Experiences + Senses

Have you ever imagined what a workplace would look like with no desks, tables or monitors?

Are the workplaces you have designed created to foster human engagement or are they mostly about what looks and feels good?

How many of the five senses do you consider when developing workplace experiences?

Can you actually prove which tasks are better done when the participants are all physically proximate?

Have you ever considered trying to make your employees less efficient?

A Workshape Labs Event

These are just some of the many questions we have asked ourselves that led to the development of our workplace lab and our experimental experiences. And after many weeks of preparation, our first in person event at the Workshape Labs at Bishop Ranch is in the books. On this past Thursday 2/22, we were honored to host 22 workplace leaders to an all day hands-on experiential event, conceived to help us all begin to think about work and place differently and leave our preconceptions behind. And we were blown away by the amount of genuine excitement, energy and engagement that was demonstrated by all in attendance.

We will be publishing an overview of the event and will also share more about the types of events, experiences and engagements that we plan to offer in the future.... more on that coming very soon!

For now, we will tease you with the agenda for the event:

• 9:00 AM - Radically Inefficient Arrival - What if our arrival to the office was actually an intentional moment of engagement and alignment?... device free day (yes we stole everyone's devices) with intentionally designed points of friction. Added bonus: Surrender your phone, learn to grind coffee beans by hand and burn your workplace woes in our campfire!

• 10:00 AM - Buzziness Factor with Monique Lecomte - How do you measure "buzz"?... immersive experience demonstrating just how much of an effect sound has on all of us. Added bonus: share your future of work theories in our secret red phone.

• 10:45 AM - PSI (Personal Space Invader) - Have you ever considered how much space individuals actually have in the workplace?... engaging activity that aims to reset your preconceptions about personal space and privacy

• 11:15 AM - Mini TED Talk - "Propinquity" with Christopher M. Good - If you haven't heard of this word before, you should definitely listen to Chris' talk on the three rules of Propinquity: Proximity, Frequency and Affinity.

• 11:30 AM - Food as a Binding Agent (Lunch) - How can eating together at work be more intentional about connecting individuals?... it feels just like lunch, but somehow its far more fulfilling. Added bonus: Many Cheez-Its were awarded to the brave souls who made it through the maze.

• 1:00 PM - Building Belonging with Professor Michelle Samura - We could have talked with Michelle about this all day... but we just scratched the surface of what aspects of physical space create a sense of safety and belonging versus what creates uneasiness and fear. Added Bonus: her research is focused mostly on university settings and our next generation of workers!

• 1:30 PM - All About Control - How much control do individuals really have over their workplace experiences?... physically active, hands on creative exercise that forces you to be intentional and also relinquish control. Added bonus: At least four new employees were seen crawling into their workplace...

• 2:15 PM - Being Together in Person > ? - Which things can be proven to be better accomplished in person or remotely?... problem solving competition between in person and distributed teams. Added bonus: Many jars of scents were smelled in the process of solving a mind bending riddle.

• 3:00 PM - Reflection Session with Brian Stromquist, AIA - In his thoughtfully delivered but off the cuff recap of our day, Brian used many P and F words... even one I hadn't heard before (friction, frustration, patient, propinquity, practice, polyvagal).

• 4:00 PM - Happy Hour at City Center Bishop Ranch

A HUGE THANKS to all of the people who took a full day out of their extremely busy lives to spend it together in person with us at #WorkshapeLabs! Please share your thoughts, ideas and impressions with the readers of this article!

Omar Ramirez Caroline Dunning Aurelio David Randy Howder Brian Stromquist, AIA Marta Wassenaar Doug Sitzes Virginia Alexander, AIA Corey Greer Yulia Frumkin Rebecca Fairman Jeremy Salles Jamie Moore Liam Bates Kathleen Selke Yancy Widmer Stephanie Ryan (Syvertsen) Caroline Quick Kevin Ahlborn Melanie L. Ellen Johnson Robert Teed, PCC Linnea Zulch Vaughn Rhodes Diego Ferreiro Val Dave Bryant Angela Thomas Jennifer Ferrari Alaia Howell Julie Lovett, MBA Monique Lecomte Erika Perez Mike Turnbull

I would also like to take a minute to thank all of the sponsors and partners who made this memorable event a possibility... we truly appreciate all that you have done and continue to do to support Workshape!

Host Sponsor - Bishop Ranch

Hospitality Sponsor - One Workplace

Creative Sponsor - BarkerBlue

Workplace Strategy Partner - Haworth

Data Partner - Trebellar

If you are interested in discussing workplace experimentation or hands-on experiences, please check out our website and submit a request to connect!