A lot of product designers who are more environmentally conscious now are looking at sourcing recycled materials when conceptualizing new products. Consumers are also more curious about the ingredients and materials used to create products they are considering and for some, it plays a major factor in that decision. There is also a growing trend towards incorporating a minimalist kind of aesthetic in these sustainable designs since of course we want to use few resources when producing things. The LANOVA TERRA Biowaste Table Lamp exemplifies the fusion of sustainability and minimalist design.Developed by NOI Creative for Lanova, this lighting solution utilizes agricultural byproducts—such as coffee grounds, rice husks, and wheat bran—to craft a lamp that is both environmentally conscious and aesthetically aligned with Nordic design principles. The Terra lamp stands out by transforming organic waste into a functional and elegant home accessory. By repurposing materials that would otherwise contribute to landfill waste, the lamp not only reduces environmental impact but also brings natural textures and tones into interior spaces. Designer: NOI Creative The Terra lamp’s design goes beyond mere aesthetics, deeply embedding principles of sustainability into its very structure. Its compact, modular form is a deliberate choice aimed at minimizing environmental impact from the outset. By allowing the lampshade to nest snugly within the lamp’s body, the overall volume of the packaging is significantly reduced. This not only translates to less material used for packaging itself but also optimizes space during shipping, leading to lower transportation emissions, a crucial factor in reducing a product’s carbon footprint. Furthermore, the lamp’s aesthetic is carefully considered, with soft curves and a simple two-part construction that embodies the essence of Nordic design. This style, often characterized by its clean lines, functionality, and warm, inviting feel, aligns perfectly with the principles of minimalism, ensuring the lamp remains timeless and avoids unnecessary embellishments that would require more resources. This thoughtful design extends to the user experience, prioritizing ease of assembly and practical storage. These features contribute to Lanova’s overarching commitment to sustainable living by creating a product that is not only eco-friendly but also seamlessly integrates into a conscious lifestyle. However, the vision behind the Terra lamp stretches far beyond its tangible form. It symbolizes a fundamental shift in thinking, championing the adoption of renewable materials and the implementation of responsible design practices throughout the industry. By boldly showcasing the untapped potential of biowaste in product design, the Terra lamp transcends its function as a mere light source, becoming an inspiring symbol of innovation and a powerful advocate for environmental stewardship within the home decor landscape. The LANOVA TERRA Biowaste Table Lamp stands as a testament to the powerful synergy between environmental consciousness and minimalist design. By ingeniously repurposing agricultural byproducts, NOI Creative and Lanova have not only crafted an elegant lighting solution but have also illuminated a path towards a more sustainable future for the home decor industry, proving that innovation and responsibility can beautifully coexist. The post Lanova Terra Lamp turns biowaste materials into light source first appeared on Yanko Design.

Because technology changes so quickly, IT teams must constantly learn new things, from cloud platforms and coding languages to AI tools, data science methods, and security measures. But relying on technical skills alone isn’t enough to guarantee success. Many organizations now see that balancing strong technical abilities, a.k.a. hard skills, with soft skills such as communication, problem-solving, and teamwork is necessary for IT teams to be effective in business. Balancing hard and soft skills isn’t optional; it’s essential for building high-performing IT teams, said Ximena Gates, CEO and co-founder of BuildWithin, a company that provides software to help employers create and manage apprenticeships and workplace training programs. “High performance is like a relay race: every team member must be a well-rounded athlete, excelling individually while ensuring smooth collaboration,” she said. “With AI automating more aspects of coding, quality assurance, and design, engineers must continuously learn, experiment boldly, and communicate effectively with their teams.” In the past, having strong technical skills was often enough to land an IT role, Gates said. “We hired engineers based almost purely on their coding ability and even overlooked poor communication, assuming they didn’t need to be public-facing,” she said. “Not today.” Now, Gates said she assesses soft skills as well as hard skills from the very first interaction. “When I interview, I evaluate active listening, curiosity, and the candidate’s response to demands and challenges to gauge resilience and persistence.” In today’s AI-driven world, success comes from combining technical skills with good communication, initiative, flexibility, teamwork, and clear documentation to keep teams organized and productive, Gates added. “Today, everyone — from employees to senior leaders — needs ongoing training in both technical and soft skills,” she said. Speaking the language of business Ramesh Kollepara, global CTO at Kellanova, formerly Kellogg Co., said his leadership philosophy focuses on building a culture of learning. And to make that learning culture effective, it’s essential to balance both soft and hard skills. Kollepara said hard skills are like the car’s engine and brakes — the technical capabilities that allow the car to function. Soft skills are like the GPS and steering wheel — the tools that guide the car to its destination. Kollepara’s analogy implies that just having strong technical skills isn’t enough. IT professionals also need the soft skills to effectively apply those technical capabilities and steer their teams in the right direction. “Durable” skills such as curiosity, adaptability, and agile learning enable IT pros to apply technology in a way that supports and aligns with business outcomes, said Chris Campbell, chief information officer at DeVry University. “For us, it’s super important that technologists speak the language of the business and communicate in terms that nontechnical stakeholders can understand,” he explained. “This bridges the gap in understanding between the technical and business sides.” Balancing hard and soft skills helps IT teams not only handle the technical work but also communicate well, adapt to changes, and align with business goals to ensure successful technology projects, he added. This balance is crucial for IT teams to be effective, he said. Strategies for hiring tech pros with balanced hard and soft skills Building well-rounded IT teams starts well before candidates receive job offers. During the hiring process, many companies now assess both hard and soft skills through several interviews with different departments. “It may seem old school, but we’ve found that going through multiple interviews with members of our team asking technical questions and seeing how the candidate explains the responses really helps us understand their proficiency technically and their ability to communicate,” said Louis Ormond, vice president and general manager at Toshiba America Business Solutions. Erin DeCesare, CTO at workplace catering platform ezCater, outlined a similar approach. During the hiring process, cross-functional partners format the interview around use cases that mimic real-life examples, she said. “So we’re asking a technologist to either design a system or code through a requirement,” she said. “They must demonstrate how they’d solicit requirements from nontechnical stakeholders and then detail how they’d technically solve the issue. In that same hour, we’re evaluating both their hard skills and the way they collaborate and communicate.” John Samuel, COO at CGS (Computer Generated Solutions), said that his interviewing style is to alternate between questions that test a candidate’s technical knowledge and those that reveal interpersonal strengths. “I might start with questions that look at their hard skills — for example, asking them to talk about their technical proficiency in the specific area that we’re hiring for, like cloud, security, or coding,” he said. “Things that you can measure. I’ll ask what projects they’ve led. What projects were successful and what they failed in.” Samuel said he then switches his questions to focus on soft skills, such as teamwork and conflict resolution. By moving back and forth, Samuel can see how solid a candidate’s technical background is and how effectively they leverage soft skills to handle real challenges. “This helps me understand the candidate’s overall balance of hard and soft skills,” he said. At DeVry, Campbell’s approach is to use behavioral-based interview questions to understand how candidates have handled situations that require both hard and soft skills. “We look for ‘red flags’ and ‘green flags’ in how the candidate responds, such as whether they can break down technical concepts in business terms,” he said. For example, if the candidate just doubles down on technical jargon and details when asked about communicating with nontechnical stakeholders, that would be a red flag because it shows that they’ll likely struggle to translate technical concepts into business language. But if the candidate demonstrates an ability to explain technical concepts in terms of the stakeholder’s business processes and outcomes, that would be a positive green flag, he said. Strategies for balancing hard and soft skills in existing IT teams Balancing hard and soft skills doesn’t stop after the interview process. Ensuring that existing employees have a balance of hard and soft skills requires ongoing training. For example, Kellanova offers training to help employees improve both their technical and soft skills through YODA, its Year of Development Always education program, Kollepara said. On the hard skills side, this training keeps Kellanova’s IT teams updated on programming languages, data science, and machine learning. And in terms of soft skills, the training helps IT team members think more creatively and better understand the needs of their colleagues in other departments. Dennis Di Lorenzo, director of skilling strategy at Micron Technology, encouraged IT managers to match their teams’ training plans with the company’s goals. “For example, cloud computing and cybersecurity skills must be complemented by problem-solving and collaboration for digital transformation success,” he said. “[IT managers] should also embed skills into workforce planning and leverage data for personalized learning. Using AI-driven analytics can help assess skill gaps and provide customized learning paths for employees, ensuring they acquire both hard and soft skills relevant to their roles.” Samuel at CGS recommended implementing quarterly performance reviews to track employees’ progress in developing their hard and soft skills over time. A regular, thoughtful review process is one of the most effective ways to help existing IT employees develop both technical and people skills, he said. Too often, IT managers view performance reviews as a formality — they simply go through the motions once a year, Samuel said. But when used properly, reviews can highlight each person’s strengths and pinpoint specific areas for growth, whether that’s learning a new coding language or improving communication and teamwork. Instead of filing these reviews away, Samuel said it’s best to revisit them regularly, ideally every quarter, to track employees’ progress. Along the way, managers or mentors can offer coaching, arrange classroom-style training, or provide hands-on support to ensure employees are continuously advancing their hard and soft skills. “I think it’s also important to create a culture that fosters healthy dialogue, both in hard and soft skills,” Samuel said. “People should feel like they can come and say, ‘Hey, I want help here. I’m struggling here in my soft skills,’ or ‘Hey, there are some new projects [I need help with]’ — and that might be more hard skills.” Further reading: How to keep tech workers engaged in the age of AI Just what is an ‘IT worker’ now? The definition is changing 15 mistakes that make hiring IT talent harder