When James Bingham the IT Project Manager left for London in 2014, little did he know that he would come back to Australia almost 8 years later with a new career in an industry that to this day, you can’t do a degree or course in.

Yet in a post COVID world, is now one of the most talked about subjects.

Workplace strategy.

James was working with NBCUniversal in London when he was offered the chance to relocate to New York and keep his overseas adventure alive. In New York, he helped NBCUniversal set up their offices all over the US and Canada.  This led him to WeWork, which at the time was leading the world in re-inventing co-working communities and spaces.

Here, James was allowed to dream and create a new future of work - at a time when the world need to pivot its thinking about work with the offset of the pandemic.  It was also here where he met some kindred spirits and the idea of Alidade, a real estate and workplace strategy advisory company was born. 

James came home mid-pandemic and has spent the last three years leading Alidade’s presence in Australia and the Asia Pacific. We talk about the challenge of bringing his overseas experience home and the challenge of adapting big market strategies it to a smaller market like Australia - that approaches innovation in a much different way to the Americans!  He offers some great advice for Aussies coming home and wanting to start a business in an industry that may have been going at a different speed and scale to Australia.