About Philip Vanhoutte:
Leveraging a rewarding international career in the ITC industry, Philip Vanhoutte’s passion for personal productivity tools and communication & collaboration solutions morphed into a singular purpose: accelerating the realization of human potential.
Philip champions the adoption of Smarter Working: a holistic human centered work design practice that unifies space, technology, and people disciplines. He co-authored The Smarter Working Manifesto, a definitive guide on how to shape the best work style. In his quest for health and joy at work he learned that Nature Deficit Disorder has produced highest ever burnouts, work induced sickness, and a struggling workforce. He campaigned for more nature at work with Ozadi at SXSW in Austin and GCUC in Denver.
Philip graduated from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium with a combined Applied Economics and Engineering degree and a major in Marketing. He started his career at Accenture Consulting, to continue with key change management roles at Engie and Wang Laboratories. In the second part of his IT career, he grew the MCI WorldCom International business, became Chief Marketing Officer at Sony-Ericsson Mobile Communications to finish a blue-chip career as SrVP and MD of Plantronics (now part of HP) Europe and Africa.
Since the Financial Crisis of 2008, Philip became a strong advocate of Agile Working with a passion for Human Dimensions of Organisations. He is known for transformational projects in award-winning offices which are acoustic temples and benchmarks for the biophilic built environment. He has advised Leesman, Veldhoen+Company and Work EvOHlution, and provided support to the founding of the Osservatorio Smart Working at the Politecnico di Milano.
Episode Notes:
Dr. Laura records a special episode live in Bruges, Belgium, with guest Philip Vanhoutte for a tour of the Generous Workhome. Philip explains how the vital elements of nature and wellbeing were distilled into six essentials for work health, and how those six essentials were built into the Generous Workhome to create an optimal, productive environment.
Philip drew from research into the value of pulling nature into daily life and the concepts of biophilic design to create the blueprint for the Generous Workhome. His theory is encapsulated by the acronym EASI, which is defined as Energizing being the key to driving Authoring, Sharing, and Interacting. As Philip guides Dr. Laura through the prototype Workhome studio spaces, it is evident that elements of sound blocking, nature, movement, adjustable lighting, and air temperature have all been carefully curated. Dr. Laura learns more about how EASI needs are woven into a functional work layout, the intention behind every choice, and how the outdoors can be brought into daily life. The YouTube version of this episode will enable viewers to truly see the Generous Workhome, aspects of which can be applied into our own work environments.
“In here you are hearing the sounds of a forest at this very moment. It’s a biophilic sound which has no repetition or pattern in it. So it’s not twice the same bird that you’re hearing chirping. And that puts people at ease. What human beings and animals need is the sounds of water, wind, and birds. If they hear these things, they relax.” Philip Vanhoutte
Resources:
- Philip Vanhoutte on LinkedIn
- Website: https://smarterworking.io/
- “The Smarter Working Manifesto” by Guy Clapperton and Philip Vanhoutte
- “14 Patterns of Biophilic Design” by Terrapin Bright Green
- EASI
- Not A Desk
- Moodsonic
- Aera home fragrance
- Savanna Studio
- “Forest Bathing” by Dr. Qing Li
- “Spring Cannot Be Cancelled” by David Hockney and Martin Gayford
Learn more about Dr. Laura on her website: https://drlaura.live
For more resources, look into Dr. Laura’s organizations:
Season 3 Episodes:
Episode 63 | Philanthropy Through Fashion: Purpose, Planet and People
About Randi Seiff: Randi Seiff is a Creative and Strategist in one, with 30+ years of expertise in fashion & lifestyle, specializing in design, branding, & product development, building purpose-driven brands from concept to completion. Randi brings a unique...
Episode 62 | The Gift of Intuition in Our Work and Lives
About Dr. Laura: Bringing nearly 25 years of expertise as an Industrial/Organizational and Career Psychologist and pioneer on the future of work, Dr. Laura helps organizations evolve their cultures, and leaders and employees to thrive in their work and lives. She...
Episode 61 | Vitamin N: The Power of Nature in Work/Life Wellness
About Laura Cohen: Originally from Montreal, Laura is now based in Halifax with a 10 minute walk to the ocean. For the last 6 years, Laura has worked as a counsellor in universities, Employee Assistance Programs, and in private practice, including her own nature...
Episode 60 | Exploring the Human Side of Unconscious Bias at Work
About Tina Varughese: An Indo-Canadian daughter of first generation parents, Varughese says her cultural background allows her to find “the best of both worlds” and shed light, knowledge, and, most importantly, universal humor into the changing workplace. Her highly...
Episode 59 | Closing the Confidence Gap to Thrive in Your Career
About Kelli Thompson: Kelli Thompson is a women’s leadership coach and speaker who helps women advance to the rooms where decisions are made. She has coached and trained hundreds of women to trust themselves, lead with more confidence, and create a career they love....
Episode 58 | From Sea to Space: The Quest to Help Humanity Survive and Thrive
iframe> About Dr. Shawna Pandya, BSc (Hons), MSc, MD, CFPC, DMT, FAWM (candidate), FEWM (honorary): Dr. Shawna Pandya is a physician, aquanaut, scientist-astronaut candidate with the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS), skydiver,...
More Thriving Human Episodes:
Episode 95 | Listening to the Call to Live Your Most Authentic Life
About Tresa Gibson: Recognized for her unique impressionist style that balances colour and depth, Tresa’s work has been described as a simultaneous sense of order and chaos. She has been a thriving self-taught artist for over 14 years specializing in oil on canvas. ...
Episode 93 | Building Awareness of Child Sex Trafficking: How We Can All Make a Difference
About Alan Smyth: Alan Smyth is married and a father of two children and one grandchild. He is the Executive Director for Saving Innocence, an anti-human trafficking agency based in Los Angeles California. Alan has responsibility for Direct Services and Business...
Episode 92 | Over Work: Transforming the Daily Grind in the Quest for a Better Life
About Brigid Schulte: Brigid Schulte is an award-winning journalist and bestselling author. She was a staff writer at the Washington Post and Washington Post magazine for nearly 17 years, and part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize. In addition to the Post, her...
Episode 89 | The Great Disconnect: Inability to Listen and Its Impacts on Workplaces
About Oscar Trimboli: Oscar Trimboli is an author, host of the Apple award-winning podcast Deep Listening and a sought-after keynote speaker. Along with the Deep Listening Ambassador Community, he is on a quest to create 100 million deep listeners in the workplace....
Episode 88 | The Resilience Plan: Optimizing your Work Performance and Mental Health
About Dr. Marie-Hélène Pelletier: Throughout her career in business management and psychology, Dr. Pelletier has spearheaded the dialogue on the crucial issues of leadership resilience and work performance. Drawing on her extensive background in corporate, insurance,...
Episode 87 | What People Don’t Think about When It Comes to Their Career
About Lynn Imai: Lynn Imai, Ph.D., is a Registered Psychotherapist and Career Counsellor in Toronto. Many of Lynn’s clients, when they first come to her, are at a critical point in their lives. They are questioning their careers and asking themselves why they do what...
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