Rodrigo trained as an architect in São Paulo. But it didn’t take long for him to realize that what he cared about most wasn’t the space itself; It was the people moving through it. That shift in focus, from structure to experience, would shape the next two decades of his career.
From consulting at CBRE to leading workplace transformation projects at WPP, Rodrigo has worked across Latin America and Europe, helping global organizations move from asset-focused thinking to people-centered design. Today, he’s based in the Netherlands, continuing that mission with a calm, grounded clarity.
“You can’t take attendance for granted. You need to earn it.”
We recorded this episode over coffee in The Hague. It felt more like a thoughtful reflection than an interview, and what emerged was a clear, empathetic look at where workplace design needs to go next.
Designing for Behavior
Rodrigo’s perspective is shaped by both his architectural training and his time in consulting. He’s quick to point out that great design is about impact.
His years at CBRE gave him a fast-paced education in the real estate market, but more importantly, they showed him how space decisions affect people. And those lessons stuck.
From Metrics to Meaning
One of Rodrigo’s biggest shifts came when he started seeing workplace experience as a performance driver. For years, companies measured space by square meters and occupancy rates. Now, they’re being asked to measure how it feels to come to work.
That means rethinking how real estate and facilities teams operate. Rodrigo believes these teams will need to reinvent themselves, becoming more agile, more service-oriented, and more in sync with employee experience.
Hybrid Work Needs Structure
Rodrigo is not anti-office. He’s also not blindly pro-hybrid. He’s practical: what matters is clarity. In his work, he’s seen organizations succeed with fully remote and fully on-site models, but only when expectations are clearly defined.
“Staff expect clarity. You can’t just say ‘hybrid’ and leave it open to interpretation.”
Hybrid doesn’t work without rhythm, rituals, and alignment. You can’t just hand out flexibility and hope it lands.
Final Thoughts
Rodrigo Rolim doesn’t talk in buzzwords. He talks in moments. A first reaction to a new office. A quiet conversation over espresso. A change is in how a team works.
For Rodrigo, the office is a product. It’s something that needs to prove its value every day. And that value doesn’t come from amenities or headcount. It comes from how people feel when they walk through the door, and what they’re able to build when they do.
This episode reminded me that great workplace design doesn’t start with blueprints. It starts with curiosity, culture, and the courage to keep iterating.
