In Season 10, Episode 6 of Design Nerds Anonymous, host Amanda Schneider turns to two critical forces shaping the future of work: mentorship and learning. She’s joined by Elisabeth Mejia, President of IIDA New York and Interiors Leader for HKS in New York, and Paridhi Chawla, Vice President of Student Development for IIDA New York and a Gen Z designer at TPG Architecture. Together, they explore what happens when institutional knowledge is at risk of retiring out, why mentorship can no longer sit only with the most senior leaders, and how learning must become more distributed, reciprocal, and adaptable to keep pace with change. 

Links Mentioned: 

• Grab your copy of Work for What's Next. 
• Sign up for ThinkLab’s Newsletter to keep up with industry trends.  
• Follow Amanda on LinkedIn for more workplace insights. 
• Book Amanda to speak  

This season of Design Nerds Anonymous is presented by Mannington Commercial, THE MART & NeoCon, and The Mav Group.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Season 10, Episode 5 of Design Nerds Anonymous, host Amanda Schneider turns to two of the most pressing realities of modern work: communication and collaboration. She’s joined by Dr. JJ Peterson, former head of StoryBrand and a leading voice in modern messaging, and Gideon Spitzer-Williams, who leads global experiential marketing for Canva’s B2B organization. Together, they explore why more communication does not automatically create clarity, how AI should amplify wisdom rather than replace it, and what it takes to design communication systems that create momentum instead of noise. 

Links Mentioned: 

• Grab your copy of Work for What's Next. 
• Sign up for ThinkLab’s Newsletter to keep up with industry trends.  
• Follow Amanda on LinkedIn for more workplace insights. 
• Book Amanda to speak  

This season of Design Nerds Anonymous is presented by Mannington Commercial, THE MART & NeoCon, and The Mav Group.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Season 10, Episode 4 of Design Nerds Anonymous, host Amanda Schneider zooms out from trust and talent to explore the deeper belief systems holding organizations together: culture and purpose. She’s joined by Ron Tite—author, speaker, founder of Church+State, and former stand-up comic turned award-winning creative director—who has helped global brands align what they believe with how they behave. Together, they unpack why so many organizations get purpose wrong, how short-term thinking erodes real growth, and what it takes to translate lofty ideas into behaviors people across generations can actually see, feel, and follow. 

Links Mentioned: 

• Grab your copy of Work for What's Next. 
• Sign up for ThinkLab’s Newsletter to keep up with industry trends.  
• Follow Amanda on LinkedIn for more workplace insights. 
• Book Amanda to speak  

This season of Design Nerds Anonymous is presented by Mannington Commercial, THE MART & NeoCon, and The Mav Group.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Season 10, Episode 3 of Design Nerds Anonymous, host Amanda Schneider builds on last week’s trust conversation by tackling the next logical shift: recruitment and retention. She’s joined by two voices with beautifully opposing (and complementary) lenses: Grace Snelling, editorial assistant at Fast Company covering design, branding, and cultural shifts with a front-row Gen Z perspective, and Megan Detratto, partner and co-founder of TOKONEXT who’s spent 20+ years advising AEC firms on talent acquisition, succession, and next-gen leadership. 

Together, they explore why “less loyal” may be the wrong diagnosis, how cynicism is rising across generations, and what it looks like to design organizations people want to grow inside—not escape from. 

Links Mentioned: 

• Grab your copy of Work for What's Next. 
• Sign up for ThinkLab’s Newsletter to keep up with industry trends.  
• Follow Amanda on LinkedIn for more workplace insights. 
• Book Amanda to speak  

This season of Design Nerds Anonymous is presented by Mannington Commercial, THE MART & NeoCon, and The Mav Group.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Season 10, Episode 2 of Design Nerds Anonymous, host Amanda Schneider continues the season inspired by her new book, Work for What’s Next, with Eric Termuende, bestselling author and keynote speaker who’s delivered 500+ talks worldwide on leadership, culture, and the future of work. Together, they dig into one of the most foundational shifts in the book: trust and connection—why we’re more connected than ever, yet somehow feel more disconnected at the same time. Expect practical, human-first strategies for building trust without shortcuts, a nuanced take on authenticity, and a surprisingly perfect metaphor involving gas station sushi. 

Links Mentioned: 

• Grab your copy of Work for What's Next. 
• Sign up for ThinkLab’s Newsletter to keep up with industry trends.  
• Follow Amanda on LinkedIn for more workplace insights. 
• Book Amanda to speak  

This season of Design Nerds Anonymous is presented by Mannington Commercial, THE MART & NeoCon, and The Mav Group.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the Season 10 premiere of Design Nerds Anonymous, host Amanda Schneider kicks off a season built around the ideas inside her upcoming book, Work for What’s Next, with a guest who lives at the intersection of innovation, risk, and human potential: Deb Golden, Deloitte’s US Chief Innovation Officer. Together, they unpack a core tension shaping work right now: companies keep trying to fix a software problem (culture, trust, systems) with hardware (office mandates). The result is a conversation about the trust gap, unlearning outdated rules, and what it takes to design workplaces that become magnets—not mandates. 

Links Mentioned: 

• Grab your copy of Work for What's Next. 
• Sign up for ThinkLab’s Newsletter to keep up with industry trends.  
• Follow Amanda on LinkedIn for more workplace insights. 
• Book Amanda to speak  

This season of Design Nerds Anonymous is presented by Mannington Commercial, THE MART & NeoCon, and The Mav Group.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Recorded live at the EDspaces conference in Columbus, this episode explores how education leaders are navigating high-stakes decisions under unforgiving timelines. Hear why trust, clarity, and early alignment matter more than ever, what’s slowing education projects down, and how partners can help schools move forward with confidence and credibility. 

LINKS:  

End-User Decision Making 

Join Thinklab’s research 

Podcast Discussion Guide  

5 Question Quiz to Earn CEU Credits 

Thank you to our episode sponsors: Shaw Contract and Haworth.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, ThinkLab’s hospitality research takes center stage as Amanda Schneider and Erica Waayenberg unpack how decision-making is shifting across hotel and hospitality projects. From rising risk aversion and burnout to growing expectations around business acumen and the practical role of AI, this episode explores what hospitality end users need most right now and how teams can move forward with more clarity and confidence. 

LINKS:  

End-User Decision Making 

Join Thinklab’s research 

Podcast Discussion Guide 

5 Question Quiz to Earn CEU Credits 

Thank you to our episode sponsor: Mohawk

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Live from the Healthcare Design Conference in Kansas City, this episode explores how healthcare end users are navigating increasingly complex decisions for the built environment. Hear why early problem-spotting beats crisis response, what’s breaking alignment at the start of projects, and how clearer communication and stronger partnerships can help healthcare teams move faster with more confidence. 

LINKS:  

End-User Decision Making

Join Thinklab’s research

Podcast Discussion Guide  

5 Question Quiz for CEU Credits

Thank you to our episode sponsors: Haworth and Clarus.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Live from Chicago, this episode dives into how corporate end users are making decisions differently in today’s built environment. Hear real conversations straight from ThinkLab’s Corporate Hackathon on why flexibility matters more than cost, what’s slowing projects down, and how clearer, more empathetic partnerships can move work forward faster.

LINKS:  

End-User Decision Making

Join Thinklab’s research

Podcast Discussion Guide

5 Question Quiz to Earn CEU Credits

Thank you to our episode sponsors: Shaw Contract and Clarus. 

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.