Editor’s Note: Wish you had a clear explanation of how decision-making in the built environment has changed? After six months of intensive research, ThinkLab has the answers — and its data can help you reframe your approach to win more projects. ThinkLab spent six months immersed in its 2024 Hackathon, engaging directly with end users across sectors including corporate, healthcare, hospitality, education and real estate development to understand what has shifted over the past five years, and what shifts are here to stay. It is releasing its findings throughout Season 6 of its podcast, “Design Nerds Anonymous.” They’ll be sharing abbreviated highlights here, exclusively for officeinsight readers. Next up is Episode 2 titled “In Their Words: Decision-Maker Insights on Opportunities for the Built Environment” where we hear directly from key end user decision makers on what makes their projects challenging today.
The Big Idea: Pain Points Are Opportunities in Disguise
Although the pain points differ by sector, a universal truth emerges: friction reveals opportunities for innovation. By identifying and addressing these challenges early, organizations can transform obstacles into avenues for deeper connection with these clients and better outcomes for your business.
The ThinkLab PainMap, with its shades of red symbolizing varying levels of friction, reveals that the most intense pain occurs in the initial planning phase. This stage often takes place before A&D firms and product partners are typically involved, but is ripe with opportunities to offer solutions that could lead to deeper, earlier partnerships if these challenges are addressed in creative ways. This pain offers the greatest potential for differentiation and problem-solving.
Highlights by Sector
Corporate: Achieving Consensus in Complex Structures
Corporate decision-making often involves large, diverse committees with overlapping and conflicting priorities. As Tope Sadiku, a corporate leader (formerly at Kraft Heinz, now at McDonald’s), noted: “Internal consensus is critical, but it’s like saying everyone wants to be healthier—it means different things to different people.”
Key Opportunity: Providers can lean into agile, iterative processes to navigate ambiguity and enable real-time adjustments, helping clients achieve alignment while minimizing risk.
Hospitality: Managing Creative Friction
The hospitality sector thrives on creative collaboration, yet its traditionally segmented approach—separate architects, interior designers, lighting designers, and more—creates friction. Stacey Patton, a design leader at Hilton, highlighted the evolving preference for integrated delivery models to streamline processes and enhance outcomes. “The friction we’re used to can sometimes be painful, but with integrated teams, we’ve found ways to alleviate that and focus on stronger results.”
Key Opportunity: Teams that bring multidisciplinary expertise and transparency to the table can win trust and deliver higher-value results faster.
Healthcare: Bridging Expertise and Execution
For healthcare systems, the challenge lies in balancing medical staff needs with operational goals. Andrew Navarro, representing H Plex Solutions, explained: “Healthcare organizations are like nation-states—each department has its own agenda. The real work is marrying them together to drive consensus.”
Key Opportunity: Partners who understand the intricacies of healthcare operations and bring actionable, real-time data can build credibility and drive success.
What You Can Do: Turning Pain into Progress
Across all sectors, addressing pain points requires proactive, solution-oriented approaches. Here are three ways providers can add value to decision-making teams:
Become a Trusted Advisor. Rather than being purely transactional, strive for partnership. While everyone wants this partnership, it means you can’t just tell them what value you’ll bring, you must show them. As Sadiku pointed out, vendors who provide insight and help clients navigate uncertainties build trust that pays dividends.
Lean Into Transparency. Pricing volatility and supply chain challenges can erode trust. Leaders like Patton emphasize the importance of honesty: “Just be upfront about manufacturing capabilities and pricing shifts. Misleading us can be devastating to a project.”
Support Storytelling. Helping clients articulate the “why” behind their decisions—internally and externally—can unify stakeholders. Using relatable similes or crafting narratives that resonate with employees, as Sadiku described, can drive alignment and engagement. This means not only exploring succinct storytelling, but also the method by which you share them. (More on this next week)
Want More?
If this interests you, dive deeper into these findings by listening to episode one of Design Nerds Anonymous, season 6 “In Their Words: Decision-Maker Insights on Opportunities for the Built Environment.” OR Download the ThinkLab PainMap to uncover pain points in your sector and identify your next big opportunity. And if you would like to be included in ThinkLab’s next research study, join ThinkLab’s research community to share your perspective and help shape future insights. Sign up here to contribute your expertise and stay connected.