Creating Memorable (Shelter-In-)Places

A GFF TEAM SURVEY DURING COVID-19

Since transitioning to a fully remote workforce on March 24, GFF has remained committed to providing the high creativity and productivity levels that our clients and consultants rely on. We are proud of the dedication that our GFF team has shown during these challenging times and we couldn’t have done it without each and every employee’s commitment and cooperation. GFF continues to Create Memorable Places from our home work spaces and for that, we are incredibly grateful to our IT team.

While we feel very fortunate to continue our daily operations without disruption, our thoughts go out to all those who have been affected in so many ways during COVID-19. As a firm united, we are sheltering-in-place to protect our clients, collaborators, neighbors and friends, while continuing to support our communities. From our GFF family to yours, we hope you are all staying safe and healthy.

Please scroll down for a snapshot of our experiences working from home and examples of how our team is staying engaged.

Have you executed any creative design interventions in the process of transforming a portion of your home into a home office?

I’ve become more of a nomadic worker. I find that I focus better by changing my environment. I have a desk setup with faux plants and family photos for heads-down work and I’ll work on the sofa or at the kitchen island for some sit-to-stand action. I’ve started thinking of ideas for altering my front porch, but I don’t have a power outlet.

ALIX RIOS

My boyfriend gifted me a nice office setup and then he took over our media room and made it into a design war room with a standing desk.

JILLIAN BROOKS

I have done a great deal of automation. Luckily I have two girls that are much more tech-savvy than me. Now I have a gaming head-set so that I look like a pilot, a supplemental camera so that the laptop camera doesn’t shoot up my nose, and a laser printer that it only took me six hours to hook up to my home’s wireless network.

SCOTT SOWER

Our dining room table has become a multiple-user work station. Years ago I made a large square dining table for us to provide more seating for social gatherings. This table has worked out quite well in being able to accommodate several people in a work/school environment. And while we do have a separate office, this table is closest to the internet modem. Hard wiring to the modem has made all the difference.

JONATHAN WOOD

My laptop’s camera is too low, so it focuses on my nostrils. I’ve propped up the laptop on a box.

BRIAN MOORE

I don’t know if I would call it “creative,” but because we have two boys doing classwork from home as well as two professionals working from home we did need to find space near the router. The solution was turning our pool table into a large work table for four computer stations.

LOREN BOYNTON

THE BOYNTON FAMILY WORK STATION

How are you freeing yourself from distractions?

Whenever I feel distracted, I move my work space for about 30 minutes. It allows me to keep working diligently. I also take a few five minute breaks throughout the day and that really helps me stay focused. I’ve been able to keep productive with these little tricks, thankfully.

BECCA VAHLDICK

Day One took some adjusting for me, but by Day Two I found my groove. I’m taking coffee breaks as I would at the office. Instead of going to the work kitchen, I’m going to my home kitchen. I have the patio doors open so I can go the backyard to get fresh air and the dogs can easily go in and out.

JILLIAN KOHL

My girlfriend is also an Architect so we have created a makeshift studio in our apartment. Having her here helps to normalize working from home with the added benefit that we can bounce ideas off one another. And between the natural light, the library of plants, and the sounds of the plant nursery below our apartment, it has been a great working environment.

LEVI HOOTEN

My wife is also an Architect so she is just as busy as I am. It can be tough with two young boys who are as sneaky and mischievous as I ever was. We are taking turns watching and instructing them with their school work while trying to throw a little bit of activity into the mix. It has been an adjustment for them to have to focus at home and actually listen to us as their teacher instead of their parent. My after-hours time is spent trying to log work hours from the distractions during the day. I’ve never been so productive from 9 PM to midnight.

GRANT WICKARD

I think that keeping the consistent schedule that I adhered to before working from home has helped. I play music on my phone and then set it aside out of sight so it doesn’t distract me.

JORDAN COSLETT

I am in the early stages of prototyping away/busy signs for co-working spaces. Wait. What was the question?

ROSS CHARBA

ROSS CHARBA’S CO-WORKING SIGNAGE PROTOTYPE

Has setting up your own home office made you more tech savvy?

A little bit. I have actually had some trouble learning how to do calls/video calls through Teams in a remote connection and I kind of feel like my mom who can never figure out anything tech.

MAXINE KRAFT

It has just made me feel thankful for my tech-loving husband who thrives on this kind of stuff and had already implemented every item GFF’s IT Department suggested. When we moved into this house, he spent several days in the attic, drilling through walls, and laying cable under freshly installed kitchen countertops to ensure that all our important devices were hardwired to our router.

AMANDA KALESCKY

I definitely have a huge amount of appreciation for our IT team after having to be my own at home tech support for a week!

EVAN BEATTIE

Well sort of, but it has also given me an increased value for younger people (like my daughters), who, though they don’t know and understand much of the things I do, it’s hard to deny how intuitive they are when it comes to technology and figuring stuff out.

SCOTT SOWER

Yes. I’ve become the de-facto ‘IT guy’ around the house, setting up web-cams, dual monitor displays, troubleshooting printer connections, etc. I’ve learned (still learning, actually) how to use MS Teams, and it is quickly becoming part of my daily workflow.

RICK MYERS

I am definitely getting good practice at organizing various kinds wires, usb cables, charger cables, HDMI cables, etc.

STEPHEN WETTERMARK

CABLE MANAGEMENT

Have you had any fun teaching moments with your clients, coworkers and consultants about technology and remote connectivity as everyone transitions to working from home?

Everyone seems to be pretty up to date on how to work from home. It’s amazing how everyone has been able to transition so smoothly.

BECCA VAHLDICK

I had a video meeting with a client, where he had the world’s best backdrop – a full bleed aerial image of downtown Ft. Worth. I want to learn how to do that!

BRIAN MOORE

I’ve been able to introduce Bluebeam Studio to GFF Interiors as an alternate to redlines. It cuts down production time!