Sunshower & Co.
Commercial Office Space
Spring 2022 • Individual Work • 10 Weeks
Revit • Enscape
• • •
Sun Shower’s core mission is to provide owners with tools to support the health and wellness of their dogs. By having the needs of these pets taken care of, it gives the opportunity to focus on what is most important, their relationships. Sun Shower offers products that range from wearable gear – collars and harnesses, to hygiene products – paw wipes and shampoo. There is a dedicated wellness therapy program designed to incorporate (HAI) Human-Animal Interactions, which is housed internally in the office for community members.
Spring 2022 • Individual Work • 10 Weeks
Revit • Enscape
• • •
Sun Shower’s core mission is to provide owners with tools to support the health and wellness of their dogs. By having the needs of these pets taken care of, it gives the opportunity to focus on what is most important, their relationships. Sun Shower offers products that range from wearable gear – collars and harnesses, to hygiene products – paw wipes and shampoo. There is a dedicated wellness therapy program designed to incorporate (HAI) Human-Animal Interactions, which is housed internally in the office for community members.
Imagine a moment in time where the world wrapped its arms ever so tightly and didn’t let go until the chaos ceased to exist, a calm flooding the senses. What was the moment? Was it the gathering of friends and family as birthday candles were blown out? The moment a child takes their first steps? Watching your dog experience the beach for the first time? For the founders of Sun Shower, it was on a bright, sunny day and unexpectedly, they became caught in a rain shower, a sun shower to be specific, while walking their dogs.
It is a strange phenomenon to experience; a brief and typically light fall of rain while the sun is shining. It captures a moment, a feeling, society forgets to express. It is the shear sensation of being present in the moment but can also symbolize good luck. Living through the daily lives this world has become, it can be difficult to remember to stop and appreciate the persons, places, and things within our lives.
The founders of Sun Shower wanted to capture this moment into a company that started off with helping to ground the people within the community by implementing Human-Animal Interaction (HAI) support groups. Eventually, this transpired and surpassed the goals they set, and they wanted to introduce wearable gear for the therapy dogs within Sun Showers program. Today, they are expanding their brand by launching a website to sell their products throughout the country. They will be moving into a new space to further develop Sun Shower and bring it to its fullest potential with a team behind them.
The core mission of the company is to provide owners with tools to support the health and wellness of their dogs. By having the needs of these pets taken care of, it gives the opportunity to focus on what is most important, their relationships. They offer products that range from wearable gear to hygiene products and are looking to expand the HAI – Human-Animal Interactions division further.
Keeping with the original concept, a non-negotiable item is to have a space within the office for support groups to use weekly. Studies have shown that when practiced with the appropriate education and training, animal assisted therapy in counseling has the potential to impact the therapeutic experience of a diverse range of clients across a wide variety of settings in a highly positive manner. (Shelton, L. S., Leeman, M., & O’Hara, C.) Sun Shower takes part of the profits to fund this department and invest in areas they feel will better the community.
Currently, they have implemented a team for Animal-Assisted Activity (AAA) and Animal-Assisted Education (AAE). “Animal-assisted activities provide opportunities for motivational, educational, and/or recreational benefits to enhance quality of life. While more informal in nature, these activities are delivered by a specially trained professional, paraprofessional, and/or volunteer, in partnership with an animal that meets specific criteria for suitability … Animal-assisted education is a goal-oriented, planned, and structured intervention directed by a general education or special education professional. The focus of the activities is on academic goals, prosocial skills, and cognitive functioning with student progress being both measured and documented.” (Partners, P.)
Being a company that provides therapy dog services, they are actively volunteering within the community. Depending on the needs of the surrounding area, they go to where they are requested, such as hospitals, schools, and in-home visits. The HAI team at Sun Shower may branch off into a separate non-profit to allow them to open individual locations across the country, but for now they are functioning within Sun Shower.
The overall design of Sun Shower will be reliant on the feeling it evokes throughout the space. The founders want to provide a safe space for support groups to engage with therapy dogs and will be leaning on the team to be actively engaged with design decisions. They also want to ensure the rest of the company feels seen and heard, so the overall tech of the space will allow users to customize the area to their needs, such as temperature, lighting controls, noise, and privacy. This will provide each department with the flexibility and resiliency to transform with the company and the day-to-day needs.
With visitors coming and going throughout the day, security of the space plays an important role of the design. There will be badged entry and access points within the space and each department, to ensure the overall safety of the company’s teammates. This will allow the teams to relax and focus on the everyday tasks at hand as well as the safety of the clients coming into the support group sessions.
Since the beginning of COVID-19, company culture has been a high concern for leaders. They are looking for new ways to make sure everyone feels safe, but can connect on a personal level, even through the use of remote work. “Emotional Security in the Workplace, a new white paper from the Gensler Research Institute, found that creating an environment where workers feel empowered to take risks, ask questions, pose new ideas, and fail can be more important than the environment itself. When individuals feel emotionally secure at work, they show increased trust in themselves and others. We can design new spaces, or re-purpose existing ones, to provide new accommodations that help create environments that deliver a feeling of emotional safety. This can include spaces intended to offer a mental break from external stressors, integrated sanitation stations, or central information/resource centers.” (Farhangi, D.)
The main goal is to create an open environment where the teammates can express concerns, but also provide positive encouragement for their peers. It is imperative that the company culture as a whole is unified, but that there are department cultures branched off as well. By having individual department cultures within the overall company culture, it provides another level of closeness for the teammates. “It’s cliche to say people are our most important asset,” explains Laurent Bernard, vice president, Global Talent Management at Steelcase. “But, without the right people there would be no new big ideas or game-changing products—your organization simply can’t survive. Yet sometimes we forget to think strategically about creating an employee experience that will influence people’s decisions about where to work and how engaged they are likely to be. Traditionally, organizations have thought about their offices as a place to park their people. Instead, the office should be strategically leveraged to encourage new social norms and a mindset that will lead to the behaviors that enhance innovation. Over time, this will shape the culture you desire, as well as create the type of work experience people are seeking.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.)
While the teammates are to be empowered and nurtured to add to the culture, it will be the leadership team’s responsibility to make sure they are a cohesive unit. The culture ultimately trickles down from the CEO to the leadership team. (Bernstein, E.; Waber, B.) If one member is not on the same page, that will lead to the entire department veering into a different direction, ultimately away from the mission of the company.
Ensuring the overall culture of the company is successful, this will play into the different working styles of each department. The needs of each team will be different, but the space is expected to have various areas to encourage healthy communication, collaboration, and excitement between their peers. “One of the biggest shifts between generations is Generation Z’s emphasis on passion in their work and career success,” the study states. “For the first time, passion is ranked as one of the top three work values. Employers will be required to keep their spark alive in the workplace—ensuring work speaks to individual interests, provides growth, and aligns with employee values.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.) By providing spaces that “spark” the feeling of passion within the teammates, it will ensure happiness and productivity within the company which translates to success.
Having these flexible and transitional spaces within the office will also cater to each individual and their needs as a human. “Spaces should easily adapt to the needs of people with work styles and behavioral needs at both ends of the spectrum. They also must be exceptionally flexible to integrate new technologies over time and, as more people continue to work remotely after the pandemic, to blend real and virtual work environments.” (HOK.) Having areas for formal collaboration – closed door meetings, open collaboration – designated spaces or rooms for a quick meeting, impromptu collaboration – soft seating, or touchdown desks, will allow for choices and comfort within each department. Each space will ideally be designed with technology to enhance this experience as well.
With technology rapidly changing, that means the security of each person changes as well. “Privacy standards will need to evolve, of course. As rooms begin to listen to us and data becomes easier to harvest, the security and privacy of employee information will become the concern of every organization. Europe recently has taken the lead in digital privacy by establishing the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which lays out sweeping individual rights over your personal data. Controlling digital stimulation by providing places for privacy, rest and rejuvenation in the physical workplace also will become increasingly important.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.)
With new standards in place, Sun Shower plans to assess each departments needs to determine the equipment they will be using. With the continuation of the pandemic still being a heightened concern, remote work will be an option for individuals as needed. “The first step to creating a great employee experience is deeply understanding what people want. By listening to people and observing how they work, companies can then focus on a holistic approach to meeting people’s needs for sustained wellbeing, smart and connected technology, and access to a diverse range of spaces. With this approach companies can create places where people want to work, gaining an edge over competitors when searching for the best and brightest.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.) Having a dedicated IT department to handle the technology issues and needs of each team member, instead of outsourcing, is planned to increase overall productivity of the company.
Another route to increase comfortability and productivity within the company is the ability for teammates to bring their pets to work. Studies have shown that pet owners can be put on a tight schedule and often do not have the flexibility for when they leave because they need to get home to let out their pets. This solution works for any pet with separation anxiety, or a tight deadline that needs to be met. Other benefits that are currently offered are travel incentives for teammates who use public transportation, as well as parking reimbursement, gym memberships, and remote work options. In the future, Sun Shower hopes to expand their benefits program as their team grows.
Overall, Sun Shower intends to use this new space as a fresh new start. The different spaces that will emerge as the office comes together will be bright, but refreshing, like a sun shower. By focusing on the people first, they will actively be giving back to the community in hopes of enhancing the wellness of the owners and their dogs and their respective mental health.
It is a strange phenomenon to experience; a brief and typically light fall of rain while the sun is shining. It captures a moment, a feeling, society forgets to express. It is the shear sensation of being present in the moment but can also symbolize good luck. Living through the daily lives this world has become, it can be difficult to remember to stop and appreciate the persons, places, and things within our lives.
The founders of Sun Shower wanted to capture this moment into a company that started off with helping to ground the people within the community by implementing Human-Animal Interaction (HAI) support groups. Eventually, this transpired and surpassed the goals they set, and they wanted to introduce wearable gear for the therapy dogs within Sun Showers program. Today, they are expanding their brand by launching a website to sell their products throughout the country. They will be moving into a new space to further develop Sun Shower and bring it to its fullest potential with a team behind them.
The core mission of the company is to provide owners with tools to support the health and wellness of their dogs. By having the needs of these pets taken care of, it gives the opportunity to focus on what is most important, their relationships. They offer products that range from wearable gear to hygiene products and are looking to expand the HAI – Human-Animal Interactions division further.
Keeping with the original concept, a non-negotiable item is to have a space within the office for support groups to use weekly. Studies have shown that when practiced with the appropriate education and training, animal assisted therapy in counseling has the potential to impact the therapeutic experience of a diverse range of clients across a wide variety of settings in a highly positive manner. (Shelton, L. S., Leeman, M., & O’Hara, C.) Sun Shower takes part of the profits to fund this department and invest in areas they feel will better the community.
Currently, they have implemented a team for Animal-Assisted Activity (AAA) and Animal-Assisted Education (AAE). “Animal-assisted activities provide opportunities for motivational, educational, and/or recreational benefits to enhance quality of life. While more informal in nature, these activities are delivered by a specially trained professional, paraprofessional, and/or volunteer, in partnership with an animal that meets specific criteria for suitability … Animal-assisted education is a goal-oriented, planned, and structured intervention directed by a general education or special education professional. The focus of the activities is on academic goals, prosocial skills, and cognitive functioning with student progress being both measured and documented.” (Partners, P.)
Being a company that provides therapy dog services, they are actively volunteering within the community. Depending on the needs of the surrounding area, they go to where they are requested, such as hospitals, schools, and in-home visits. The HAI team at Sun Shower may branch off into a separate non-profit to allow them to open individual locations across the country, but for now they are functioning within Sun Shower.
The overall design of Sun Shower will be reliant on the feeling it evokes throughout the space. The founders want to provide a safe space for support groups to engage with therapy dogs and will be leaning on the team to be actively engaged with design decisions. They also want to ensure the rest of the company feels seen and heard, so the overall tech of the space will allow users to customize the area to their needs, such as temperature, lighting controls, noise, and privacy. This will provide each department with the flexibility and resiliency to transform with the company and the day-to-day needs.
With visitors coming and going throughout the day, security of the space plays an important role of the design. There will be badged entry and access points within the space and each department, to ensure the overall safety of the company’s teammates. This will allow the teams to relax and focus on the everyday tasks at hand as well as the safety of the clients coming into the support group sessions.
Since the beginning of COVID-19, company culture has been a high concern for leaders. They are looking for new ways to make sure everyone feels safe, but can connect on a personal level, even through the use of remote work. “Emotional Security in the Workplace, a new white paper from the Gensler Research Institute, found that creating an environment where workers feel empowered to take risks, ask questions, pose new ideas, and fail can be more important than the environment itself. When individuals feel emotionally secure at work, they show increased trust in themselves and others. We can design new spaces, or re-purpose existing ones, to provide new accommodations that help create environments that deliver a feeling of emotional safety. This can include spaces intended to offer a mental break from external stressors, integrated sanitation stations, or central information/resource centers.” (Farhangi, D.)
The main goal is to create an open environment where the teammates can express concerns, but also provide positive encouragement for their peers. It is imperative that the company culture as a whole is unified, but that there are department cultures branched off as well. By having individual department cultures within the overall company culture, it provides another level of closeness for the teammates. “It’s cliche to say people are our most important asset,” explains Laurent Bernard, vice president, Global Talent Management at Steelcase. “But, without the right people there would be no new big ideas or game-changing products—your organization simply can’t survive. Yet sometimes we forget to think strategically about creating an employee experience that will influence people’s decisions about where to work and how engaged they are likely to be. Traditionally, organizations have thought about their offices as a place to park their people. Instead, the office should be strategically leveraged to encourage new social norms and a mindset that will lead to the behaviors that enhance innovation. Over time, this will shape the culture you desire, as well as create the type of work experience people are seeking.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.)
While the teammates are to be empowered and nurtured to add to the culture, it will be the leadership team’s responsibility to make sure they are a cohesive unit. The culture ultimately trickles down from the CEO to the leadership team. (Bernstein, E.; Waber, B.) If one member is not on the same page, that will lead to the entire department veering into a different direction, ultimately away from the mission of the company.
Ensuring the overall culture of the company is successful, this will play into the different working styles of each department. The needs of each team will be different, but the space is expected to have various areas to encourage healthy communication, collaboration, and excitement between their peers. “One of the biggest shifts between generations is Generation Z’s emphasis on passion in their work and career success,” the study states. “For the first time, passion is ranked as one of the top three work values. Employers will be required to keep their spark alive in the workplace—ensuring work speaks to individual interests, provides growth, and aligns with employee values.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.) By providing spaces that “spark” the feeling of passion within the teammates, it will ensure happiness and productivity within the company which translates to success.
Having these flexible and transitional spaces within the office will also cater to each individual and their needs as a human. “Spaces should easily adapt to the needs of people with work styles and behavioral needs at both ends of the spectrum. They also must be exceptionally flexible to integrate new technologies over time and, as more people continue to work remotely after the pandemic, to blend real and virtual work environments.” (HOK.) Having areas for formal collaboration – closed door meetings, open collaboration – designated spaces or rooms for a quick meeting, impromptu collaboration – soft seating, or touchdown desks, will allow for choices and comfort within each department. Each space will ideally be designed with technology to enhance this experience as well.
With technology rapidly changing, that means the security of each person changes as well. “Privacy standards will need to evolve, of course. As rooms begin to listen to us and data becomes easier to harvest, the security and privacy of employee information will become the concern of every organization. Europe recently has taken the lead in digital privacy by establishing the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which lays out sweeping individual rights over your personal data. Controlling digital stimulation by providing places for privacy, rest and rejuvenation in the physical workplace also will become increasingly important.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.)
With new standards in place, Sun Shower plans to assess each departments needs to determine the equipment they will be using. With the continuation of the pandemic still being a heightened concern, remote work will be an option for individuals as needed. “The first step to creating a great employee experience is deeply understanding what people want. By listening to people and observing how they work, companies can then focus on a holistic approach to meeting people’s needs for sustained wellbeing, smart and connected technology, and access to a diverse range of spaces. With this approach companies can create places where people want to work, gaining an edge over competitors when searching for the best and brightest.” (360 Magazine, Issue 74.) Having a dedicated IT department to handle the technology issues and needs of each team member, instead of outsourcing, is planned to increase overall productivity of the company.
Another route to increase comfortability and productivity within the company is the ability for teammates to bring their pets to work. Studies have shown that pet owners can be put on a tight schedule and often do not have the flexibility for when they leave because they need to get home to let out their pets. This solution works for any pet with separation anxiety, or a tight deadline that needs to be met. Other benefits that are currently offered are travel incentives for teammates who use public transportation, as well as parking reimbursement, gym memberships, and remote work options. In the future, Sun Shower hopes to expand their benefits program as their team grows.
Overall, Sun Shower intends to use this new space as a fresh new start. The different spaces that will emerge as the office comes together will be bright, but refreshing, like a sun shower. By focusing on the people first, they will actively be giving back to the community in hopes of enhancing the wellness of the owners and their dogs and their respective mental health.
