A series of Zoom discussions helping navigate communications and business development in architecture and design during lockdown.

Each session is part Q&A, part-networking, with speakers from across the industry sharing their experience before the audience breaks into smaller groups for informal discussions.

In a hybrid working world which blends office life with work from anywhere, how do organisations maintain a cohesive and inclusive culture that keeps employees engaged, encourages a sense of belonging and supports collaboration. How will internal communications be managed to do this? And how do we keep all employees happy and focused on achieving goals as we all adapt to a new ways of working in 2021 and beyond?

• Co-Chairs: Tina Connell, Director of People at Buckley Gray Yeoman and group leader of the HR Network; and Rachel Birchmore, Director of AreBe

• Dilly Lidder, Head of Internal Communications, Europe - Aecom

• Sean Peacock, Head of HR at Stride Treglown

• Gemma Jachnik - Studio Manager at Barr Gazetas

As a new or small business, you are constantly looking for ways to break through the noise and attract business without breaking the bank. During this difficult and dynamic time, practices are adopting different strategies, digital and off-line, to market their services and promote their expertise. On Thursday 27th May 2021, we were joined by special guests to discusss their individual approach, strategies they are adopting, and how things have changed over the past two years.

• Chaired by Ayo Abbas, Director of Abbas Marketing and
  Dean McCauley-Bové, Founder of We Design Homes

• Tara Gbolade, Co-Founder of Gbolade Design

• Andy Matthews, Architect & Partner at Roach Matthews

• Brigitte Clements - Founding Partner at Loki Architecture and Development

With sustainability credentials becoming a must (happily) for many clients and stakeholders, practices are thinking about how to best communicate their efforts in addressing the climate and biodiversity crisis. Positively, the built environment industry is changing; many pledges have been made, new digital tools and approaches adopted and lower carbon buildings completed – often announced with much fanfare. However, we need to avoid hyperbole and be honest about the challenges that remain and how we’re planning to address them.

We discussed how to communicate authentically around climate change issues and solutions, particularly ahead of COP26, with special guests:

• John Davies - Head of Sustainability, Derwent London

• Hattie Hartman - Sustainability Editor, AJ

• Jake Attwood-Harris - Sustainable Design Advisor, Hawkins\Brown

• Christopher Moore - Head of Communications, Price & Myers

• Chaired by Isabelle Kelly - Senior Marketing Manager, Global Campaigns & Positioning, Aecom.

On 4th March 2021, we discussed how our media landscape looks post-pandemic and the key themes to be explored on the road ahead. Together we heard from a fantastic line-up of journalists with new homes and writers shaping the way we think about the built environment:

• Francesca Perry - ICON

• Jessica Middleton-Pugh - React News

• Chris Foges - RIBA J

• Nana Biamah-Ofosu - New Architecture Writers

Companies spent much of 2020 adapting to the extraordinary circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, circumstances which aren’t yet in the rear view mirror. But there is hope that 2021 will be the year of transition back to some sort of ‘next normal’ (McKinsey & Co.). In a year of continuing change, how are big practices preparing to navigate 2021, what positive outcomes do they hope to see and what changes do they think will be here to stay?

We brought together a fantastic line-up of speakers to hear their thoughts on the topic:

• Jesslyn Guntur - Senior Communications and PR Manager at BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group

• Bernadette Keane - Marketing Strategy and Planning Director, Urban Assets at Landsec

• Emily Binning - UK Head of Branding and Marketing at WSP.

• David Hendy - Head of Communications at Mace.