E 227 Thought Leadership, Audience Engagement, and the Value of Physical Space

Today Laura chats with architect Kevin Ervin Kelley, co-founder with Terry Shook, FAIA, of the strategic design firm Shook Kelley, who is all about creating places and experiences that have the power to convene people. Doesn’t that sound cool? Making the audience the star of the place allows both Creators and Capitalists to get clear on what kind of payoff they need to provide to consumers in exchange for their time, energy, and expense. Successful architects and designers are also master communicators and today is our chance to learn from a high AQ A-Lister! (AQ = Aesthetic Intelligence.) The competitive edge has shifted already and that matters whether you lead a company or want to stand out as a thought leader. But a little less Alan Turing and a bit more William Shakespeare would change everything. While Kevin works a lot with retail and other public-facing industries, expectations are now radically different no matter where you work! Mercado is an excellent example of the future successful grocery store. You’ll learn in this fascinating conversation how to think about place in the modern context. Top-notch takeaways include: 🔥What you must know about our “Replacement Economy” (before we’re replaced 🤣) 🎯The pioneer essential skill needed for career success right now 🎤How and why office space has radically changed (hint: new purpose) 🛒What’s about to change in our grocery stores! 💰How Kevin and Terry Shook, FAIA built their firm SELLING big ideas (you can copy this!) 🚀Use the work/payoff ratio (WPR) to make better decisions 🔥The importance of Bonfire Events and their “participation mystique” ABOUT THIS WEEK’S GUEST: Kevin Ervin Kelley is an award-winning architect, brand innovator, and co-founder of the strategic design firm Shook Kelley, with offices in Los Angeles and Charlotte. Over the last three decades, he has worked closely with the executive leadership teams of some of the world’s most well-known brands, such as Harley Davidson, Whole Foods, Kroger, Kraft, Nabisco, JM Smucker, Cadbury, The Cleveland Orchestra, professional sports teams, universities, urban districts, and hundreds of local and regional enterprises. His expertise is convening people in the public realm and studying how the environment of a place affects behavior, perception, and decision-making. He is a frequent speaker at retail, food, and other consumer-related conferences in the U.S. and Asia and has taught courses at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte for many years. FOR YOU: Convinced about your executive presence when you walk into that meeting? Are you crushing your presentations? Do you use good metaphors? Such are the executive micro skills!!! Now you can know ALL of these juicy key details, thanks to our brand spanking-new Speak Up 360. It’s a cutting-edge leadership development 360 tool designed exclusively for highly-conscientious senior leaders like you. It’s focused exclusively on HIGH-IMPACT communication skills! With Speak Up 360, you'll receive comprehensive, CUSTOMIZED 360-degree feedback on all aspects of executive presence, influence, meeting behavior, and public speaking. Gain a personalized road map to get even better using insights from peers, subordinates, and superiors. Identify specific strengths, address actionable areas for improvement, and excel in key leadership dimensions. To give your emerging executives the opportunity to polish their communication skills using the Speak Up 360, schedule a quick call. Visit www.speakupwithlaura.com to learn how Laura’s allergy to boring helps leaders speak up and make things better. Want to make the world better? Please leave us a 5-star ⭐️podcast review to help others find this life-altering insight. We appreciate you!