This unconventional keynote discusses everything from sex and drugs to happy hormones and designing spaces for each unique individual. Now the Co-Founder of Smart Building Collective, Elizabeth is bringing a diverse group of experts to help move the evolution of smart buildings forward. Smart has the ability to help create creative solutions from data to make our buildings more functional, sustainable, cost effective and healthier, more collaborative spaces for the people inside.

Everyone is talking about place, space and technology, but hybrid is more than those things. Trends show that even with cool spaces, exceptional tech, and free healthy food, in-office utilization is still at a record low. We must go deeper to explore how our social interactions and organizational paradigms shape hybrid work. Through their work on a 4-article research series on digital equality with WORKTECH Academy, Canadian workplace technology advisor, ET Group, will illuminate facets of hybrid work that are often overlooked and challenge assumptions about the hybrid experience.

Amid recurring layers of disruption, one constant now illuminates the world of work and workplace. This is a consistent line of travel towards flexible working, including its hybrid and remote variants. A significant majority of the workforce today express a desire for flexibility. More companies believe that supporting and enabling flexible work should be a priority. In this session, Matthew Myerson draws on stories and evidence from around the WORKTECH Academy network to present a picture of what is happening inside organisations and office buildings around the world.

If you’re wondering, “how did Scotiabank do that?”, this session is for you! We’ll dive in with Hilary Green to learn how Scotiabank’s Centre of Excellence integrates a cross-functional approach to use data, design thinking, experimentation, and test labs to inform the Workplace Experience and Future of Work efforts.

Leading global work time reduction expert and evangelist Joe O'Connor will why and how organizations are moving to reduced-hour, productivity-focused work models, what the emerging findings from global trials and research is telling us, the synergies between AI, remote work and work time reduction. This shorter session will lead in to a panel discussion around rethinking work-life balance.

In this thought-provoking panel discussion, industry experts explore two fundamental questions shaping the future of work: Can we work less? Can we have better employees and employers? Through insightful dialogue, the panel examines the possibilities of achieving work-life balance, reducing the emphasis on long work hours, and fostering healthier relationships between employees and employers. Join us as we delve into innovative strategies, flexible work arrangements, and cultural shifts that prioritize well-being while maintaining productivity in today's dynamic work environments.

Using case studies such as converted warehouses, eco-parks, and an office design inspired by plant life in form and function, this talk aims to demonstrate the correlations between sustainably refocused and upcycled workplace interiors and the solutions we need for productivity, performance, and the pure pleasure of being among our peers. From adaptive reusing aging and defunct infrastructure to upcycling pre-existing space with biophilia, tomorrow’s sustainable workplaces can become places of improved public perception, employee attraction and retention, and quantifiable degrees of fulfilment

In the age of the “anywhere office”, technology will play a more vital role than ever. How can our technology choices solve not only today's problems but help to prepare us for new challenges and rapidly changing circumstances? Explore how companies are using data analytics to shape real estate and technology decisions, use AI ethically, and consider the human experience in a way that can support emergence sustainably.

In a world of hybrid work and evolving technology, Adrian Mares discusses the untapped potential of AI. Discover the transformative impact of AI on knowledge work and the dynamics of hybrid workplaces. Gain insights on re-evaluating productivity in the age of AI and learn actionable strategies to measure what truly matters. Explore the dual approach of use case-based and test & learn methods for effective AI adoption. Get ready for a glimpse of the exciting productivity tools coming in the next six months.

While hybrid working has become a permanent fixture on the landscape of work, there are still big questions around the future of work that remain unanswered. How does the office fit into the new ecosystem of work? How can we build sustainable office spaces that meet new expectations? What is the wider implication of hybrid working on our cities? Join Katigbak for a look at innovative case studies for sustainable design, cutting edge data from Gensler’s City Pulse Index and survey results from both Canadian and global workplaces.

This session brings together leading real estate professionals and workplace strategy pioneers as they unravel the evolution of buildings and spaces in Toronto and the wider GTA. We will explore how the region is adapting to the ever-changing needs of businesses and employees, embracing the challenges of today and tomorrow. Discover the birth of new communities and the resurgence of reimagined spaces, engage with visionary thinkers and uncover exciting new ideas and opportunities that are shaping the future of work.

Other speakers to be announced.

Riding the waves of a rapidly changing world requires anchoring into principles that stand the test of time. In this light-hearted and interactive talk about aiming for better balance across organisations and industries, Kelly explores why continuing to lean more into feminine principles could be what allows us to achieve that balance, and stay healthier in the long term as a result.