Lifeway CEO Ben Mandrell (center) and his wife, Lynley, (right) greet Lifeway staff at the grand opening of the organization’s new teaming space in Brentwood, Tennessee. Mandrell said the space was designed to foster collaboration and creativity, while continuing to provide team members with maximum flexibility in how and where they work.
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Lifeway Christian Resources celebrated the grand opening of its new teaming space last month (April 17).
The event included remarks from Lifeway President and CEO Ben Mandrell who said the move to Brentwood was about more than just a new building. “This space was designed to draw writers, designers, editors, artists and craftsmen together,” he said. “When you create a space that’s designed for relationships, communication and teamwork, everyone who enters the building benefits.”
“The grand opening of our new space marks a new era of work,” Mandrell said. “The open workspaces, collaborative team rooms and state-of-the-art technology come together to support our work-from-anywhere culture and encourage collaboration.”
An open-concept design features a social hub, drop-in workstations, meeting rooms with videoconferencing capability, quiet workspaces, video, photography and podcast studios, as well as post-production suites. Technology throughout the building allows for connectivity and interaction with employees working around the country.
With a focus on the future, the space reflects the organization’s move to a remote work environment and supports the company’s continued focus on creating trustworthy, biblical experiences that fuel ministry in the local church.
“When staff who live outside of Nashville come to town, we want to have a space for them that feels like home, that feels fresh, creative and fun,” Mandrell said.
“This building was carefully designed with our values and culture in mind to facilitate work for the ministry but also to encourage relationship building,” said Connia Nelson, chief human resource officer. “It’s going to be incredible to see how our organization works better together for the future of Lifeway!”
Lifeway team members shared their reactions to the new space and talked about the ways it will be used to support the organization’s mission.
“The building is designed to be more than just a workspace; it’s really designed to be a teaming space and even an inspirational space,” said Melissa Tartt, director of brand marketing. “It’s a place for us to come together to dream about how we can best serve the church.”
Roger Epps, Lifeway support engineer, agreed with the building’s greater purpose. “The bigger picture for this space is about creating biblical solutions for our customers and churches so they have new and exciting ways to reach people who don’t have a relationship with Christ, and really that’s what it’s all about.”
Located at 200 Powell Place, the building is part of the Maryland Farms mixed-use community with access to restaurants, shopping and a greenway and park and home to a variety of businesses.
Mandrell noted the new space is an intentional move away from the traditional corporate headquarters.
“Our new teaming space was designed to foster collaboration, while continuing to provide team members with maximum flexibility in how and where they work. We believe this innovative design will empower our team to work together, socialize and thrive in their mission to serve the local church.”
Take a virtual tour of Lifeway’s new space at Maryland Farms here.
(EDITOR’S NOTE – Carol Pipes is the director of communications for Lifeway Christian Resources.)
