Celebrations of the Season!

Helping Hands for Boys in Need

Following up on the Good Shepherd RTC project we shared last month, PRISM is increasing our involvement with this wonderful cause. On December 10th, Sarah and I participated in their annual Christmas Celebration by providing drinks, homemade food, and volunteering at their Christmas feast. PRISM sponsored one Good Shepherd Boy’s Christmas gift, which included a new duffle bag filled with a pair of jeans, polo shirt, shoes, socks, athletic ball, and hygiene essentials. PRISM also donated Deluxe Bag Toss sets and gift cards for two caretakers at The Good Shepherd.

In the months since we have been providing pro bono rendering services for the new campus project, led by CBRE's Hayden Austin, it’s been heartwarming to see the dedication of the volunteers. Most are development and design industry executives and business owners who have been making time to help the boys enjoy a wonderful Christmas celebration. As a team, PRISM has decided to start a new company tradition of regular support for future Good Shepherd Christmas Celebrations. The organization still needs donations to ensure every boy is sponsored this Christmas. If you’d like to help, please click here then scroll to the bottom to sign up. To learn more about the new campus initiative, please visit www.buildingnewfoundations.com

Workplace of the Future

The stereotypical tech firm office may conjure images of amenities like video games and bean bag chairs. But is this what employees will want five, ten, or even one year from now? Valerie Delafosse attended the recent Bisnow event to understand more of the issues impacting our clients involved in office development and design. The one thing all the panelists spoke about was the shift toward an experiential workplace. Boxer Properties’ President, Justin Segal, likened the phenomenon to hotels, which provide so much more than a place to sleep. Speaking about their multi-use Redemption Square project, which was the former Exxon Campus, Segal said their pre-project research showed employees want an environment with several types of working spaces – think coffee shop and collaborative co-working areas. Boxer is getting creative with leasing strategies too, now offering “memberships” for tenants vs. only traditional leases. He also stressed that the experience should continue outside of the building and through the site. Filo Castore, of DLR Group, said he factors employee behavioral science into his workplace projects by studying what things improve productivity. He spoke about elements that can help drive creativity in employees and further organic collaboration; many of these “amenities” can often be incorporated easily, such as free snacks, larger windows for more sunlight, yoga in a flex space, and an open kitchen area. Netrix director Mike Gleason and Dat Lien, president of Axoscape, both emphasized the major role of technology in any workspace. IT is now a conversation that happens early in project planning. Cloud computing and mobile tech innovations have changed the traditional notion of work accomplished at a desk; companies now have more huddle areas such as theatre rooms. The bottom line from all panelists – tenants are looking for a sense of purpose and place of belonging that ties into their corporate mission. Brokers that can think beyond physical space will have the advantage.

Another banner year!

With great appreciation to our clients and partners, we are pleased to report that 2016 has been another record year for PRISM! Despite the slowdown in the corporate sector, many of our clients are growing their firms with increasing work in other sectors such as healthcare, higher education, K-12, worship, hospitality, multifamily, retail and mixed use. As a result, PRISM has achieved many new milestones this year.

• 251 projects
• 39 new clients
• 14 states and now, international! We have projects in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, Washington, the Bahamas, and the UK. This number has doubled since 2015.

Help Us Help MD Anderson

There’s still time! Every December, PRISM donates 10% of our profits earned on all new rendering and animation projects commissioned during the month to the MD Anderson Children’s Art Project. Please give me a call at 281-799-4800 to talk about your project today!