IIDA Industry Roundtable 24 Report

The International Interior Design Association

DESIGNING WHAT’S NEXT:

TOWARD GREATER EQUITY, RELEVANCE, AND RESILIENCY

Mind Openers

Next-Level EDI Skills

Crowd-Sourced ��������� Wisdom

Smart Connections

Healthier Design

Thoughtful Sustainability

Talent Strategies

Future Forecasts

WE SHOWED UP, LI SHARED KNOWLED BIG QUESTIONS, TO ENVISIONED THE F HERE ARE YOUR NEXT

ISTENED HARD, DGE, ASKED THE OOK A STAND, AND FUTURE OF DESIGN. STEPS.

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CONTENTS

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Letter from Cheryl

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Open Your Mind

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Big Q + Collected Wisdom: Connecting

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Healthcare + Design

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Big Q + Collected Wisdom: Talent

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Expanding Your Equity Acumen

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The ROI of EDI

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Anatomy of an EDI Case Study

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A New Sensibility for Sustainability

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Big Q + Collected Wisdom: Sustainability

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What the Futurist Saw

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The IR24 Network

Shown Above: Row 1 Doug Shapiro, Ind. IIDA with Alexis Moore, IIDA; Angie Lee, FIIDA; Row 2 Tara Headly, IIDA; Jon Otis, IIDA; Row 3 Mike Johnson, IIDA 4

Predicting the future, as anyone can tell you, can be perilous business. And yet, pulling back the curtain on what’s next is not only tempting; it’s necessary to survive and thrive both in our work and in our lives.

Neil Armstrong once astutely observed that “we predict too much for the next year, and yet far too little for the next 10.” It’s just that kind of far-reaching foresight—coupled with flexibility, resilience, and a thorough grounding in our humanity and that of others—that can leave us open to the possibilities, optimistic for what we can create.

Building the best version of that shared future is going to require some serious skills. And skills, of course, require practice.

That’s why, at this year’s Industry Roundtable, we talked, listened, absorbed, synthesized, and contextualized the information that was shared, and came away with some strategies and practices that can have a profound impact on both the future of design and the future of us all.

Competencies around equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) represent one such skill set, allowing us to welcome the knowledge and creativity that the world has to offer, without some of the stumbling blocks that have cut us off from that vital, diverse perspective for too long.

Futurecasting—learning to embrace the techniques of futurists to reexamine today’s needs and imagine solutions that can take us into the next decade—is another key competency; the skill of shifting your mindset to “Ready.”

Design itself, of course, connotes a set of skills that are intrinsically connected to creating a shared future. Successful design is not detached from the world we all inhabit, it is intimately, uniquely of that world; inviting us in, provoking interaction and human connection, and envisioning what’s next.

Those three skill sets are truly intersectional, comprising a kind of tool kit for the future. And, as you’ll see on the pages that follow, you can practice them in your life and work on a daily basis. That daily determination to explore, grow, and take action, whether incrementally or by leaps and bounds, is the challenge. It’s the charge, for all of us.

Let’s get started.

Cheryl S. Durst, Hon. FIIDA Executive Vice President and CEO IIDA 5

YOUR

MIND

Industry Roundtable has always been about convening and connecting design’s great minds. IR24, more than ever and across every session, challenged us to keep our minds open: open to our fellow humans, open to new ideas, and open to a wider range of possible futures. Here are a few tools to help you not just be open … but stay that way.

Don’t forget to breathe: Imagine a sigh of relief that happens in your brain; mindful breathing literally opens the mind.

Neuroscience tells us that it deactivates our brain’s stress response, increasing access to the thalamus (considered the gateway to consciousness) and allowing us to expand and deepen our thinking and entertain new thoughts.

Looking for a starting place?

IR24 Futurist-in Residence, Mark Bryan, swears by the five-five-five technique.

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Seek the new: Breaking those constricting bubbles requires intention and action. Set a goal to incorporate at least one new experience per week; seek out a new cuisine, an opposing point of view, a new-to-you art or cultural experience. Actively cultivating the new expands your field of vision.

(Who’s up for a 2022 new experiences challenge?)

Question yourself: Before you get boxed into a course of action, remember to back all the way out of your assumptions. Cultivate the habit of questioning the foundational idea: Do we need workplace culture?

Should a design degree be a prerequisite? Zoom all the way out, and things might look different—setting you on course to solutions you never imagined.

Q.

HOW DO WE FIND OURSELVES (AND OUR INDUSTRY) IN A HYBRID WORLD?

Collective Wisdom: ENABLE NEXT-WAVE COLLABORATION:

REIMAGINE INDUSTRY INTERACTIONS: New models for manufacturer/designer interaction are emerging in a world where virtual or hybrid work is a given. IIDA’s South Florida Chapter has launched “Wellness Wednesdays,” meet-ups that center around affirming slices of personal life, from crafts to dog parenting, while offering a chance to learn about products. “It has been a massive success,” says Alexis Moore, IIDA, “it has been amazing sharing experiences and establishing those relationships.”

Some of the brightest minds in manufacturing are examining processes, from how a product gets made to how it gets sold. “When you look at our industry, we’re ready for some sort of change,” says Jennifer Ruckel, Ind. IIDA. “Designers, meanwhile, miss all that thinktanking,” says Katy Mercer, IIDA. “Through collaboration, we can figure out what the next version is.”

Can those two forces push us to new products, processes, and ways of working, in an age when a web-customized pair of Nikes can land on your doorstep in a few weeks? “We need to watch other industries for context,” says Jim Williamson, FIIDA, “how did [Nike] re-engineer their process to make that happen?”

WELCOME HACKERS: It’s a given—monolithic, dictated-fromon-high workplace culture is a thing of the past. “When we all got sent home, we became great hackers,” says Doug Shapiro, Ind. IIDA. “We shouldn’t forget that back at the office.” The curve of personalization and individuality continues to rise; and, though “we can’t know exactly what the future of the office is until we get back to the office,” says Sascha Wagner, FIIDA, design that invites ingenuity and champions broad-based individuality offers the beginnings of a path forward.

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Design on the Frontlines | Healthcare + Design Insights from a doctor/designer on duty in a pandemic.

Thankfully, no one has had to deal with absolutely everything the pandemic has dealt out.

But Dr. Manuel Hernandez, MD, MS, MBA, CPE, has definitely experienced a bigger slice than most. As an emergency medicine physician, he has sampled firsthand the frustrations healthcare workers face in this crisis, and has seen the successes and failures of the U.S. healthcare system play out in his day-to-day. As a designer (that’s right, he does both jobs) he has experienced the challenges and uncertainties that face an industry weathering a seismic shift.

His key insight, two years in?

“The design industry needs to look at itself through a different lens,” he says, “and seek to move beyond placemaking and into community and experience-making. This is particularly true in healthcare.” Here are a few more eye-opening thoughts from Hernandez:

Your consumer, the community:

Flexible design is future design:

Emotional wellness is the new built-in:

Unlike retail or other client types, the lion’s share of healthcare design doesn’t serve a targeted demographic. Instead, Hernandez recommends, designers should focus on designing for the surrounding community, creating comforting, welcoming spaces that can serve the incredibly wide range of people who show up needing help. “Every person walking through the door is different,” he says, and access and equity are increased when we design for a whole community. Which makes us wonder about other project types: Could a workplace be designed to welcome the surrounding community, as well as its workforce?

COVID is our present—but not our future; so designing for present circumstances can limit our process and our projects in ways that won’t serve clients or end users five years from now. Instead, he says, “we need to design for hyperflexibility, using technology and data to help inform design decisions and show clients how all of those functions are going to play out.” Designs that can evolve as circumstances change will better position healthcare for resiliency in the face of the next challenge.

As we face the unfolding mental health crisis, not just for patients but for healthcare workers, designers must address emotional well-being as a basic, human need.

“When we as designers think about emotional wellness we need to dig deeper, deeper, deeper,” Hernandez says, “and understand the why behind the challenge.” Understanding the necessity to better equip designers to create, assess, and pivot as needed—keeping flexibility in the process as solutions emerge.

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“SOMETIMES WE’RE DESIGNING SWISS ARMY WATCHES WHEN WE NEED TO BE DESIGNING SWISS ARMY KNIVES.” DR. MANUEL HERNANDEZ, MD, MS, MBA, CPE

Shown Above: Dr. Manuel Hernandez, MD, MS, MBA, CPE

Q.

HOW DO WE TACKLE OUR (REALLY URGENT) NEED FOR TALENT?

Collective Wisdom:

INVEST TIME IN CONNECTION: Firm leaders are finding that creating authentic connections with team members is key. That means the “stay” interview is replacing the exit interview, and both are giving way to establishing a climate of constant communication. A deeper grounding in your team’s point of view is key to both retention and recruitment. Cycles of goal setting and reevaluation have shortened: “what [a staff member] might need to be doing now, versus a year from now—that’s a lifetime,” says Williamson.

ADVOCATE FOR YOUR TEAM: With smaller teams and shorter deadlines, staff are feeling the pressure, and counting up the human cost is critical. “The burnout and constant grind are a race to the bottom,” says Jane Hallinan, IIDA. Leaders are finding new ways to navigate client demands, informed by the human cost. “Make sure the client’s asks are reasonable,” says Ronnie Belizaire, FIIDA. “Let them know what that ask means in terms of your team.”

MATCH TODAY’S EXPECTATIONS: It’s not just that the pandemic has changed the workforce; the workforce itself is changing. From veterans to the entry level, team members have shifted the lens through which they view work, life, and how the two intersect. Learning about—and encouraging the pursuit of—team members’ extra-curricular passions; cultivating a culture of true autonomy; and customizing a slate of opportunities to engage each individual can build a culture that fits. Just don’t forget rule number one: “it’s important to be genuine,” says Tara Headley, Assoc. IIDA.

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EXPANDING YOUR EQUITY ACUMEN A set of foundational practices can advance equity, diversity, and inclusion in your firm, your community, your life.

“Design,” says Durst, “is one of the most human things we do. It allows us to establish kinship with the world around us.” Yet, to truly realize the potential of that kinship, there is work to do in the design industry—starting with a movement toward greater equity, diversity, and inclusion that creates awareness, nurtures intention, and shifts beyond conversation to concrete, constant practice.

“This is not a one-and-done,” says Amy Storek, Ind. IIDA. “It’s not a webinar.” Good point—and one good reason why IIDA’s Industry Roundtable offers an ideal venue to launch a deep dive into diversity in 2022.

Industry Roundtable is a chance to pause, absorb new ideas or question old ones, and set agendas to set it all in motion. “The people who come,” says Mark Shannon, Ind. IIDA, “are passionate about moving the design industry forward.” Both in our history and in our here-and-now, no issue needs that focus more urgently than the lack of diversity.

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At IR24, IIDA expanded its long history of work around EDI in the industry with the launch of Talent Collective Consulting, a new tool to help firms enable EDI practices. Talent Collective facilitators Roni Jackson and Kelly Brown offered sessions that gracefully created space for open discussion—helping to define the work of becoming stronger allies; changing statusquo policies and expectations; and making tangible, measurable progress.

“This is your chance to see this difference through,” says Roni Jackson. “We are engaging you and giving you the power.”

We know that design can change the world—this is how we can harness all of the amazing capabilities we share to powerfully change the design industry, one positive action at a time.

“PEOPLE ARE LOOKING FOR ALLIES EVERYWHERE, LOOKING FOR PEOPLE TO BE DISRUPTERS. YOU CAN BE THOSE ALLIES.” RONI JACKSON

Communicate constructively: A gateway to allyship

Listen like you mean it: Find out what you don’t know

We all know that we need to be talking about issues surrounding the lack of diversity in design—in fact, that longing for deep, meaningful conversations was expressed again and again at IR24. Creating an atmosphere where people can talk openly, share experiences, and interrogate points of view allows baseline dialog to be established and our work to begin.

Communication, of course, has two sides.

Listening is a foundational, fundamental skill—a practice we can all be honing on a daily basis. “One of the greatest things we can do for another human being is to truly see them, recognize them,” says Durst.

Prioritizing conscious listening engenders respect, expands empathy, and creates an understanding that can then inform the actions we need to take.

Offering that grace to each other isn’t just about creating comfort. It allows people to get things wrong—and to be open to learning and integrating new ways of thinking. It’s also important to note that offering grace to others does not always come easy. Remembering to accept open discussion as a gift from your fellow humans, and being cognizant of the cost of that gift, helps all of us reflect grace in turn.

“We need courage,” says Tracey Thomas, Assoc. IIDA. “Everyone is so afraid of saying the wrong thing. Mess up, get past it, learn. When you start that way, people are more open and can be who they are.”

Continuing to show up, engage, and lean into your own vulnerability is part of an ongoing commitment to allyship.

Frustrated when people seem “triggered?” That’s a cue to pause, and listen harder. “It’s really important to acknowledge how people are triggered,” says Headley, “because it helps you learn: you learn how to approach that person better, and they learn to accept how you communicate.”

Curiosity about the people around us, their viewpoints, lives, and culture is another form of active listening—and curiosity and the desire to keep learning are key qualities of allies.

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Hit pause: The skill that can make you a bias disrupter Recognizing—and taking action to change—our own biases allows us to see others more inclusively. Ask yourself: Is my read of this situation influenced by my upbringing? Am I making an assumption about this job candidate based on a stereotype? By learning to pause and actively interrogate your thoughts, you can start to see where your own personal biases lie—and learn to steer away from thoughts and decisions that might be prompted by them.

Meditation practices, which teach us to notice our thoughts, can help develop the ability to pause, and encourage intellectual humility—essentially, the ability to recognize that what you believe may in fact be wrong. Create a bias-disrupting habit, and over time your point of view will shift, allowing you to focus on individuals rather than stereotypes and preconceptions.

Break the mold: Better bosses can power up diversity How you show up as a boss can have a profound effect on diversity practice, both on a day-to-day basis and in the long term.

Large-scale corporate changes might be slow moving, but that doesn’t stop you from shifting your own managerial practices in ways that will enable greater diversity and inclusion while you advocate for organization-wide change. Insisting on a diverse pool of applicants for openings on your team is a crucial step, but limiting

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referral hiring and creating an interview process that focuses on skills-based questions rather than giving undue weight to credentials increases access for those who might not come to design through traditional channels. “How you become a designer needs to dramatically change for people who have not been through a traditional program,” says Todd Heiser, IIDA. “We have to break the industry.”

“Where does lived experience start to come into the criteria?” says Belizaire. “Lived experience matters.”

Being a better boss can also prime people for advancement and set the stage for diverse representation at all levels. Take note of opportunities to mentor; recognize achievement at all levels and of all types; and rotate tasks which feel like office “housework” through the team, so that those jobs don’t wind up on one person’s plate, becoming a default label that positions their work as “less than.”

Bosses are the frontline authors of workplace culture; choosing to create an evolving, dynamic culture that includes the experiences and points of view represented by the full team leaves an opening for new people and fresh knowledge to enrich your work. “Sometimes you don’t get the fullness of a person’s experience,” says George Bandy, Ind. IIDA, “because they are navigating through a culture you have already set up, and they can’t share what they know, what they can bring to the table.”

FIGHT JARGONIZATION The design world loves wordplay (Did someone say “resimercial’’?) but sometimes, it’s important to curb our tendency to create jargon or shorthand, and make sure that our words retain their true weight and meaning.

Equity Justice according to natural law or right; freedom from bias.

The concept of equity recognizes that systemic and other biases mean that we do not all start from the same place; seeking equity is the ongoing process of acting to balance the imbalances and enable everyone to reach their full potential. Equity is an elusive concept in our society—because we have never seen it.

Diversity Including many different kinds of things or people.

Diversity refers to the demographic makeup of a group and how much difference is represented. It’s measurable, and therefore can offer a yardstick for progress on inclusion. In a broader sense, it also refers to the richness and variety of life—highly desirable for a healthy, engaging work experience.

Inclusion Including and accommodating people who have historically been excluded.

Inclusion is a set of practices—essentially, our efforts to create an atmosphere where everyone is accepted, acknowledged, and empowered to act. In a professional setting, inclusion is also about access to opportunities and career growth.

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CONFORMITY COSTS Breaking Down the ROI of Doing the Right Thing We’ve known this for awhile—diversity is good for business. In fact, the latest in a series of reports from Mckinsey and Company on the business case for inclusion shows that companies with ethnically diverse executive teams financially outperform competitors without diverse leadership, by as much as 36%. But if you’re an advocate for greater inclusion at your organization, what’s the most effective way to make the bottom-line benefits clear to all?

“Lean into the research,” says Brown, “and think about which data points are going to be most compelling to your peers, your colleagues.” And, as Brown helped us see in her IR24 session, it’s important to take the discussion beyond stats—we’re leaning into the “Why.”

Diversity helps us compete for talent:

Diversity keeps us relevant in the marketplace:

Diversity makes us smarter:

Losing talent is costly—and it’s more likely to happen if your firm attempts to cultivate a dictated-from-on-high mass workplace culture. As millennial workers take over the workforce (they’ll account for 75% of workers by 2025), a generational shift in what people value in an employer is taking place. Where prior generations looked for companies to bestow financial stability, today’s employees want a company that shares their values—and they prize a workplace that makes space for everyone at the table, and allows them to be their authentic selves.

Shifting U.S. demographics mean that our efforts to retain cultural relevance to customers, clients, and the larger audience of consumers and potential employees need to shift as well. Cultural intelligence is a valuable asset, and a team that brings a wide array of influences, cultures, and points of view to bear on its work is far more likely to find broad appeal among customers, clients, and end users across a range of cultures.

That’s right: smarter. While asking people to conform to a single approach to problem solving results in poor performance, “working through and across differences rather than solving for it yields the best outcomes,” says Brown. Diversity bears creative dividends via a richness of experience, but it also changes team expectations around collaboration. When people expect a range of viewpoints, they do their research and come prepared to meetings and working sessions. In short, “you get more robust participation,” Brown says— meaning diverse teams work both harder and smarter.

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WORK IN PROGRESS

Anatomy of an EDI Case Study What They Did: Gathering data, not just on Pivot’s existing employee makeup, but on employee perceptions and attitudes toward how well the company was advancing EDI goals, created a measurable baseline for the work to begin.

How it Worked: Some signs were encouraging—69% of employees felt the company was committed to EDI. Others highlighted work to be done; 70% were neutral or disagreed that the company did an adequate job educating employees and promoting its EDI goals; 25% felt a lack of opportunity for advancement.

The Ongoing Challenge: Sharing the firm’s EDI efforts means complete transparency in sharing data and results, and a continuing commitment to gathering metrics to measure progress.

Accountability on progress toward goals will be key as the effort moves forward.

What They Did: Inviting broad employee and management participation in a new EDI committee created an inclusive framework for discussion and goal setting.

Pivot also embraced a culture shift: from talking about itself as a workplace “family” to advancing the idea of a workplace community, united around values and open to criticism and change.

How it Worked: Response was enthusiastic, with more volunteers than the committee can hold. Pivot carved time from the work day for employees to help ideate and execute on initiatives around hiring practices; mentorship and advancement pipeline strategies; focusing a substantial part of Pivot’s charitable giving to align with committee goals and continuing EDI education.

When it came to social issues, says Storek, “we were an organization that traditionally stayed quiet.” But in the soul searching that followed the 2020 killing of George Floyd, leadership at Pivot, a 50-year-old, familyowned firm that is MillerKnoll’s largest dealer, realized something had to shift. “It became less a question of who we might offend,” says Ed Woodill, Ind. IIDA, “and more a question of what’s the right thing to do.” What followed was an EDI journey that’s still in progress—and Storek and Woodill shared their process, setbacks and all, with IR24.

The Ongoing Challenge: Opening the door to participatory environments where people can access an open forum for discussion—as well as help set the agenda for policy and initiatives—is an important step. As the work moves forward, Pivot is working to balance committee autonomy with managerial participation to ensure initiatives become real-world results.

What They Did: Leveraging Pivot’s relationships with clients, vendors, and contractors created a larger sphere inside which the firm could work to influence change.

How it Worked: Pivot’s clients are much larger companies, many with global reach—so it made sense to tap them to share their EDI experience and accumulated knowledge to help inform Pivot’s efforts. In addition, the firm has instituted a Preferred Partner program as a first step toward their intention to work with companies whose EDI values align with their own.

The Ongoing Challenge: Holding yourself accountable for EDI efforts is one challenge—holding another company accountable is tougher still. Pivot continues to work through that challenge, starting with the Preferred Partner program, and has also begun to sponsor certification processes for minority-owned status for some smaller companies. Tapping into the networks of minority business associations might be another way to power up this goal.

“WE HAD TO OVERCOME THIS IDEA THAT WE DON’T MAKE A DIFFERENCE, AND GET TO ‘HOW DO WE MAKE A BIGGER IMPACT?’” AMY STOREK, IND. IIDA 15

Circular (Economy) Thinking Designing a new sensibility for sustainability “If I don’t challenge somebody to do something outside of the box, then who the hell is going to do it?” says Bandy. “I want to make sure that I challenge you.”

The gauntlet that Bandy is throwing down?

It’s an invitation to expand our thinking about sustainability, far beyond the mechanics of compliance or certifications. It’s an exercise in considering history—including a quilting tradition practiced by Bandy’s ancestors, who repurposed fabric scraps into bedding, and something more: life-saving signposts for Black people traveling to freedom on the Underground Railroad. It’s about connecting that history to today, examining how overlooked, under-represented communities have created their own systems of circular economy; how they have largely been victimized by industrial pollution and practice; and left by the wayside in the push for a cleaner, more sustainable environment.

Here are three key ideas from Bandy to help us think differently—and meet the challenge of designing a sustainability that considers and includes everyone.

Think holistically: Sustainable practice requires you to be more in tune with the community

you’re designing in, your own community, and the natural world around you. It’s all connected, and when we pause to take in that bigger picture, begin to unravel the threads in a larger tapestry, we can begin to approach design in a way that takes into account all the ripples on our collective pond.

It’s also important to consider where the impacts of pollution and other non-sustainable practices have had their greatest impacts: Race is the most significant predictor that a person will live near contaminated air, water, or soil. New sustainable practices need to address that imbalance.

Meet people where they are: Realize that there is no one size fits all, and bring people along

on your sustainability journey. We can’t impose practices on communities that have never been exposed to them; or push for sustainability measures that come at a cost, when basic needs haven’t been met.

Asking someone to convert to sustainable energy for the greater good seems like a valid request, even if it comes at slightly higher cost—until you consider that even a small cost is out of reach for many under-resourced families, and thus your program might not get much buy-in. As designers, we need to think about all the issues facing the communities we design in, working to create a sustainability that takes the human ecosystem into account as we work to improve and guard the planet.

Embracing big-picture design-thinking allows us to find ways to talk about building long-term value, not finding value via what’s cheaper or easier. Above and beyond certifications, what does your project add to the environment and the community around it? Does landscaping improve water quality or include community garden areas? Is access to nature created in an urban environment? Can an office building double as a community space for educational opportunities after working hours? Expand your definition of value to include impact on community, and seek out opportunities to talk to clients and end users in those terms.

Create new definitions of value:

“CLIMATE CHANGE HAS IMPACTED PEOPLE WHO CAN AFFORD TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT, BUT ALSO PEOPLE WHO DON’T HAVE THE ABILITY TO PAY—AND YET WE’RE EXPECTING THEM TO HELP FOOT THE BILL.” GEORGE BANDY, IND. IIDA

Shown Above: George Bandy, Ind. IIDA

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Q.

HOW DO WE MAKE SUSTAINABILITY REAL?

Collective Wisdom:

SEEK ACCOUNTABILITY FROM ALL SIDES: Designers and clients are demanding sustainable products, and manufacturers are working to deliver.

But do we make sure those products actually make it into the final project? Disrupted supply chains haven’t made it any easier—managing timelines often threatens to undermine sustainability. And beyond certifications, design firm sustainability committees, and client goals, a final frontier looms: “The general contractor comes into play here,” says Belizaire. “What can we do to help the contractor buy-in and get on board with the story that’s being told here?”

TELL YOUR SUSTAINABILITY STORY: “A lot of manufacturers don’t do a good job telling their sustainability story,” says Mike Johnson, IIDA. “Take the time and opportunity to organize that information and make it easily available to [designers.]” Design leaders are pushing younger staff to dig deeper to learn more about products than a simple internet search will reveal—but the more readily available the information is, the better it serves both manufacturer and designer. Transparency is the new currency, and powerful storytelling around sustainable products allows designers to not only “check boxes” on requirements, but share a memorable narrative with their clients.

MAKE VALUES PART OF THE PICTURE: As sustainability and social responsibility have become more clearly linked, designers need to appeal not only to clients’ sustainability goals but their larger value system. “Clients want to work with those who share their values,” says Susana Covarrubias, IIDA, “and they will go to bat to include those companies in their projects.

It’s a big topic of conversation: Who are you bringing to the table, designers, and why?”

As we expand the definition of responsible practice to include impacts on the planet as well as human health and well-being and societal impacts, bringing those values into the process can be a part of the new way of doing business.

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The Next Five Minutes Grab those shades —the future may be challenging, but it’s also bright

18 Shown Above: Mark Bryan

The view from Bryan’s office must be pretty good; after all, he can see the future.

We’re not talking science fiction here: Bryan, the director of innovation and research for M+A Architects in Columbus, Ohio, is both an interior designer and a certified futurist. That means, among other things, that he applies methods of research and prediction to both the present-day practice of design and to creating researchinformed forecasts that shed light on what design might look like across the next decade and beyond.

If thinking about the future sounds daunting, Bryan offers a challenge: Predict what’s going to happen in the next five minutes—and imagine how your actions could shape that future. With the right framework, you can learn to think about what’s next in a considered, useful way that can position you for future success.

At IR24, Bryan listened intently, gathered insights and intel, and then filtered it through his own body of research on the future of design to author a series of forecasts that predict, challenge, and inspire. These ideas aren’t just wishful thinking: they offer a view of what could come next that is both optimistic and within our power to enable or to change. Whatever shape it takes, the most important thing to remember is that the future of design is ours to define.

THE METHOD: DESIGNING A VISION OF THE FUTURE Viewing the world through the lens of future preparedness requires two basic methods: Be aware of what is changing

Look back to look forward

The forces that will drive future change are all around us: a global pandemic; disruption of typical work routines; rapidly evolving technological capabilities. How might people, companies, and communities respond to these forces? What has changed already, what is starting to change, and what does that tell us about upcoming shifts?

Understanding the patterns of history allows us to think about which aspects of the pattern might repeat in present circumstances. Futurists follow a formula: When they want to understand what might happen 10 years into the future, they study a timeline that reaches 20 years into the past.

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What’s Going On: The now that’s shaping the next Looking closely at the forces pushing present-day changes allows us to begin to see the results of that pressure, and to understand how human responses will drive large-scale changes in behavior.

Those responses can be either positive or negative: “Foresight gives you something you need to be prepared for,” says Bryan.

“You can then decide either yes, let’s prepare for that, or no let’s make sure that does not happen.” Taking a look at responses that define an optimistic trajectory allows us to structure our own proactive responses to those drivers.

In response to factors such as the pandemic, climate change, and rising awareness of societal injustice, there are widespread desires to deepen community and make stronger connections; become responsible stewards of our planet, create intelligent, regenerative infrastructure, and empower inclusivity and accessibility. In turn, those desires are driving behavioral shifts. People are reaching for emotionally resonant content (check out the current nostalgia trend); seeking a chance to be creative and explore their capabilities; untethering themselves from timespecific expectations around activities; and finding ways to recapture physical togetherness.

The Forecasts Thinking about how behavioral shifts might intersect with each other, as well as other factors such as the evolution of technology or population growth, can lead to some informed projections about what’s next. Here’s a condensed look at Bryan’s predictions for the design industry.

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EDI accountability, woven into our products and designs Accountability around EDI efforts was a recurring theme in IR24 discussions— where does the buck stop when it comes to making sure our intentions become meaningful actions? One version of the future might include a certification for EDI compliance for companies, buildings, and products.

Even without a certification, firms can build in an EDI review stage for each project, and offer EDI review as a service to clients.

Technology that maintains both buildings and human connection Using simple digital tools, communities could be empowered to drive design decisions that impact them, “upvoting” designs they like in order to help choose a design firm for a new project in their neighborhood.

Once built, the new structure would have a digital twin which will become a Virtual Maintenance Manager (VMM), allowing data about maintenance needs and daily use to be collected and acted on. VMM data could also be used to inform a designer who is hired to create an experiential installation for the community living in and around the building—an effort to extend the project into ongoing community-building activities.

“WE’RE NOT GOING BACK TO WHERE WE WERE BEFORE.” MARK BRYAN

A skill-centered, tech-enabled labor and education market

A collaboration-powered design library

Shifting the workforce to a more skillsbased model might allow greater access for people who are approaching design professions via non-traditional channels— allowing accumulated skills to be viewed on a “passport” that easily follows the worker from job to job.

The design library of the future could be much more than a neatly organized collection of information. With a desire to lean into creative skills and a longing to break down barriers top of mind, why not recreate the library as a point of connection for collaborative design—a Hackathon?

Local Skilling Hubs and Assisted Learning Centers might decentralize both the job search and the skill acquisition process, allowing people to more easily gain the skills they need to get a first job, a new job, change careers, or seek advancement.

These local outposts could also collect data on which skills are within a community versus which skills area employers are seeking, pointing the way to community intervention to fill those gaps.

Virtual platforms could enable collaboration with others around the nation or the globe, and also invite students or community members to participate in the process of design, creating greater access. Mobile production labs could produce prototypes, and the product story and prototype could be sent to the client for approval.

One potential need to solve for in this forecast? How to create recognition for lived experience, interpersonal skills, and emotional intelligence, all skills that we agree are crucial to success.

Forward motion: How to make it happen

An office attuned to the power of sensorial experiences The shape, size, and purpose of the office of the future are all still up for debate—but widespread desire for spaces that both inspire us and help to keep us emotionally and physically well suggests the potential to put liminal spaces in the workplace to a new use.

Hallways and lobbies could function as venues for experiential design that could change daily, responding to the people in the office at any given moment, allowing interactivity, and creating moments for connection or inspiration. In addition, other spaces designed to offer respite and restoration could provide a necessary counterpoint to office activity.

How can visions of the future intersect with our present-day work? How can we start now to realize this next chapter?

Move toward service over place: What services could you provide that would facilitate greater connection and serve larger societal movements and goals?

Increase collaboration, build culture: Seek collaboration and open up the design process. Create an internal culture of courage and curiosity that welcomes input from all.

Rethink skill sets: Imagine the skills that can be useful as we move into new areas of design; also consider ways to understand important interpersonal and emotional skill sets. Add competencies around EDI as a quantifiable, pursuable, and important qualification.

Embrace accountability: In circularity and regenerative design, but also in measuring the success of EDI efforts, seeking data and offering transparency is a big part of moving forward. New technologies can enable consistent, real-time sharing of those results with partners, clients, employees, end users and the entire community.

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Moderator

Sponsors and Industry Experts

Cheryl S. Durst, Hon. FIIDA Executive Vice President and CEO IIDA

PRESENTING SPONSOR Pivot Interiors Amy Storek, Ind. IIDA Former Chief Revenue Officer

Speakers George Bandy, Ind. IIDA Sustainability Expert Kelly Brown EDI Facilitator IIDA Talent Collective Consulting Mark Bryan, Certified Futurist Director of Innovation and Research, Sr. Interior Designer M+A Architects

Ed Woodill, IIDA Creative Director HOSPITALITY SPONSOR Mosaic Companies Mike Bastone Executive Vice President, Key Accounts Walker & Zanger Nauro Rezende Senior Director, Marketing

Roni Jackson EDI Facilitator IIDA Talent Collective Consulting

SPONSORS 3form Jennifer Ruckel, Ind. IIDA Senior Vice President of Sales

Dr. Manuel Hernandez, MD, MS, MBA, CPE Independent Design Consultant

Behr Peter Gaeta Architectural and Design Services

Amy Storek, Ind. IIDA Former Chief Revenue Officer Pivot Interiors

Crossville Mark Shannon, Ind. IIDA Executive Vice President of Sales

Ed Woodill, IIDA Creative Director Pivot Interiors

Interface Anna Webb Vice President of Marketing and Product Development

The IR24 Network

Kimball International Kim Montague, AIA Executive Director of Research and Partnership, Health

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Attendee information as of time of event (January 2022).

Material Bank Michelle Boolton, Ind. IIDA Former Vice President, Member Experience MillerKnoll Alan Almasy, Ind. IIDA Director, Client Practice Group for Architecture and Design Mohawk Jackie Dettmar, Ind. IIDA Vice President of Design and Product Development OFS Doug Shapiro, Ind. IIDA Vice President of Research and Insights Rockfon Diana Hart, Ind. IIDA Manager, Architectural Sales and Business Development Shaw Contract Jeff West Vice President, Marketing Tarkett Jeff Fenwick, Ind. IIDA President and CEO, North America Daina Olesen Chief Marketing Officer USG Stacy Craig, Ind. IIDA, Affiliate AIA National Architecture and Design Ceilings Manager, West Wilsonart Teresa Humphrey, Ind. IIDA National Specification Sales Manager

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IIDA International Board of Directors and Design Experts PRESIDENT Sascha Wagner, FIIDA, AIA President and CEO Huntsman Architectural Group PRESIDENT-ELECT Angie Lee, FIIDA, AIA Vice President, Head of Interior Design Pembroke VICE PRESIDENTS George Bandy, Ind. IIDA Sustainability Expert Ronnie Belizaire, FIIDA Vice President Jones Lang Lasalle Gabrielle Bullock, IIDA, FAIA, NOMAC Director of Global Diversity, Principal Perkins&Will Susana Covarrubias, IIDA Design Director, Principal Gensler Diana Farmer-Gonzalez, IIDA, Assoc. AIA Principal and Managing Director Gensler Fiona Grandowski, IIDA, AIA Principal Collins Cooper Carusi Architects Erika Moody, IIDA Principal and Shareholder Helix Architecture + Design Jon Otis, IIDA Founder and Principal Object Agency (O|A) Amy Storek, Ind. IIDA Former Chief Revenue Officer Pivot Interiors

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Attendee information as of time of event (January 2022).

Practitioners Verda Alexander, IIDA Principal and Co-Founder Studio O+A Mari Ansera, IIDA, NOMA Sr. Interior Designer and Sr. Associate HGA Bill Bouchey, FIIDA Principal, Director of Design Interiors HOK Susan Chang, AIA Partner, Architect Shimoda Design Sarah Devine, IIDA Managing Principal Revel Architecture+Design Ray Ehscheid, IIDA Principal and Managing Director IA Interior Architects Dina Griffin, IIDA, FAIA, NOMA President, Architect Interactive Design Architects Jane Hallinan, IIDA Interior Designer Perkins Eastman Melissa Hanley, IIDA, AIA Principal and CEO, Architect Studio Blitz Tara Headley, IIDA Interior Designer Formerly with Hendrick, Inc. Todd Heiser, IIDA Managing Director Gensler

IIDA Headquarters Dr. Manuel Hernandez, MD, MS, MBA, CPE Independent Design Consultant Mike Johnson II, IIDA, AIA Sr. Associate and Sr. Interior Project Designer Perkins&Will James Kerrigan, FIIDA Design Principal, Interiors Jacobs Katy Mercer Principal Woods Bagot Alexis Moore, IIDA Interior Designer Gresham Smith Louise Sharp Principal HLW International Joey Shimoda, FIIDA, FAIA Owner and Chief Creative Officer Shimoda Design

Cheryl S. Durst, Hon. FIIDA Executive Vice President and CEO Melissa Cook Communications Coordinator Bryce Huguenin Marketing Manager Phyllis Jones Client Engagement Manager Tracey Thomas, Assoc. IIDA Director of Strategic Sales Lisa Toth Senior Vice President, Association Operations

On Behalf of IIDA Cindy Dampier Report Writer Jim Nuttle Graphic Recording, Live Illustrator

Lois Wellwood, IIDA Director, Global Interiors Practice Leader Skidmore, Owings & Merrill Mavis Wiggins, FIIDA Managing Executive and Studio Creative Director TPG Architecture Jim Williamson, FIIDA Principal Gensler

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Shown Above: IIDA Industry Roundtable 24 Attendees

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