It's day 37. We are all beginning to adapt to the new “normal.” This too will pass and one day soon we will go back to work, “bricks and mortar” work. Through many discussions with our clients, we know the real estate industry is busy collaborating and innovating to prepare for the future. Everything is on the table, from rethinking space planning (6 Feet Office) to reevaluating ventilation system operations (ASHRAE Resources). Change brings opportunity. . . The workplace is being reinvented in real-time.

Rethinking how we do business in a post-pandemic world will make organizations nimbler and more resilient when facing future disruptions. The concept of “resiliency” in real estate is quickly evolving and broadening in scope. It feels like we are now in the perfect storm of total disruption. Looking to the future, we anticipate a surge in resiliency planning as organizations strive to increase their capacity to respond to new risks and opportunities.

The Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) has solidified this movement by launching their Resilience Module to evaluate organizational preparedness. This optional GRESB module is likely to become mandatory for all survey respondents next year. As we navigate this pandemic and prepare to weather the next storm, resiliency planning will likely play a greater role in how our industry makes decisions, from courting investors to leasing space.

Our firm's namesake, “breea,” is the genus of the thistle plant; a resilient, adaptive, and resourceful plant. It gives us great hope to be a part of a resilient industry that is innovating and pivoting to meet the challenges of tomorrow. Now more than ever, it is critical that we collaborate as an industry to innovate and share resources to quickly reshape the post-pandemic workplace. We look forward to supporting our clients and the industry through this evolution.

Above all, our sincerest gratitude is with the first responders and our thoughts remain with those whose wellbeing has been impacted by this pandemic.

Stay safe and healthy!

the breea team