THE BUILDING OF THE VETERAN WOMEN'S ENTERPRISE CENTER (VWEC) Dallas, Texas

Part 2: The Heart of the Center 

I know we stated we were going to discuss the development of the Conference Center; however, the difficult task, and the most important element of the VWEC is the coworking space, designed as the foundation for our collaborative community. 

The Dallas VA Team’s initial renderings were very different from what I had envisioned for the VWEC.  Gathered around that table listening to their perspectives, I imagined my dreams turning into a real nightmare, but there was one other woman in the room who could sense my dismay, and inquired about my opinion on the design:  I had to share it wasn’t really what I had in mind. She suggested I could provide some examples of what I had envision. She opened the door for me to share my dream of a unique, and collaborative work space for entrepreneur women associated with the military (EWAM). 

ORIGINAL PROGRAMMING: 

We already knew we would be offering our CEO Suite of Services, which originally stood for Co-working, Enrichment Activities, and Opportunities for Expansion and Advancement. Our Enrichment Activities included our work life balance program “Mondays In Motion” a series of activities designed to jump start our women's day and set the stage for a productive week. Our Opportunities for Expansion and Advancement included the “Entrepreneur Expansion Initiative” and quarterly “Pipeline for Professional Advancement" workforce development series. 

Revenue ready women veteran business owners would be given the opportunity to apply for our 12-month Entrepreneur Expansion Initiative, including but not limited to: an intensive revenue review, management make-over, marketing mechanics, technology tactics, and a strategic sales strategy to increase revenues and scale their business for success. The program is designed to transform selected candidates into well-managed, profitable, sustainable businesses that create a significant economic impact within their community.  We fast-tracked this program during COVID to create our Next Level Business Transformation (NLBT) Cohort.

Our Pipeline for Professional Advancement is a supplement of the Entrepreneur Expansion Initiative, matching unemployed and underemployed women veterans with small businesses positioned for expansion through contracting and/or investment opportunities.

Our enrichment programs promoted relationship development, work life balance, personal empowerment, and creativity, offered in partnership with local business owners, and veteran service providers included but where not limited to: Talk it Out Tuesdays, Walk in Wednesdays, & Thursdays Thoughts. 

Today, we’ve upgraded our CEO Suite of Services offering to consist of Center amenities (co-working, conference space, our café lounge and mentoring room); a quarterly schedule of Engagement programs/activities; and Other relevant business support resources that promote our slogan, "Connecting You Is What We Do!".  The VWEC, is a national initiative designed to create an entrepreneur ecosystem where EWAM could literally build their businesses. The model facility in Dallas; VWEC’s headquarter, is an application driven, female exclusive, collaborative environment with structured programs to continually nurture EWAM with ongoing access to financial/social capital. 

This brochure never went into print because as soon as we finished our website, we went completely sustainable, directing interested parties to our website for regularly updated information. Now we have even eliminated printed business cards and enhanced our digital presence. More on program changes in Part 5.

INITIAL DESIGN: 

I wanted a place that as soon as the ladies entered they felt like successful executives, they felt empowered, supported; and something not often experience by women veteran, they felt special. A place that set the stage for business growth, a high-end modern décor, designed with collaboration in mind. 

I provided a number of eclectic furniture concepts that I felt would allow each business owner to create their own individual work space, yet be inspired to support the collective development and growth of the community we were building. 

We knew we had a relatively small space, but wanted to provide as many creative options as possible. Personally, I am a very private, and never really like the purely open co-working set up, so I wanted to provide some sense of privacy for similar individuals interested in joining our community. My suggestions included collaborative spaces, individual desks, and privacy cubes, so everyone could find their perfect work environment. 

Below are some of my suggestions. 

The coworking space is the heart of the VWEC, where it all begins. Entrepreneur women associated with the military are selected based on their business growth potential, and commitment to the collective--women helping women. Limiting business industry representation, so that there are viable B2B, and collaborative contracting opportunities for each member of the community.

We needed to transition the original space into our vision of a collaborative community. 

TO THE DRAWING BOARD: 

I worked for months with Marcus Crawford, Dallas VA Lead Designer for this project, reviewing furniture, and color options to create just the right combination of an inspiring, but functional décor.  The coworking is the heart of the VWEC, this is probably where the entrepreneurs will spend the majority of their time.

We explored colors that supported VWEC brand awareness, while still promoting a great work environment. Although VWEC’s primary colors are black, white, and gold, a darker yellow (some might call a even a mustard) was a good close match. In reviewing the psychology of colors, yellow is the color of sun and fun, it is welcoming and energizing. It’s best used in creative, active environments, known to stimulate optimism, while encouraging focus and direction. Yellow is considered to promote enthusiasm, positivity, mental clarity, creativity, and decision-making abilities while creating an invigorating atmosphere. It has been suggested that the color yellow may amplify productivity by influencing moods and perspectives. Some psychologists have found that yellow can aid memory, self-esteem, and optimism, so featuring this color in our coworking could be motivational, and aid our entrepreneurs in simply feeling good in their surroundings. The color is considered to actually boost innovation, while keeping individuals receptive to feedback. Yellow is known to help inspire entrepreneurs to remain optimistic about business endeavors. It’s an engaging color, which can increase efficiency without overstimulation or overwhelming the senses. 

The color mustard is a darker shade of yellow, and it’s considered to be one of the most popular shades of yellow, often used in interior design, clothes, and fashion. It is noted that mustard yellow is ideal for those that appreciate brighter colors; particularly if they are looking for something more sophisticated, classy, and perhaps respectable. A perfect base color for the VWEC’s coworking. 

We coupled mustard yellow with some deep reds, known to make people feel that a room is warmer than it actually is. Red works well in spaces that involve physical activity, it also increase brain wave activity, boost heart rate, and blood flow.  Some psychologists associate the color red with high energy and strength, often well-suited for fast-paced work environments—an entrepreneur home away from home. The color red can contribute to increased alertness and efficiency, inspire mental and physical energy as well as endurance.

You might think, we’ve gone too far, but orange became another perfect color to add to our palate. Some researchers have found that orange is a great color to integrate into an environment if you're looking to increase productivity. Orange may invoke feelings of enthusiasm, activity, and perseverance, which may help promote efficiency and inspire performance. Remember orange is a combination of red and yellow, so it may add to the same boost in activity and physical endurance as red, while having the mood-boosting ability of yellow. Including orange tends to prevent boredom, while promoting engagement and focus. Researchers have found that orange can yield strong emotions, so our ability to balance this combination of colors was essential. 

Finally to balance these bright combinations, we incorporated the color gray known to invoke feelings of neutrality and reliability, and considered to be beneficial in professional settings. Some psychologists argue that light gray can be uplifting and motivating as well as produce feelings of calm. In the coworking space, we selected carpet with a gray base and some simple color highlights to anchor our color combinations. 

FINDING THE RIGHT FURNITURE: 

Color where important, but the functionality of our furniture was essential. Would the pieces be comfortable for a long day of work, easy to move in and out of, durable, and functional. Identifying furniture that decreases fatigue, and increases comfort was critical to our entrepreneur environment indictive of long hours of work. 

For example, ergonomic furniture is supposed to be inclusive by design embracing different body types. We wanted furniture that would accommodate various body types, distribute their weight uniformly, as well as contour their body at the right points to offer great comfort and support. Ergonomic designs are considered to respect diversity, and increase productivity by increasing the user’s comfort levels. EWAM represent every ethnicity, race, gender, and age groups, so we needed a welcoming environment to everyone that might enter our doors. 

We also wanted to give each entrepreneur options, to work sitting or standing, to increase their level of privacy via two unique coworking cube designs, and a high-bar. Each furniture type was reviewed to ensure it would adequately support our female veteran entrepreneurs, offering space for their personal belongings, additional lighting, and true comfort during their work day.

Designed for female veterans by a female veteran, I wanted only the best for my sisters-in-arms!

We faced some limitations, first we could only select from VA approved vendors; and of course, we had a budget. Nevertheless, Marcus identified several local providers we could engage, we visited different facilities, and were able to literally try out many of the furniture options, as well as review fabric concepts for durability and comfort. 

We wanted a warm, but rich décor, so we selected light wood grained adjustable standing desks, deep orange, and red ergonomic chairs with a black base, a walnut wood high-bar, as well as privacy cubes with similar color combinations keeping the room consistently vibrant. Coupled with the natural lighting, our room burst with a welcoming warmth. 

As the furniture we selected slowly arrived, our décor design started to come together, and we knew we had made a great combination of furniture styles and colors to inspire a truly collaborative community. 

The privacy cubes white screens arrived later and can be seen below. These cubes also have an inside storage area perfect for a large purse or other personal belongings as well as additional directional lighting that can be positioned as needed.

The process of literally designing the VWEC brick and mortar model facility was truly challenging, but so inspiring. I do not have any experience in interior design, but Marcus was a great teacher, and partner in this process. As you can see we had to make a few changes, primarily the collaborative set up was extremely expensive, and was cut from the design in exchange for more adjustable standing desks. However, all our walls are writable, so the ladies can leave note on events, location, and B2B needs for other members of the community.

Now as I look at the final result, what we accomplished here is simply amazing, and I am truly excited to see what the future holds as we continue our journey forward!

ORGANIZATIONAL BACKGROUND:

In accordance with the VWEC mission, I established a long-term strategic alliance with Ken Watterson, Executive Director, for the Homeless Veteran Services of Dallas (HVSD), which manages the Veteran Resource Center (VRC) facility owned by the Dallas VA. This strategic alliance resulted in securing a 2,700 square foot facility, which is the physical location for the VWEC’s model center now offering 16 modern executive co-working spaces, a 50-seat auditorium style conference center, a spacious café lounge for continual networking and business balance. The VWEC also offers coded lockers and free parking to create a safe environment for EWAM to grow their business.

It should be noted, that the VWEC is our nation’s first and only state of the art brick and mortar facility dedicated solely to providing in-depth, application based, substantive, outcome-oriented business services specifically for EWAM. The VWEC has consistently engaged a large population of socially and economically disadvantaged women business owners connecting them to the resources they need to succeed and a pave through the pandemic. 

WHY 4900 SOUTH LANCASTER ROAD?

This address is a great location for business development. The VWEC at 4900 South Lancaster Road is positioned in a HUB Zone, on a LMI track, and in an Empowerment Zone, creating a variety of potential for the businesses coworking long-term at the VWEC to access unique contracting, investment, and growth opportunities.