The biggest names in real estate will gather to discuss how young professionals and tech companies are driving increased demand for multifamily development in the Pacific Northwest at Bisnow’s Multifamily Annual Conference on Sept. 24. Among them will be Nyles Scott, OpenSquare’s director of workplace consulting. Speakers will also address affordable housing challenges, placemaking, community development and strategies to meet residents’ needs now and in the future. Register here for the event.

Nyles Scott understands that for today’s employers, finding and retaining top talent is harder than ever. As OpenSquare’s director of workplace consulting, Scott and his team partner with architects, developers and company leaders to design spaces with everything businesses need to keep employees happy for years to come, from standing desks to personal sound masking systems.

“There’s a war going on for talent right now,” Scott said. “It’s crucial for companies to maintain office spaces that will appeal to multiple generations of workers if they want to stay competitive and fight for that talent.”

Bisnow recently sat down with him to learn more about the secrets to a successful workspace and the current trends in office development. Scott will moderate a panel called "Thinking Ahead and Meeting Residents’ Needs" at Bisnow’s upcoming Pacific Northwest Multifamily Annual Conference on Sept. 24.

Bisnow: What goes into a well-designed office space?

Scott: To me, a well-designed space is one that offers workers options while still fostering collaboration. Open-plan offices give employees multiple choices for where they can work, as opposed to forcing them to stay in their individual cubicle, but they also limit privacy and personal spaces.

A well-designed space is able to strike that healthy balance between open areas and collaborative spaces where workers can hold private meetings.

Bisnow: How are employee preferences changing how office developers think? 

Scott: One company I recently met with told me that 98% of their employees bike to work or take public transportation, which is something that would have been unheard of years ago.

Companies are abandoning their old commuter incentives in favor of ones that encourage employees to bike or take public transportation to work. Gone are the days when employers would offer to pay for parking, gas or mileage. Today, they are offering to subsidize bus and subway passes, or even the cost of using the bike share programs that have sprung up across multiple cities.

Bisnow: What does this mean for developers?  

Scott: Transit-oriented development, or TOD, is driving office development today. The idea is to build office spaces and residential buildings where public transportation is not only close by, but where tenants can see it from outside of their office window.

TOD draws tenants in by showing them that transportation to and from the office is easily available at all times. As the popularity of public transit grows across Seattle, TOD is becoming the new gold standard.

Bisnow: How would you describe your role at OpenSquare? 

Scott: I lead a team of workplace consultants and help them develop their talents so they can have more influential conversations with their clients about how to make the most of their office space.

Bisnow: What are you looking forward to at Bisnow’s Pacific Northwest Multifamily Annual Conference? 

Scott: I’m looking forward to conversations around enhancing the tenant experience, particularly the innovative multifamily development trends and new business models that have surfaced over the past few years. Along with that, I would love to learn more about the different ways developers are adjusting their multifamily and office properties to accommodate multiple generations of tenants and workers, especially as Gen Z begins to enter the market.

Bisnow: What are you passionate about outside of work? 

Scott: I have a 6-month-old daughter, so right now my ultimate goal is to spend as much time with her as possible. I’m also new to the Pacific Northwest, so I’m looking forward to exploring the food and hiking trails that this area has to offer.

Nyles Scott will be moderating the “Thinking Ahead and Meeting Residents’ Needs” panel at Bisnow’s upcoming Pacific Northwest Multifamily Annual Conference on Sept 24. Register here for the event.

This feature was produced in collaboration between Bisnow Branded Content and OpenSquare. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.