The Anti-Architect

In this episode, Christian sits down with Bob Knakal, Chairman of NY Investment Sales with JLL Capital Markets. Bob started his real estate career in 1984 and is responsible for selling over 2,222 buildings to date (generally considered the highest total ever for a single broker in New York) and over $20.4 billion in sales. Bob was Chairman and Founding Partner of Massey Knakal Realty Services, Ne...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Pascale Sablan, FAIA, the founder of Beyond the Built Environment and a senior associate at Adjaye Associates. With over 15 years of experience, she has worked on a variety of projects around the world. Pascale is the 315th living African American woman registered architect in the U.S. She is an activist architect who works to advance architecture for the...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Ken Patel, Founder and Chairman of EV Hotel. With 26 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Ken is also the Founder and Chairman of EV Smart, EV Human, EVHG, and Hospitality 360 Live. He is a visionary who believes the hospitality industry needs a significant overhaul. His goal is to revolutionize the hospitality industry with technological innov...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Fred Buscaglia, Managing Director of JLL Project and Development Services. With over 30 years of experience, Fred provides executive oversight for construction and project management, specifically for large-scale corporate real estate projects in the finance, insurance, and law sectors. His expertise on the client side is valuable to understanding the intr...

In this episode, Christian sits down with David Supple, CEO of New England Design & Construction (NEDC), an award-winning, full-service architectural design-build firm. Over the past 17 years, David has built NEDC into a dynamic and cutting-edge multi-million-dollar creative firm. He is a passionate advocate of the client benefits of full-service design-build and a proponent of the true role o...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Noelle Via Borda, Senior Program Manager, Workplace Design at Adobe. Noelle is a key team member on Adobe’s Global Workplace Experience team. She is dedicated to creating a stellar employee experience and designing policy, process, experience, and environment for a digital-first future. She is an NCIDQ and LEED accredited professional and loves having buil...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Roger Krulak, president and founder of FullStack Modular. For over 35 years, Roger has brought innovation to the construction and development sides of the real estate business. Founded in 2016, FullStack Modular uses advanced technologies for building design and high-rise modular construction. The company’s current pipeline includes hundreds of thousands o...

In this episode, Christian sits down with James Donaghy, STO Building Group's (STOBG) Executive Chairman. A dynamic and creative leader, Jim personifies the entrepreneurial spirit that is a hallmark of STOBG. He plays a key leadership role in setting the organization's strategic direction and spearheads innovation within the firm to better serve clients and provide more opportunities for employees...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Steven Lang, President and CEO of dancker. In 1997, he joined the dynamic organization, having held various leadership positions at the firm before taking the helm. Steve has a customer-centric philosophy and has developed a clear, strategic blueprint to build a strong, sustainable market leadership position for the nearly 200-year-old commercial interiors...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Thomas Gluck and Peter Gluck, principals at GLUCK+ in New York City. Named by Fast Company as one of the top 10 most innovative companies in architecture, GLUCK+ is recognized for architect-led design-build: single-source responsibility with architects leading the building process. For over 40 years, the practice has committed to pushing the boundaries of...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Farida Abu-Bakare, the director of global practice at the award-winning architecture, urban design, and planning firm WXY. For more than a decade, she has worked throughout North America and Africa to build an extensive portfolio, including aviation, culture, healthcare, higher education, justice, residential, science, and technology projects. In addition,...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Omar Ramirez. He is the founder of Affordances, an experience consultancy that helps companies strategize and solve problems while focusing on what matters most: the real people behind the scenes. Previously Omar worked for Dropbox, Atlassian, Netflix, and most recently Miro. Rooted in design thinking, Omar is motivated by the belief that nothing exists th...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Jim Smith of Feld Real Estate and Omnicom. He is a long-time Mancini client and outspoken industry legend. Jim was one of the original employees of IA | Interior Architects, a global firm of architects, designers, strategists, and specialists founded in 1984. Over the last few decades, he worked in all aspects of the profession, from architecture to real e...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Robert Israel. He is the Executive Vice President of L&L Holding Company where he leads and directs all aspects of the TSX Broadway project developments design and construction activities, including all decisions as it relates to execution and team development. We talk in-depth about the TSX Broadway project - one of the most complex projects in NYC! P...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Brian Esposito, the Founder, and CEO of Esposito Intellectual Enterprises (EIE). With over 20 years of experience in high-profile executive roles involving complex business challenges and high-stakes decisions, EIE currently has 75+ entities within it and over 150 joint ventures around the world. Brian brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to any tea...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Doug LaLone, engineer, patent attorney, and partner at Fishman Stewart PLLC, a premier specialty law firm celebrating 25 years in intellectual property law. Doug has prosecuted and defended over 100 intellectual property suits in federal and state courts. His cases covered, trademark, trade secret, unfair competition, domain name, non-compete, and copyrigh...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Liz Burow, founder of Thinky Space, an insights and innovation practice working at the intersection of human-centered design and architecture. Liz is a 2020 LinkedIn Top Voice, a global leader in design strategy, and former vice president of client insights & product innovation at WeWork. Liz is an expert facilitator, communicator, and educator, freque...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Christopher Voss, Founder & CEO of The Black Swan Group, the world’s #1 negotiation coach, and bestselling author of Never Split the Difference. Chris has saved countless lives of hostages around the globe, some of which you will hear today, others remain top secret. With 24 years of experience at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Chris was the form...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Evelyn Lee, FAIA, the first senior experience designer at Slack Technologies and the founder of the Practice of Architecture. Lee seamlessly integrates her business and architecture background with a qualitative and quantitative focus to build better experiences for employees, clients, and guests. She is also the co-host of the Practice Disrupted Podcast....

In this episode, Christian sits down with Jeffrey Bershad, CEO of Phillip Jeffries. For over 40 years, the family business has grown to be one of the largest and most respected wallcovering companies globally, operating in New Jersey, London, and Singapore. Jeffrey’s father, Eric, founded the company in 1976 with ten grasscloths and an inspiring entrepreneurial drive. Today, Phillip Jeffries remai...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Danei Cesario of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), and WALLEN + daub. She is the 333rd Black woman in American history to earn her architectural license. Danei is an internationally licensed architect, project manager, and public speaker at SOM, leading dynamic mixed-use development, healthcare, and wellness projects. Her experience working in diverse,...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Arthur Metzler, founder, president, and CEO of AMA Consulting Engineers, a professional design engineering firm headquartered in New York City with regional offices in Los Angeles, Miami, Houston, and Madison, NJ. Arthur is a licensed professional engineer in 44 states. AMA’s core business is the design of mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protect...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Catherine Leidersdorff, CEO of Architectural Flooring Resource (AFR), a certified M/WBE. A quintessential entrepreneur, she also serves as an officer in her other businesses, Architectural Concrete Polishing, and Catskill Provisions. Cathy’s career in the construction-flooring industry has spanned 35 years. She was recognized by the Clinton Foundation, whi...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Jack Ossa, the founder of Ossa Studio and host of The Power of Design Podcast. Personally driven to improve people’s experience of life applying design principles to become a better version of themselves and grow their teams, businesses, and profits. With an architecture degree, Jack immigrated from Colombia, South America, to Charlotte, NC, in 2001. Loade...

In this episode, Christian sits down with Christine Williamson, who has spent her career in building science forensics, discovering why buildings fail, and working with owners, architects, and builders to remedy the problems. Her new construction consulting helps architects use building science not only to mitigate the risk of failure but also to help them make their projects as energy-efficient a...