Rachel K. Park

Workplace strategies can be compared to trends in fashion.

Hemlines may rise and fall, cars resemble army tanks until the price of gas takes a chunk out of your wallet, technology advances support mobility until there is a security breach and then firewalls are built, and ah, the furniture industry continuously develops new product (based on research, of course) to support the new ways of working.... until those new ways change too.

To ward off obsolete workplace solutions, align workplace strategies to organizational business goals rather than trends in the workplace. For example, free flow of communication is imperative across departments and across offices around the world. A quick analysis of your current workplace may find that you have a hierarchy of private offices, few places for informal interaction and obsolete video conference capabilities.

Too often work environments for the office and laboratories are bland with white or neutral colors for walls, carpet and furniture. Speaking to Facilities Managers their response is that neutral colors do not become dated, are easier to maintain and people do not react to them negatively. The challenge is that this philosophy may not contribute to inspire people to be innovative and creative. The quality and design of the interior space can be a reflection on the company trying to attract talent. Pay attention to these details and try to provide quality spaces that enable a positive work environment that people want to come to work every day and once at the workplace, they will be encouraged to do their best.

The workplace itself is like a microcosm of activities. People spend most of their time per week at the workplace and are expected to be happy and productive. How do you ensure that this is possible? Everyone is different with different priorities, desires, goals, etc. A workplace must be all things to all people.

There are key elements beyond operational issues one requires to be creative and productive. Hierarchy of spaces is important to be able to address needs for a range of factors starting with an individual, who often works with a team of people, to the floor in which they are housed, to the building, to the campus and even to the community or region.

If you are a developer, your goals for building area efficiency, leasable ratio, flexibility, and cost effectiveness are still similar factors to attracting a tenant to the campus. For the tenant, they want to know that efficiency means that they are getting value in their facilities for the cost to lease the space. They want flexibility in that their business may change or grow over time and they may need more or less space, or change in the type of space they are initially housed in. Their third priority is that the space is inspiring for attracting and retaining key talent.

How can sustainability or environmental stewardship contribute to a creative work environment? Designing for the next generation is important since the investment made in building these work environments will most probably outlast the current occupants. Millenniums will be interested in working at companies or institutions that continue to support their values. Work is an extension of their life. Millenniums will want to work for socially conscious employers who have a strong sense of their goals and business objectives and understand that their facilities can support or enable their workers to be productive, innovative, creative, etc.

I doubt that millenniums will pick companies because they have a strong sustainability program, more likely they will pick companies that are located where they can find as much diversity of thought and acceptance to be different in a multitude of ways. For example, a vegetarian millennium will probably not work for a company that only services meat in their cafeteria. Not because they will have to bring their lunch from home every day, but the employer has not thought in a broader sense to create a more open and welcoming work place to a wider group of people.

I think this is more important than the fact the employer used green products within their facilities. Employers have to balance the need to be fiscally responsible with the need to attract the best talent of the next generation. Understanding employees' diversity of life style, technology expectations, and global perspective is imperative to be able to provide facilities to support them the reach and exceed business goals.