Once a perk, employee well-being is now an imperative. Key to ensuring a healthy workforce is mitigating the spread of airborne contaminants—and building mechanical systems play a vital role in this process. This session explored strategies and best practices for improving indoor air quality. If you missed the Breathe Healthy webcast you can watch the recording here.

This session explored the importance of acoustics as we re-occupy our office spaces, and  solutions to consider for creating an environment that will allow for collaboration with fellow colleagues - on and off technology platforms – as well as offer quiet spaces for focus work. If you missed the Sound Off! webcast you can watch the recording here.

In the midst of a global pandemic, our concerns about cleanliness are at an all-time high. Many are aware of approved cleaning protocols, but new questions arise daily about antimicrobial products and UV light sterilization. As we become more aware of viral transmission, our instincts might encourage us to explore every strategy and product that will disinfect the surfaces we touch every day. This session identified best practices for ensuring that our shared office surfaces do not become a source for viral transmission, while encouraging caution in rapid adoption of untested products and procedures. If you missed the webcast you can watch the recording here. 

This session explored new research, ideas, and strategies for our “next normal” workplace environments from across Perkins&Will’s studios. What’s next for the workplace? New ideas are proposed every day as our understanding of the pandemic shifts and expectations evolve. In the midst of a rapidly changing situation, we continue to believe that the workplace is a valuable tool for organizations. It provides a much-needed place to collaborate face-to-face, supports different employee workstyles, and acts as an anchor for corporate culture. But we recognize that our designs for physical offices must pivot to accommodate new behaviors and protocols brought on by the 2020 global health pandemic. If you missed the webcast you can watch the recording here. 

What’s next for the workplace? In the midst of a rapidly changing situation, we continue to believe that the workplace is a valuable tool for organizations. It enables face-to-face collaboration, supports different employee workstyles, and acts as an anchor for corporate culture. At the same time, we recognize that our designs for physical offices must pivot to accommodate new behaviors and protocols brought on by the pandemic.

Continuing where we left off in our Workplace Futures Part I, we explored strategies to challenge what we think of as "the office."  If you missed the webcast you can watch the recording here.