Considering the name of our company, it seems only natural that the philosophy of placemaking would form the foundation of our work. At the very beginning of P4G, we set out to challenge the definition, experience and expectations of recruiting. We identified with the term Placemaking, a process and philosophy that serves to strengthen the connection between people and the places they share. As Placemakers, our ultimate goal is to create more human workplaces, where both contributors and the organization will thrive.
A term that comes from urban development, Placemaking is an approach to creating the “built-environment”, like a public park or an accessible community centre. What defines the Placemaking philosophy is a desire to understand people, their needs, values and aspirations. As a process, it is collaborative by nature, working closely with communities to plan and design spaces that reflect the people that use them, resulting in a ‘by us, for us’ space, a sense of cohesion and belonging.
To be successful at recruitment, we need to be intentional about our process. We use the same human-centred approach found in Placemaking to design teams that are inclusive, innovative and dynamic. We work collaboratively with organizations to better understand their culture, values and to recruit contributors to their team that add value and are in harmony with their organizational why, mission and goals.
Placemaking doesn’t stop here. Beyond recruitment, we are invested in building the capacity of organizations to create places of belonging. In our work with clients and candidates, we continue to learn just how critical belonging is to attracting, retaining and developing better teams.
As the world accepts work outside of the physical space of the office, we can expect that workplaces will be defined more and more by their human elements: the way their teams collaborate, how they encourage authenticity and belonging and the value they place on the unique contributions of their team members.
If you are curious about the Placemaking process, send us a note. We’d love to learn more about who you are and what you do.