what we can do for you
HKS Innovation works within, through, and beyond the built environment to create regenerative solutions for complex problems with strategic ingenuity and profound curiosity.
Climate & Sustainability
People & Experience
Cities & Communities
Digital & Physical
Strategy & Operations
Home
Innovation
Projects & Impact
Contact
IN THE NEWS
2025 Travel Trends: Off-Season Travel
Connecting Communities: Adding Soccer Fields to Atlanta's Metro
read the story
what we learned
more about The "Home as a Health Care Hub" initiative
Research & Insights
how we think
As global citizens, we experience continual change.
read our research
Envisioning new futures.
innovation team
Upali Nanda
Neil Alexander
Michelle Jutt
HKS Innovation is a diverse collective of experts, including analysts, strategists, researchers, urban planners, clinicians, economists, design thinkers, building scientists, psychologists, and futurists. Together, we provide companies clarity and context to implement their ideas — building a resilient future for all.
Rand Ekman
Amber Wirth
Sheba Ross
Cory Brugger
Heath May
Mike O'Neill
Deborah Wingler
HKS Named Among Most Innovative Companies
Fast Company
Forbes
Urban Land Institute
Krisianna Bock
©HKS, Inc. 2025
Back to Top
Ready to innovate together? Let's talk.
We provide companies clarity and context to implement their ideas. By offering market strategy, change enablement, real estate and asset decisions and financial planning for the future, we place our clients on an optimal course to be successful.
HKS has shaped some of the most restorative communities around the world. By partnering with diverse stakeholders and clients, we develop short- and long-term goals to grow, connect, or revitalize urban areas with vision and purpose.
By holistically approaching environmental business strategies and high-performance projects, our team of sustainable and advisory professionals will help you navigate the landscape confidently.
We help clients define the next generation of customer experience by designing strategies and ecosystems that go beyond the built environment, blending services and technology into solutions that provide genuinely connected, immersive, and personalized brand experiences.
Making people's lives better through deep and contextual research and radical inclusion, we bring together empathy and evidence to deliver solutions and social strategies that promote enhanced experience and well-being.
Menu
PhD, Assoc. AIA, EDAC, ACHE
FAIA, Living Future Accredited, WELL AP, LEED AP
Julie Hiromoto
MP
RN, BSN, MBA, NEA BC, SPHR
FAIA, LEED Fellow
Global Sector Director, Innovation
Director of Integration, Innovation
Global Practice Director, Advisory Strategy and Analytics
Global Practice Director, Advisory Operations and Planning
Chief Sustainability Officer
Director of Sustainability
AIA, LEED AP BD+C, CPHC
AICP CUD, Just Communities AP, CDT, LEED AP
Global Practice Director, Cities & Communities
LEED AP BD+C
Chief Technology Officer
Global Practice Director, HUB
AIA
Global Practice Director, Enterprise Research
PhD, CPE
PhD, EDAC, LSSYB
Global Practice Director, Applied Research
MPH, FACHE, EDAC
Principal, Innovation
download our brochure
Tony LaPorte
Director of Brand Experience
project examples
We provide companies clarity and context to implement their ideas. By offering strategic planning, real estate and asset decisions and future state forecasting, we place our clients on an optimal course to be successful.
Visioning
Visioning sessions that clarify your organization's future goals, aligning leadership and stakeholders around a shared vision to drive strategic decisions and long-term success.
Discovery Research
We generate actionable insights through literature reviews, field research, and spatial analytics that inform design intent and ensure your projects are rooted in evidence and trends.
Strategic Planning
We deliver strategic plans based on quantitative and qualitative analyses, enabling you to achieve key goals and drive client success by navigating internal and market dynamics.
Master Planning
Empowering informed decision-making, we deliver data-driven insights that help you understand market trends, anticipate demand shifts, and identify growth opportunities.
Future State Forecasting
We analyze trends and data to forecast future scenarios, enabling informed decisions that keep you competitive in a dynamic market.
Real Estate Optimization
We maximize real estate value and efficiency by identifying opportunities for improvement, consolidation, and strategic investment, driving financial performance across your portfolio.
Operational Planning
Evaluating workflows, resource utilization, and organizational structures to identify optimization opportunities, we help clients drive continuous improvement and operational efficiency.
Space Programming
We define detailed space requirements that optimize functionality, enhance user experience, and ensure operational efficiency, aligning with your organizational objectives and regulatory needs.
Market Evaluations and Analyses
Data-driven insights that empower clients to understand market trends, anticipate demand changes, and identify growth opportunities for informed decision-making.
Occupancy Outcomes
We evaluate how users interact with space before and after design through surveys, focus groups, and sensor data, providing insights that optimize performance and enhance user experience.
MAKE SURE TO USE THESE LINKS! Ford S&O: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/7 UW S&O: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/26 Baptist S&O: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/18 Arctic S&O: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/10
UW Health Right-Sized Health System
health
madison
Ford Motor Company the Future of Work
manufacturing
detroit
Baptist Health A Healing Connection to Community
florida
Arctic Tourism Visions for a New Luxury Destination
hospitality
Lofoten Archipelago
We are designing a better future by challenging ourselves to uplift people and the planet in everything we do. By holistically approaching environmental business strategies and high-performance projects, our team of sustainable and advisory professionals will help you navigate the landscape confidently.
Nature of Place
Our Nature of Place is framework, based on place, context and site research, guides your project’s success by deeply understanding its unique location, leveraging site assets, and identifying opportunities.
Integrative Design Charrette Facilitation
Unite your team around high-performance goals with dynamic workshops. These sessions enhance collaboration, align sustainability goals early, and ensure lasting project success.
Building Energy Modeling
We use cutting-edge energy modeling that simulates and analyzes building systems' performance, reducing energy consumption and costs and enhancing your operational efficiency.
Third-Party Certification
Partner with us to navigate global certifications like LEED, WELL, Fitwel, Green Globes, BREEAM. We provide expert guidance and ensure your project meets the highest sustainability standards.
Building Performance Simulation
Unlock your design's full potential with predictive performance modeling. Our climate, solar, daylight, and thermal assessments optimize performance and elevate user experience.
Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA)
Reduce environmental impact with our LCA services, evaluating carbon from inception to completion, providing insights that guide sustainable decisions throughout your project’s lifecycle.
Carbon Action Plans
Develop actionable carbon strategies with our expertise, providing science-based plans that align with your goals, mitigate risks, and guide your organization toward a sustainable future.
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Maximize project value with holistic cost-benefit analysis. We evaluate economic, social, and environmental impacts, ensuring every decision benefits your business, community, and the planet.
Resilience Planning
Together with our planning, sustainability, and climate experts, we design places that can withstand and recover from various stresses, ensuring your projects are resilient and future-proof.
Building Performance Evaluation (BPE)
Optimize building performance with our evaluations, assessing energy use, occupant satisfaction, and more to provide insights that enhance both comfort and operational efficiency.
Sustainability Standards Development
We collaborate with leading organizations to develop sustainability standards, creating guidelines and indicators that ensure future projects meet strict environmental and well-being criteria.
MAKE SURE TO USE THESE LINKS! Sofi C&S: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/2 UCSD C&S: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/4 SFO C&S: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/29 Austin C&S: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/23
SFO Harvey Milk Terminal Airport Design for Well-being
aviation
san francisco
cities & communities
austin
Austin Transit System Sustainable, Human-Centric Design
UCSD North Torrey Pines Joy Within. Performance Throughout.
higher education
San diego
sports & entertainment
los angeles
SoFi Stadium Innovation and Climate Driven Design
We are anchored to the art and science of being human. Making people's lives better through deep and contextual research and radical inclusion, we bring together empathy and evidence to deliver solutions and social strategies that promote enhanced experience and well-being.
Change Enablement
We streamline organizational transitions by ensuring smooth adoption of new processes, technologies, and strategies, minimizing disruption and maximizing performance.
Experience Strategy
We study human experience using data-driven persona development, experience diagnostics, and journey modeling to craft strategies that align with business goals and enhance user satisfaction.
Workplace Strategy
Aligned with organizational goals and well-being outcomes, we design workplaces that optimize physical and virtual spaces, enhancing collaboration, productivity, and overall health.
Equity and Inclusion
With a deep understanding of the complex challenges that impact our industry and communities, we partner with clients to create social strategies through the lens of our people-first framework.
Health and Wellbeing
Integrate well-being and resilience with our brain-health insights, enhancing learning, performance, and user experience through cutting-edge research in your design process.
MAKE SURE TO USE THESE LINKS! Brain Health P&E: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/21 UW P&E: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/27 Ford P&E: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/8
health, offfice
Brain Health Getting to a Brain Healthy Workplace
Immersive Community Engagement
We prioritize building strong relationships, cultivating trust, and facilitating meaningful dialogue to empower community members and stakeholders in the decision-making process.
Community Needs Assessments
We partner with our clients to conduct thorough assessments to understand and address the unique needs of your community, guiding you in developing responsive and impactful plans.
Urban Design
We shape the physical form, functionality, and character of your neighborhoods, districts, and cities to create vibrant, livable spaces tailored to your community's needs.
Urban Planning
Partnering with clients and city stakeholders, we develop strategic plans to help you create, grow, connect, or revitalize areas with clear vision and purpose.
Master and Campus Planning
Aligning your organizational goals with a comprehensive master plan, we craft integrated, sustainable, and economically viable cities and communities that support long-term growth.
Geospatial Analytics
Using advanced modeling and analysis, we help you uncover trends in environmental, social, and economic factors, empowering informed decisions on future building and infrastructure plans.
Landscape and Mobility Framework
We develop integrated strategies for landscape design and transportation planning, enhancing the functionality and connectivity of your public spaces.
MAKE SURE TO USE THESE LINKS! MARTA C&C: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/14 Austin C&C: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/24 UCSD C&C: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/5 Baptist C&C: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/19
MARTA Holmes Transit-Oriented Development Master Plan
atlanta
Downtown Fayetteville Livable Centers Bridging History and Future
Cities & cOMMUNITIES
Fayetteville
Georgia World Congress Center Comprehensive Master Plan Study
Atlanta
Experience Design
We create environments that seamlessly blend aesthetics and functionality, engaging users and elevating both satisfaction and brand experience.
Brand Experiences
Brand elevation through curated user touchpoints, turning ordinary interactions into extraordinary experiences that drive business value.
Immersive Experiences
We craft immersive experiences with cutting-edge technology, creating deep engagement and lasting impressions that resonate with your brand’s identity.
Digital Wayfinding
Enhance navigation and user experience with intuitive digital wayfinding systems, ensuring seamless movement and accessibility within physical spaces.
Simulation Modeling
We utilize simulation modeling to predict outcomes, optimize processes, and enable data-driven decisions that enhance project performance and mitigate risks.
Functional Prototyping
Bring concepts to life with functional prototypes, allowing real-world testing and refinement to ensure design feasibility and project success.
Virtual Mock-Ups
Enabling informed decisions and reducing errors before moving to physical implementation, we produce virtual mock-ups to visualize and refine design solutions.
MAKE SURE TO USE THESE LINKS! CMNTY D&P: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/12 BSWH D&P: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/16 COVE D&P: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/31 FDA D&P: https://view.ceros.com/hks/innovation-projects/p/33
Cove™ Small Space. Big Impact.
product
Baylor Scott & White Health User Experience: Physical, Digital & Human
dallas
CMNTY Culture Campus A Love Song to Los Angeles
office, mixed-use
Digital Strategy
We craft comprehensive digital strategies that align with your business goals, driving growth, engagement, and a competitive edge in the evolving digital landscape.
FDA's Home as a Health Care Hub Imagine the home as a partner in health.
city?
Research and Design Our Innovation Process
process
report
Downtown Fayetteville Livable Centers Bridges History and Future
Portfolio Planning / Repositioning Market Analysis Master Planning Business Planning Strategic Planning Real Estate Assessment
Automotive industry leader, Ford Motor Company, sought to build resilience and ultimately inspired reinvention in a post-COVID World. HKS created and facilitated an internal and external think tanks to engage deep thinking and reflection from a diverse and global perspective, ultimately informing decisions regarding the future of Ford’s global facility assets.
The future of work is not a single solution, but a framework.
HKS’ advisory and research experts, guided by nine core principles, collaborated with Ford leadership and external stakeholders to understand new risks, build resilience and inspire reinvention.
Jumping into the Unknown Through Scenario Planning Beginning with the idea that the intersection of perspectives would yield new insights, a think tank broken into three sessions was conducted. Through scenario planning, we were able to step outside of reality to consider fundamentally different ways in which the world could evolve. From becoming a catalyst for equitable change to risk management and preparedness to address future crises, we were looking for resilient solutions — not just ones that could work in a single state of the world.
A Re-imagined Digital Footprint The roadmap presented a strategic direction for Ford’s technology teams, offering a blueprint to merge a re-envisioned digital presence with a forward-thinking physical landscape. It encompassed a holistic approach to work experiences within a diverse ecosystem of settings, aiming to harmonize the digital and physical domains for enhanced collaboration and innovation
The explorations’ insights highlighted a re-imagined world of work encapsulated by three core principles — systemic resilience, cultivating wellness through empathy, and utilizing the digital and physical realms to captivate and inspire in the emerging hybrid work landscape.
Ford Motor Company, a leading American automaker headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, is renowned for its innovation and commitment to a supportive work culture for its 200,000 employees. Amid the pandemic, Ford and HKS reassessed their headquarters' future, leveraging HKS's design expertise and a diverse think tank to inform key decisions about Ford’s global facilities.
