The unedited transcript of Phalana Tiller's interview with Diane Hoskins and Greg Parsons for the May 2013 episode of Drucker on the Dial entitled "Wither the Cube Farm." First, Diane Hoskins, co-executive director of Gensler, discusses design thinking, and engaging clients in a more holistic understanding of what is driving them. She talks about the firm’s work of encompassing disciplines that go beyond what has been found in an architecture firm, and lists some of those disciplines. Hoskins discusses measuring effectiveness, and explains the Workplace Performance Index (WPI) and post-occupancy reviews. She talks about collaboration, and the firm’s collaborative CEO (chief executive officer) model, and its strong culture. Hoskins shares the firm’s guiding principles, and talks about Art Gensler. She goes on to say that she would like to be remembered for helping the firm be who it is at its core, a little bit more intentionally. Next, Greg Parsons, vice-president of the New Landscape of Work at Herman Miller, discusses Herman Miller’s long tradition of focusing on work. He talks about the idea behind the Action Office, and the development of the cubicle. Parsons explains that although the products that have been produced haven’t yet accomplished their vision for what work has been, it provides an opportunity to think about the meaning of work, and how they can make that happen better. He says that the new landscape is both physical and virtual at the same time, and that the cycle times of ideas and institutions are incredibly fast. Parsons explains that his company creates networks of people to inform it, and that they are informing Herman Miller’s product development and thinking. He says that since value is shifting to relationships between people and creative ideas and non-linear thinking, designers and thinkers have been brought in to look at how well you organize human beings to do that. Parsons goes on to say that he would like to be remembered for enabling the true power of work for everyone to come to life.
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