MEREDA’s Morning Menu – The Office Environment Today and Tomorrow

Join us in person on October 22 as our Moderator, Craig Young, Partner & Broker at the Boulos Company, and MEREDA Vice President, discusses the current status of the office environment with two leaders in the office market, Paul Larkins, AVP, Real Estate Strategy and Projects of UNUM and Rick McKenney , Vice President of Sales at Creative Office Pavilion

October 22, 2021 – 7:30 – 9:00 AM
In-Person – Masks are Required

REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED!  No walk-ins will be allowed. 

Holiday Inn By the Bay
88 Spring Street
Portland, ME

About the Event:

MASKS ARE REQUIRED: Due to the uncertainty with the Coronavirus Delta variant, and to protect the health and safety of our attendees and presenters, we request that ALL ATTENDEES wear a mask for the duration of the event, unless eating or drinking, and strongly encourage ALL ATTENDEES to be vaccinated.

A buffet breakfast will be available with the Holiday Inn By the Bay staff serving each guest. Upon arrival, please check in, proceed to the buffet while maintaining 6’ between other guests, and go directly to your table. Coffee will be located on each table.

We will continue to follow all State & Federal CDC guidelines and suggested protocols, and will respond accordingly. Updates will be posted on our website.

Buffet Breakfast: 7:30-8:00 am
Program: 8:00-9:00 am

Join us in person on October 22nd as our Moderator, Craig Young, Partner & Broker at the Boulos Company, and MEREDA Vice President, discusses the current status of the office environment with two leaders in the office market, Paul Larkins, AVP, Real Estate Strategy and Projects of UNUM and Rick McKenney , Vice President of Sales at Creative Office Pavilion

We will explore UNUM’s recent re-development of its Portland campus and how UNUM intends to have its workforce return to work – or not.  We will also hear about new trends in office space design, furniture and work-from-home office arrangement.

Are we all ready to return to the office?  Join us and let’s hear what the expects have to say.

Registering for this Event:

Members: $45 each | Non-Members: $55 each
Prices increase by $10 after October 15

Your RSVP is requested by October 15 . Payment is expected at the time of registration. No refunds will be granted to anyone who registers, but fails to attend or who cancels after October 15 . 

For more information and to register, visit  http://www.mereda.org

This Morning Menu Breakfast Event is Sponsored by Norway Savings Bank and UNUM.

Meet our Panelists:

Paul Larkins has more than 25 years of leadership experience guiding corporate real estate strategy and direction. As an Architect, he has successfully combined his education and construction background to provide overall insight and knowledge to large corporations. As the leader of corporate real estate strategy, Paul has provided long range vision and overview of real estate requirements while balancing the needs of the business to achieve the optimal space solutions. Paul has performed wide range of management activities for the Unum ensuring the successful delivery of complex interrelated projects across the company for the past 15 years. He has been an instrumental advocate for integrating information and corporate best practices to achieve cost restructuring to deliver best of class customer service.

Paul’s exceptional track record of facility and capital improvements has refocused management’s views of the real estate impact to profitability and importance of metric reporting and scorecard measurements for facility performance and efficiency. Paul has previously worked for a large number of Fortune 500 companies and since with Unum has expanded his role to include heading up the corporate strategy involving our future workplace portfolio and overseeing all transaction management including becoming a self imposed landlord and tenant management.

Paul currently resides in Chattanooga, TN as Unum headquarters, who is the nations’ largest disability insurer, with offices in over 40 cities and 3 countries with 10,000 employees and a portfolio of almost 3.0 million square feet of space. Paul grew up in Chicago and spend 10 years in the Real Estate industry prior to relocation out east to Portland, ME. He holds an MBA from the University of Tennessee, BA of Architecture from Illinois Institute of Technology and retains architecture licensure in 5 states, a Certified Commercial Investment Manager (CCIM), a Certified Facility Manage and Sustainable Facility Profession from IFMA as a member for 20 years, and has Master of Corporate Real Estate and Workplace Strategy from CoreNET.

Rick McKenney is the Vice President of Sales for Creative Office Pavilion(COP) in Portland and part of the leadership team that spans New England. COP is a Certified Herman Miller Dealer with offices in ME, MA, NH, VT, RI and NY.

Hired in 1991 to help build a team in Maine, Rick has focused on partnering with clients throughout the state to create inspiring environments that best support the needs of their employees. Rick’s involvement with Herman Miller, their Workplace Strategy team, and their distribution network throughout the US gives him access to valuable research and information, which in today’s rapidly changing environment, is extremely valuable.

As a lifelong Mainer and graduate of the UMaine system, Rick knows the value of a strong community and the importance of giving back. Rick has volunteered and/or participated as a board member for the Big Brothers/Big Sisters, United Way of Greater Portland, Junior Achievement and many other Maine organizations.

Outside of the office, he enjoys the best that Maine has to offer in hiking, fishing, skiing and all things outdoors. He resides in Cumberland with his wife Leslie and dog Rizzo.

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