The Office Space Podcast

What if the solution to the worlds water problem was to take water from the air? That what Brian Sheng believes so he founded Aquaria to do just that. In the episode his start up story and the profound impact this industry can have on society. Did you know that humidity in the Earth's atmosphere holds roughly 37.5 million-billion gallons of water, constantly cycling into the oceans and back. A...

Colliers Mortgage Vice Chair Ben Greazel discusses the current mortgage market. We cover hard money lending, which assets are getting financed and what to expect moving forward.

Recorded in the beautiful Allsteel podcast studio in Chicago, I talk with the CEO/Co-founder of Geniant, Keith Jacobs. Geniant takes design and workplace to another level with researchers, ethnographers and psychologists. Keith and his team take a scientific approach to each project, and he brings some great insights and stories on client projects. www.geniant.com

I've taken the best from the 9 episodes I recorded in 2023. It covers a lot of varied topics from interesting guests. The year started with "Well Being is a Reflection of Mindset" and ended with "Retail Renaissance". In between we also had "Pay Attention to Gen Z" and "Law Firm Trends" (plus others).

Mark Kostic is Senior Vice President, Asset Management, at Brookfield Properties in Chicago, IL, specializing in retail malls. In this enlightening episode, Mark gives his insights into the retail landscape and how Brookfield Properties is navigating the choppy waters. Brookfield is in 7 countries, and has 160+ assets, 130M+ SF, +/- 130 assets are in the US.

Serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist, educator, writer, lecturer, and art collector Howard Tullman discusses how you cannot build culture in a cloud, amongst other things. Check out his Inc.com column, twitter @howardtullman1 and personal website www.howardtullman.com .

Generation Z is going to have a huge impact on the workplace. Jordan Arnold, is a senior workplace advisor for global furniture manufacture Allsteel. She has been studying Gen Z for many years and discusses what differentiates this generation from previous generations. We recorded this in the beautiful and inspiring Allsteel Experience Center located in Fulton Market, Chicago. www.allsteeloffice.c...

Dan Arends, Chairman of the law firm practice group at Colliers International discusses the trends in law firm real estate. His practice puts out extensive reports that benchmark items like rental costs per attorney, construction costs, office sizing, work for home scenarios and much more. For more information, reach out to Dan.arends@colliers.com

I talk with Ralph Zucker, CEO of Inspired by Somerset and the brains behind the ambitious Bell Works project. www.inspiredsd.com

On the theme of health and wellness, I talk with Erin Coupe, the founder of Authentically EC. Erin partners with companies and executives to teach, train and guide leaders and employees on emotional awareness, mindfulness and growth mindset. Who doesn't want to be more present and be more their authentic self in the workplace? Erin provides insight into ways we can bring our whole self to work and...

Fun conversation with Bret on trends in labor analytics and how the increase in interest rates will affect the commercial real estate market. 

In this episode I talk with Sean Drygas, Global Lead, ESG & Impact at Colliers International. He leads development and execution of global ESG strategy, and measurement and reporting of performance. This includes driving new and expanded sustainability solutions for clients which accelerates the success of Colliers' ESG goals in tandem with our commercial growth goals.

Depression, anxiety, drug/alcohol abuse and suicide are all up at historical levels. Employers need to ensure their employees are mentally healthy. Can you do that remotely? What sort of benefits are most helpful? How does coming into the office help or not help? University of Chicago trained clinical social worker and psychologist Bernie Dyme has spent the last 40 years focused on mental health....

Maureen Ehrenberg, CEO of Blue Skyre, discusses the innovative ideas they are bringing to facility management. Blue Skyre is a Colliers Strategic Partner, and Maureen is the leading voice in her field. Check them out at www.blueskyre.com 

Keith Perske leads Workplace Innovation for the Americas at Colliers. In this episode, Keith breaks down the latest findings from a global workplace study and provides insight into what we can expect in the future. 

I have an informative and fun conversation with the co-founder of MetaProp, Aaron Block. Founded in 2015, MetaProp’s investment team has invested in over 150 technology companies across the real estate value chain. The firm manages funds for both financial and strategic real estate investors that represent a pilot- and test-ready sandbox of 20+ billion square feet across every real estate asset ty...

Scott Conly, Vice President at Colliers in Toronto, specializes in office leasing with a focus on tenant representation. He provides detailed insight into the largest city in Canada. 

Kastle Systems, www.kastle.com , is the largest managed commercial real estate security provider in America, with access to direct data from their customers in more than 2,600 buildings in 138 US cities. It's Chairman, Mark Ein discusses what all this rich data is telling us about how employees are returning to the office. Plus so much more with this insightful entrepreneur. 

Aliro Franco with the Colliers Shangai office is coming off a 55 day lockdown. What's it like trying to do business in this environment. What is this office leasing market like?

Scott Sarver, principal at Ratio Architects discusses the considerations around converting office buildings to residential. Scott has 30 years experience and a vast portfolio of international projects, which makes him a great resource for this topic. Check out www.ratiodesign.com 

I caught up with Stephen Newbold, the National Director of Office Research at Colliers International. We discuss the key themes from the Q4 2021 National Office Report and what to expect in the coming months. Enjoy.

The current employee favorable market has provided an unprecedented opportunity for some employees to live wherever they want. Will this trend last? Where are they moving? Bret Swango, Head of Workforce Analytics, Colliers International discusses trends in labor. 

Tom Zurowksi from Eastlake Studios, Tony Iannessa from Big Construction and Bernie Donaldson with Office Revolution saunter into my podcast to discuss the current state of the office market and design/construction trends and considerations.  www.eastlakestudio.com; www.buildbig.com; www.office-revolution.com 

Kate North, leader of Colliers Workplace Innovation Services, shares her thoughts on what leaders can do to help their organizations reduce fear and build consensus around the complex matters of hybrid work. She also provides real world examples about what companies are doing right now and how they can future proof their space.  For information on Workplace Evolutionaries visit, https://we.if...

Andy Macgregor, President of Accend Construction, talks about the state of construction. Price increases, lead time delays and other topics are covered.