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Despina Katsikakis

Global Chair of Strategic Consulting • United Kingdom

Despina Katsikakis (image)
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125 Old Broad Street
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Office: +44 203 296 2856

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Despina Katsikakis

Global Chair of Strategic Consulting • United Kingdom

About

Despina is one of the leading voices in the office sector. For nearly 40 years she has led innovation, research, and implementation of transformative workplace environments for global corporates and the visioning of exemplary real estate developments for investors worldwide.  

She pioneered the role of workplace consultancy in the 1980s and led the transformation of the workplace as an experience. In her role at Cushman & Wakefield, she provides input across the firm’s global business on the rapidly changing context of work and its impact on employee engagement, productivity, wellbeing, and the future role of the workplace to deliver social value and business performance. 

With these factors increasingly determining the real estate decisions of leading corporations, Katsikakis’ unrivalled insight on the future of work benefits occupier clients – as well as building landlords and investors – through repositioning commercial real estate to deliver top line performance, cultural aspirations, and ESG commitments. 

She was the most recent President of the British Council of Offices (BCO).  

Katsikakis regularly lectures, writes, and contributes to media, research and publications on the future of the workplace. She serves on various advisory boards including Delos™, the founders of the WELL Building Standard.

in the News

Authority Magazine Article Despina (image)
“Why we need to take a hospitality mindset" with Despina Katsikakis
We need to bring new skills to the industry; we don’t need more chartered surveyors, we need more analysts, tech designers, curators, experience managers, human behavior experts, and environmental and wellbeing experts. We as an industry need to take a hospitality mindset to focus on customer satisfaction and ongoing loyalty and service rather than transactions.

Read article

CNN Feature (image)
Lessons from China: How global business has changed forever
Commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield has built a prototype called the "Six Feet Office," which encourages workers to continue social distancing when they return to the office.

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Fast Company (image)
Our offices will never be the same after COVID-19. Here’s what they could look like
It's hard to imagine now, but we will one day have to go back to our offices. So how will work...work? That's the question Cushman & Wakefield is answering already.

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Despina Washington Post (image)
The post-pandemic workplace will hardly look like the one we left behind
Through Cushman & Wakefield’s joint venture with Chinese real estate developer Vanke, the firm has already advised thousands of companies in Asia about returning to work.

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Business Insider feat Despina (image)
10 Real-Estate Insiders Lay Out the Future of Flex-Offices, and How Employers are Preparing Now
The costs for flex operators will be similar to those at traditional at traditional offices, Despina Katsikakis, Cushman & Wakefield's head of occupier business performance said.

Read more

ABC News (image)
What offices may look like in a post-pandemic era, if they exist at all
Cushman & Wakefield developed a best practices guide and has also made a prototype of a "Six Feet Office," a reimagined office space that encourages social distancing at work and implemented a full-scale example.

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Related Insights

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Kamillah Knight, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Ferrero, and Rachel Casanova, Senior Managing Director at Cushman & Wakefield, discuss how organizations can support diversity, equity and inclusion in the way we work and what we mean by "organizational network analysis".
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Podcast • Workplace

Podcast: Evolution of Workplace Design

While the way we work has evolved beyond conceivable recognition over the last century, so too, has where we work. Dr. Amy Thomas, Assistant Professor of the History of Architecture and Urban Planning, discusses the evolution of workplace design.
08/10/2020
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Podcast • Workplace

Podcast: Facebook’s Gya Adeyemi on Diversity in Real Estate, Black Lives Matter and More

Gya Adeyemi, EMEA Transaction Manager at Facebook and Alex Burnett, UK Lead for Transaction Management at Cushman & Wakefield discuss their approach to real estate partnerships and how fundamental partnership has been in delivering space for Facebook.
27/07/2020

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Total Workplace
Total Workplace brings industry leading thought leadership, strategy and guidance to help clients implement innovative solutions that shape the future of work and place.
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Experience per SF™ is Cushman & Wakefield’s proprietary tool that gives you insight into the engagement and experience of your workforce.
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