Why Lighting Standards Aren't Free - w Brienne Willcock

How much of your product's value depends on an organization nobody credits?

IES standards aren't free, and Brienne Willcock wants the lighting industry to understand why. This episode covers the real cost of a recommended practice, IES's growing footprint (AES, NCQLP), and a client-trust framework borrowed from healthcare. Brienne is Associate Executive Director at the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES), and she joins hosts Avi Mor (Morlights) and Lisa Reed (Reed Burkett Lighting Design) to trace her path from fine art and flower color-matching into IES leadership. They dig into IES's mergers with the Audio Engineering Society and NCQLP, the real cost behind every IES file, and why "dumbing it down" is a phrase Brienne refuses to use. It's a candid look at standards, advocacy, and earning trust in the built environment.Brienne Willcock is Associate Executive Director at IES, focused on Strategy, Standards, and Industry Engagement, leading content strategy across technical standards and education. Her background as an architectural lighting designer shapes how she manages collaborative programs, gathers input, and curates content. Brienne was named to Lighting Magazine's International 40 Under 40 (2017), served as past president of the Detroit IES section (2013–2015) and IES Annual Conference Committee Chair (2016–2017), and was awarded Honorary Affiliate status by the American Institute of Architects (2014).

In This Episode:

(00:00) Brienne's expanding role as IES Associate Executive Director

(15:09) Building bridges with AIA, ASID, and allied organizations

(22:10) Manufacturer funding fatigue and thirty competing lighting organizations

(30:35) Six years in the red: IES's financial turnaround and advocacy

(40:35) The hidden value of the IES file and standards funding

(50:52) The patient advocacy model for earning client trust

(58:33) Brienne's favorite illuminated space: the Detroit Institute of Arts

Would you be interested in sponsoring our podcast? Reach out to us.

Share your thoughts, comments, like and subscribe to hear all of our informative upcoming episodes!