On March 29th, 2018, a panel of CRE executives gathered at the 4th Annual DisruptCRE New York City event to discuss CRE tech’s impact, new tenant expectations, and how people connect through smart technology. The panelists included:
- Amanda Carroll, Principal at Gensler
- John J. Gilbert, III, COO, EVP, CTO at Rudin Management Company
- Wendy Heller, Senior Strategist, Workplace Innovation, The Coca-Cola Company
- Will Coleman, CEO at Lucid Design Group
What aspect of the built environment is technology making the most dramatic impact?
The first question asked panelist to discuss which aspect of the built environment they feel is being impacted the most by technology. Carrol answered first with an answer from the standpoint of tenants, and their expectations.
“Right now, technology is all about how companies can connect their people around the world and especially around their own campus. Across the firm we design for Amazon, Facebook, Google, Linkedin, you name it.,” she said. “They’re really struggling with scale. How can they navigate an urban environment and build a campus that is secure and connected without sacrificing the experience and technology is really central to every part of that equation.”
She continued to discuss infrastructure in terms of Amazon’s new headquarters. “I don’t know a single person in this room that hasn’t thought about where Amazon’s headquarters are going to go, and the beauty of that is that every other tech company is benefiting from the vetting process that Amazon did, and has a really easy short list of cities to consider for themselves,” she said. “I think what we’re seeing right now is that technology is very much at the forefront of how they are going to manage their portfolio.”