Ideation Workplace Advisor

Job Purpose:

The purpose of the international Ideation team is to strengthen the Haworth brand, enhance market influence, sales and dealer relationships, through high quality research and workplace insights, leading edge tools, training and application, to help customers align their business strategies with their workplace.

Haworth Ideation Services connect links between workspace design and human behaviour, health, performance, and the quality of the user experience. They are a key link in leading global clients through research data interpretation and analysis, to help shape and give form to viable workplace strategies and design solutions.

The Ideation Workplace Advisor is responsible for the efficient planning, scheduling, coordinating and supervising of the installation, measurement and reporting of Haworth Analytics projects as well as an active client advisory role from a workplace strategy perspective.

A glimpse of your daily mission:

• Develops alliances with Haworth’s technology, hardware and platform partners, including legal frameworks, pricing structures and clear agreements on market communication.
• Ensures Haworth is the driver of the alliance and that the alliance is leveraged to increase sales and network.
• Benchmarks service offerings and pricing metrics to gauge competitiveness in cost, efficiency and experience.
• Keeps up to date with emerging trends in utilization measurement, workplace platforms and best practices.
• Supports the pilot trial of new products, platforms and services offered by established and new partners.
• Manages hardware assets and related logistics; purchase orders, batteries, on-site delivery and installation.

• Identify client opportunities and work with regional and global colleagues to develop and deliver Ideation initiatives
• Opportunities development and pipeline management using Microsoft Dynamics Vine CRM and other tracking tools.
• Identify client key decision makers and work with the sales team to schedule meetings and pitch services.
• Drive Haworth’s Ideation services strategy to support dealers, knowledge partners, designers and consultants.
• Support the sales and marketing teams in client-facing interactions and positioning discussions, to differentiate Haworth utilizing Ideation services, research and digital tools.
• Provide support and content on RFI and RFP responses for Ideation services.
• Take a leading role in pitching for new business and responding to ‘Requests for Information’: - Proposing service methodologies, Fee and resource calculations, Writing relevant case studies, Preparing interactive pitch presentations that will engage the audience
• Lead the client relationship, in regard to Ideation service projects, as the day-to-day contact.
• Develops and manages relationships with designers & architects, workplace consultants, knowledge partners, suppliers, partner organizations, professional organizations, and academia to support the market and sub regional sales strategy.

• Develops and maintains project schedule and budget to ensure it is in line with approved pricing.
• Keeps track of the timeline to ensure on-time delivery and project execution.
• Constantly streamlines processes and tracking costs to ensure project profitability.
• Leads project meetings to define key goals and objectives.
• Leads milestone meetings with internal / external team members and project stakeholders.
• Leads interactive, stakeholder engagement initiatives such workshops, interviews, focus groups, presentations
• Develop and direct the work of the installation and dealership customer service team.
• Contracts with and manages independent installation teams as required to meet installation schedules as well as validate and ensure Haworth’s standard of installation is maintained by all installation contractors.
• Develops business plans and budgets necessary to ensure the necessary resources are allocated.
• Coordinate the delivery, receiving and installation of materials necessary to complete customers’ orders.
• Coach installers to equip them with the necessary knowledge on handling and installation
• Determine and implement the appropriate corrective actions to resolve delivery or installation issues.
• Promotes Haworth’s project management services such as reconfiguration and asset management.
• Ensure all contractors under his charge safeguard the reputation and premium image of Haworth.
• Verify all contractors’ billings and specify all sales project codes for accurate project cost accounting.

• Measures and analyzes workplace effectiveness through discussion, site observation, space utilization and benchmarking studies. Directs and leads data gathering and analysis to ensure conclusions are robust
• Undertake development strategy reviews providing comment and analysis on: Time Utilization Studies, Space Benchmarking, Meeting room occupancy data, User group profiling, Identifies utilisation patterns and variances
• Direct the production of presentation & report collateral, ensuring a presentation of analysis, ideas and recommendations is comprehensible, concise, coordinated and conclusive: Space planning, Sharing densities, Furniture and space types, location, deficiencies, etc., Floor-plate configuration, including efficiency analysis etc., Amenities and shared spaces and services provision.
• Direct and lead development of recommendations for implementation which may include: Change Management assessment, Revised space planning, sharing densities, furniture and space types, location, floor-plate configuration etc., ‘Strategic Brief’ for handover to a design team (internal or external)
• May include an active oversight role (client facing or internal), from a workplace strategy perspective, as the project moves through design phases.
• Continuously challenge, develop and improve our methodologies, strategies and presentation of utilization data through research, data science peer review, further education and partner engagement.
• Continue to expand on an in-depth knowledge of workplace specific requirements and workplace trends through professional development and research.
• Continually seeks out and shares insights to new connections between Ideation workplace knowledge and applied design to inform improvements in the Ideation workplace advisory component and workplace tools.
• Creates case studies for completed projects, publishing internally and externally with customer approval.
• Captures learning from client projects and coordinates with department leads to present findings and inform leaders of Ideation, Product Development, Marketing, Architectural and Design (A&D), Sales, and Dealer Distribution.
• Leads as an active agent in continuous training and development of all regional team members, continually focused on Ideation Services as a consolidated services proposition.
• Provides thought leadership in the area of workplace strategy through knowledge sharing, participation and facilitation to help evolve the workplace, people within it and the technologies used.
• Participating and representing Haworth at key industry events and supporting Haworth’s position as a workplace knowledge leader.
• Supports research projects to develop and improve Ideation consulting, research tools and databases.
• Supports the development, enhancement, marketing and client utilization of Haworth’s Ideation tools and services.
• Utilizes knowledge of technology, planning and specification software, particularly CoWorkr, CoDesigner and PCon, to improve work/communication and create deliverables for client planning and design projects.
• Spends appropriate levels of time in local and subregional markets, requiring overnight and occasional travel away from “home” office.
• May include an active oversight role (client facing or internal), from a workplace strategy perspective, as the project moves through design phases.
• Continuously challenge, develop and improve our methodologies, strategies and presentation of utilization data through research, data science peer review, further education and partner engagement.
• Continue to expand on an in-depth knowledge of workplace specific requirements and workplace trends through professional development and research.
• Continually seeks out and shares insights to new connections between Ideation workplace knowledge and applied design to inform improvements in the Ideation workplace advisory component and workplace tools.
• Creates case studies for completed projects, publishing internally and externally with customer approval.
• Captures learning from client projects and coordinates with department leads to present findings and inform leaders of Ideation, Product Development, Marketing, Architectural and Design (A&D), Sales, and Dealer Distribution.
• Takes initiative, works well independently in addition to a remote team setting.

Your Qualifications :

• A university or technical school degree in design, architecture, data analysis or a similar field of study, with minimum 5 years’ work experience.
• Project management experience in the contract office furniture industry.
• Ability to read and interpret blue-prints, CAD drawings and layouts
• Working knowledge of AutoCad, Indesign (Creative Suite), Excel, PowerPoint and Office
• Ability to space plan and critique space plans
• Knowledge of specific occupier planning requirements, base building specifications
• Knowledge of, workplace strategies such as Activity Based Working, Agile Working etc.
• Strong analytical problem-solving skills
• Demonstrate problem-solving skills, and a high degree of professionalism and integrity.
• Effective and proven client and relationship management skills
• Excellent personal presentation and a genuine desire and ability to participate in business development activities including industry forums and networking opportunities
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills; and pro-active, self-motivated and positive attitude
• Excellent presentation and visualization skills.
• High client engagement skills and customer interface experience required
• Demonstrated track record in “cross-functional collaboration”.
• Ability to travel, incl. overnight.

About us

The family-owned company, headquartered in Holland, Michigan/United States, employs more than 8.000 people and is represented in more than 150 countries in Asia, Europe and America with subsidiaries and partners.