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On What’s Your Work Fit?, Dan Smolen, Mark Gilbreath, and Fran Saele are joined by workplace strategists and authors Sara Escobar and Corinne Murray to unpack their influential book, WORK Then PLACE: Navigating Modern Work & Where It Happens.
At a time when organizations are wrestling with return-to-office mandates, AI disruption, and shifting employee expectations, this conversation challenges a deeply ingrained assumption: Should we design the workplace first—or the work itself?
Sara and Corinne argue convincingly that work must come first—and that everything else, including place, should follow.
🧠 Key Themes & Insights
1. Work Then Place—Not the Other Way Around
- Many organizations still default to designing offices first and forcing work into them.
- The authors advocate for a flipped model:
- Define the what and why of work
- Understand how work actually happens
- Then design places (physical, digital, experiential) to support it
- “If you build it, they will come” no longer applies in modern work.
2. The “Place-First” Trap and Return-to-Office (RTO) Tension
- Companies are reverting to rigid office mandates driven largely by fear:
- Financial pressure
- Leadership uncertainty
- AI anxiety
- This has created a “we built it, now you must come” dynamic.
- The hosts and guests explore whether this is a temporary pendulum swing or a lasting shift.
3. AI as the Next Great Disruptor of Work
- Unlike the pandemic (which changed where work happened), AI is transforming what work is.
- Key implications:
- Compression of tasks → increased cognitive load
- Potential rise in burnout despite “efficiency gains”
- Redefinition of roles toward strategy, storytelling, and human connection
- AI may not eliminate work—but it will reshape it profoundly.
4. Human Skills Become the Differentiator
- As automation expands, uniquely human capabilities gain value:
- Socialization and connection
- Cross-functional storytelling
- Nonlinear thinking
- Rather than diminishing, human interaction may become more critical in AI-enabled workplaces.
5. Behavior Change Is the Hardest Challenge
- Organizations struggle not from lack of knowledge—but from resistance to change.
- Leaders often default to familiar models that made them successful.
- The book provides a repeatable framework to guide better decision-making at scale.
6. Employee Experience = Operational Advantage
- Workplace experience has long been dismissed as “nice to have” or “cultural confetti.”
- Escobar and Murray reframe it as:
- A core operational driver
- Directly tied to productivity, engagement, and business outcomes
- Better work design = better organizational performance.
🔄 The Big Idea
We’ve never truly designed work—only where it happens.
This episode challenges leaders to rethink everything:
👉 Work is not a place
👉 Work is a system
👉 And it must be designed intentionally
💡 Memorable Moments
- “Place is the low-hanging fruit—but not the starting point.”
- “Return-to-office is being driven by fear—not necessarily what works best.”
- “AI isn’t just changing work—it’s compressing it.”
- “Socialization may be our greatest human superpower in an AI-driven world.”
🎯 Who Should Listen
- Business leaders navigating hybrid and return-to-office strategies
- HR and workplace experience professionals
- Anyone concerned about AI’s impact on jobs and teams
- Professionals seeking better alignment between work, life, and purpose
🔗 Learn More
- Follow What’s Your Work Fit? on LinkedIn and YouTube
- Explore the What’s Your Work Fit? Substack for deeper insights and episode extensions
- Follow our guests Sara Escobar and Corinne Murray
- Follow our Executive Producer and Host Dan Smolen
- Follow our Co-Hosts LiquidSpace CEO Mark Gilbreath and MorteVita Managing Principal Fran Saele
- Pick up a copy of WORK Then PLACE: Navigating Modern Work & Where It Happens.
📢 Call to Action
If you enjoyed this episode, share it with five colleagues or friends who are rethinking their own work fit.