lea, recently attended the WORKTECH 17 conference in New York City. The conference serves as a forum for all those involved in the workplace, as well as real estate, technology and innovation.
WORKTECH 17 brought in some of the brightest names in the industry, hosting debates and discussions about the future of the workplace over the course of two days. Read on for Kelly’s recap of the event.
WORKTECH 17 was an opportunity to hear from industry leaders on the future of designing workspaces. Over the course of two days, an abundant amount of information was given spanning multiple disciplines on the impact designers have on workplace environments. We heard from leaders in lighting to an architect who has designed some of the most cutting edge workplace designs.
Here are a few key takeaways from the conference:
Image above courtesy of WORKTECH
Hierarchy vs. Network Structures
Presentation by Chris Fussell, co-author of the book Team of Teams and former U.S. Navy Seal
Fussell held a discussion on the differences between teams that function in a hierarchy structure vs. network structure. In his experience in the Navy, Fussell gained experience working within the hierarchy structure during the war in Afghanistan. He describes the difference like this:
- Hierarchy: very stable, traditional, predictable, scalable and efficient.
- Network: unstable, harder to scale, very adaptable and moves quickly.
Fussell recommends creating a hybrid of these two structures, allowing teams and organizations to function at their peak.
Learn more about Chris Fussell.
Image above courtesy of WORKTECH
Connecting Things to Each Other and People to Things
Presentation by Ryan Anderson, director of Commercialization & Business Development, Connected (IoT) Solutions at Herman Miller
We learned how technology solutions can support what we do and how we can collect data along the way, providing design solutions that give the most value to our clients. As interior designers, we should be asking ourselves: how can we use this relevant data in how we plan space?
Learn more on the Internet of Things and the implications it has in the design world.
Designing for the Individual, Not the Resources
Presentation From the Leadership Team at Boston Consulting Group
The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) team encourages employers to work with designers to create spaces, in which employees can truly connect with the space and enjoy being at the office each day. When this happens, hiring top talent becomes easier and retention numbers increase. A few things to keep in mind when designing for the individual:
- Look to the future of how work will be done and what is needed to support employees.
- Work on making routines (like having visitors check in) as easy and seamless as possible.
- Focus on frequent occurrences like video conferences (and others that shouldn’t require help from IT) and make these tasks more effortless through the merging of technology and design.
Conferences like WORKTECH 17 serve as an inspirational resource for interior designers to stay up-to-date on the latest trends, technology and innovations leading the design world. There was so much more good info that came out of the conference, so visit the WORKTECH website to read and watch more from the full lineup.
