2. In this paper we present Organic Spaces:
an iterative thought process where space
is designed to evolve in real-time to
meet changing business needs..Organic
Spaces leverages user-centric analytics
and flexible workplace settings by working
with stakeholders in a ‘co-creative’ way to
produce a workplace that is, essentially,
always adapting.
In the new world order, new idea can change the
competitive landscape overnight. Business leaders
are under more pressure than ever to find new ways
to maintain market leadership. Creating a culture that
enables the best new product or service concepts to
emerge not from the top, but from anywhere in an
organisation is now a pre-requisite for innovation. The role
of workplace in enabling speed to market will increasingly
become key for executives formulating business strategies
in an ever changing market landscape.
However, in order to add new value, something needs to
change in how workplaces are informed, designed and
deployed. Previously, a newly designed workplace would
remain relevant for a number of years without the need
for design intervention. Today, a linear design process
with one fixed solution may still result in a workplace that
is well suited for business on ‘Day 1’, but will this same
solution effectively support the business as it responds to
inevitable market shifts in the future?
3. “Corporate environments of today’s most
important purpose is connecting people, with
each profoundly different preferences and
expectations in terms of ‘the office’, taking an
organic approach to allow for those people’s
different and constantly changing/evolving
needs makes perfect sense.”
- Gerry Taylor, Creative Design Director at Orangebox UK
ORGANISATIONS
MUST EVOLVE
TO SURVIVE
In a period of unprecedented
global uncertainty, where
a flat marketplace, new
technologies and a changing
workforce have created
a new set of challenges;
organisations now need to
adapt to the exponentially
changing market conditions
faster and more often.
4. Global
Organisations
vs. Two Guys in
a Garage
The globalisation of business
means market-altering innovations
can come from anywhere. This
puts pressure on larger, global
companies to have a constant
pipeline of innovation, deliver more
tailored products and services,
all while maintaining a globally
competitive price point.
In the previously stagnant industry
of home automation Nest Labs
is shaking up what was once a
very defined market. Tired of the
average standard of design and
user interface Tony Fadell and Matt
Rogers founded Nest Labs in 2010,
reinventing the thermostat and
smoke alarm. The success of the
business quickly took off and in
four short years was acquired by
Google for $3.2 billion.
How Long
is a Piece
of String?
For the business leader, this new
flat world is also making it more
challenging to create a long-term
plan for optimising a company’s real
estate portfolio when it is difficult
to predict the size or shape of your
organisation across a porfolio
from day one.
4 Generations.
1 Workplace.
The demographics and needs of
the workforce are also changing. All
over the world our workforces are
increasing in their diversity; age, cultural
background, desire for social inclusion
and wellbeing. This new workforce is
hyper-connected, highly educated with
global knowledge networks and desires
more flexibility and autonomy.
The Hotel, Club
Lounge, Café or
Library?
Enabled by technology, increased mobility
and flexibility of the modern knowledge
worker has created the perception of
greater workplace vacancy and blurred
lines in terms of where, when and how
we choose to do our work. Hotels, café’s,
libraries, commercial offices, retail,
residential and urban spaces that were
once all stand-alone are now quickly
becoming the distributed workplace of the
new “global citizen” as the four walls of an
office become no more.
5. Client
Project Manager
Designer
Consultants
Contractor
Furniture
Provider
Project Start
/Briefing
Tender for
Consultants
Design
Concept
Design
Development
Design
Documentation
Tender for
fitout
Procurement Delivery Practical Completion &
ongoing maintenance
The Linear Workplace
Design Process
If we consider the above challenges in seeking to
create the highest performing workplaces, we see that
the current linear process used to design and build
workplaces is disconnected from our new reality.
Today’s status quo:
The Linear Process
Beginning in the industrial age, the creative design process has
been forced into the traditional construction and project management
methodology. The actual process of designing has been assigned to
a small section of the overall process, often beginning after the
brief has been written and concluding at the tender stage. This
stifles innovation and assumes that the design, construction and
furniture procured for these spaces will be 100% perfect on “Day 1”.
In reality we know that businesses will continue to evolve almost
immediately as they respond to “Day 2” market forces and the
changing needs of their employees.
6. Capital Investment & Budget Cycles
Typically, large fixed capital costs
are often budgeted and spent every
10-20 years to upgrade a workplace
environment. Not only do businesses
today evolve faster than this but also
the large sums of money involved
increase the pressure to perfect
design and deliver performance
returns on “Day 1”. Given most major
workplace projects can take 2-3
years to complete from inception
to opening, by the time the linear
process is complete, the thinking
behind the original design is at least
one year old.
Finite Resources
For years, the economy
promoted a linear value
stream that focused on
products and services
with short, linear life
spans. These often
only had minimal ways
to reduce the impact
on the environment
through methods such as
reducing consumption or
avoiding production of
harmful by products. This
approach fails to harness
the power of a supply
chain ecosystem that
offers opportunities for
adaptive reuse, recycling
and ‘cradle-to-cradle’
design. Shifting to a
more holistic approach
requires sustainable
sourcing, materials,
manufacturing processes,
knowledge sharing,
services and continuous
support and engagement
with the community.
What is the Value Equation?
Creativity and innovation have
been stifled through reduced
design budgets and timeframes
and has resulted in an increased
disconnect from the users and
decision makers. The term “value
management" was invented out
of this linear process to “ensure
the number of wasteful processes
is reduced and inefficiency
in specific aspects of project
implementation is avoided”
(Linman, 2010). What have we
lost in terms of valuable design
insights and a more co-creative
process involving the users while
we were focused on conforming
to regulations and reducing
space allocation? Should we
be measuring ‘success’ from
a workplace by total capital
spend on or below budget, or
on measured organisational
performance improvements?
No ‘Day 2’
What about ‘Day 2’ when the
project team has signed off and
moved to the next project? Key
stakeholders in the end user,
design, construction, supply
and manufacture chain are
segregated into their independent
work streams. This fails to take
advantage of the benefits of
synergy from a co-creative design
process, where all ‘streams’ work
side-by-side. A true co-creative
process is also inclusive of ‘future
stakeholders’ to ensure the project
objectives are in alignment with the
‘business as usual’ requirements.
7. ORGANIC
SPACES
To overcome this new globalised ever-changing reality, we challenged
ourselves to come up with a way to “future-proof”
our clients work environments; ensuring that what they invest in today
will be adaptable and relevant for tomorrow.
We call this Organic Spaces; a process where spaces can be
defined, measuredand redefined
real time so that organisations can adapt their real estate to
continually realign with core business objectives.
A Thought Process, Not Another Model of Workplace
Organic Spaces is not another “model” of workplace
(e.g. Hot-Desking, Hoteling, Teleworking, Activity Based
Working, Agile Working), which support specific work
processes and can co-exist depending upon the current
company strategy to maximise efficiencies. Organic
Spaces is a philosophy that looks at workplace as a
cyclical process based upon user-centric analytics
and requirements to provide timeless versatility and
adaptability.
8. Like A Living Organism,
An Organic Space
Seamlessly Adapts To
Changes Over Time
CREA
TE
EVOLVE
SUSTAIN
ORGANIC
SPACES
The organic metaphor has implications for creating,
changing, and maintaining top performance of the
space over time. Organic Spaces is based on a cycle
of Create, Evolve and Sustain: Create a space that is
aligned with the organisation’s business objectives,
Evolve the space as it ‘senses’ the need for change,
and Sustain the improvements over time and in
alignment with any new business direction.
The Organic Spaces Cycle
“Darwin finches are considered to be the world’s fastest-evolving vertebrates because their
appearance and behavior quickly adapted to the closed and rapidly changing environment
of the 13 Galapagos islands.” - Sonia Kleindorfer, Flinders University Professor
9. “Rather than enabling business agility and employee
engagement, corporate office buildings become obsolete
containers that trap organizations into maintaining old
behaviors, waste money and carbon and zap employee
energy and creativity.”
- Despina Katsikakis, Independent Workplace Consultant
CREATE:a space that “builds in”
adaptability to change
Tactics to achieve flexibility
can start with high level
workplace strategy, through
sub-architectural elements,
planning and furnishings,
and even work policy.
10. Use a planning model that offers greater variety of
workplace types and overall flexibility – not a rigid
solution that tries to anticipate every unique need.
Integrate flexible building systems, such as
raised access floor systems, to allow routing of
underfloor HVAC, power, and data.
Accommodate changes to how space is
partitioned, by using demountable walls and
furniture systems instead of drywall or other
traditional solutions.
Select furnishings that work together and can be
reconfigured over and over, supporting “mix and
match” as planning needs evolve.
Build resilience into your workforce by integrating
wellness into your strategy. – that connects
research, tools and best practices and identifies
local partners as part of a wellness program and a
workplace designed to encourage movement and
interaction.
Carry out through analysis of storage practices
and needs. Identify opportunities to optimize
valuable space for an alternative use, which would
support the business needs better.
Create an open platform model to engage
thought leaders from multiple industries to help
inform your future requirements.
Establish a framework for ‘co-creative’
engagement, where all stakeholders (Client,
Workplace Strategy, Design Firm, Project
Managers, Product and Service Providers) work
together from project inception (rather than via a
series of content / production line ‘handovers’) to
co-create the client’s workplace. This agile process
will enable information sharing in ‘real time’
without filters, such that all parties can leverage
their expertise simultaneously, not in sequence.
Build flexibility into your workplace strategy and
reduce costs by offering co-working hubs and
other “third spaces” to employees, lease terms
that provide ease of changing footprint, and
financing options for components of the space.
Adopt work policies that provide flex work time
and support work in off-site locations, as well
as training on how to most effectively use new
planning models and spaces.
Engage employees in developing the right
workplace strategy (and help them manage
change), which can include their input into the
planning process and review of initial design
configurations.
11. EVOLVE:the space as it “senses”
the need for change
This process is surrounded by a
culture that involves employees
and encourages new ideas in the
change process.
The investment in organic space
is truly realised when it is time to
change the space. The organic space
can evolve as needed by ensuring
the right programs are in place to
measure, manage, reconfigure and
store furnishings for reuse.
“Space is a ‘conversation’, a never-ending
dialogue between the user and the
environment, where ongoing evolution or
transformation is much more important
and valuable than an ‘infinite final’ design.”
- Dermot Egan, Founder of Studio TILT, a Codesign
practice based in London
12. Reconfigure the space as needed—and
to test new ideas. An organic space more
easily permits change and can be used
as a test bed for emerging ideas and
planning concepts without the usual time
and disruption to employees.
Engage employees in the ongoing
workplace change process through
regular review of workplace goals and
strategy, and by soliciting their feedback
on work and space
Gather real-time information with
workplace analytics measuring granular
occupancy and usage of various
areas in the office, to discover and
communicate meaningful usage patterns
to inform ongoing changes to the work
environment.
Optimise your investment
between internal and
external resources for
managing the reconfiguration
of sub- architectural elements
and furnishings. The best
approach might be a mix of
both, since (with the proper
training) internal facilities
teams can react quickly to
the need for change.
Consider temporary storage
of unused furnishings. Since
the footprint of the space
can flex more readily with an
organic model, plan to store
unused furniture for reuse in
other locations, a sustainable
practice that can also
increase financial flexibility
and reduce costs.
Organic Space seamlessly
accommodates change through
some of the following tactics:
13. SUSTAIN:
An organic space stays in
alignment with work and
business needs through
regular (annual, bi-annual, or
quarterly) feedback about the
actual use of the space, as well
as data that permits insights
about how well the space
is supporting the desired
behaviors and performance.
the improvements over time
To manage feedback, processes must be set in
place to determine the right measures, and use
those to gather regular feedback about space
use, workforce metrics, group and individual
work process, and performance.
14. Make good things last longer -
Assess existing furniture assets for
refreshment opportunities. Often
the life of a chair or table can be
extended through cleaning and
refurbishment services that can make
a product like new.
Maintain a relevant environment to
your business needs through utilising
flexible furniture procurement
options.
Informed by the Sustain stage we return to
the Create stage, closing the loop ensuring
that the physical space, technology, and
policy remain in alignment with the
goals of the organisation.
Identify spatial performance targets,
which could include square metres
per person, proportions of assigned
versus unassigned space, and
proportion of individual to group
space.
Define workforce performance
metrics, such as: employee
engagement scores, wellness
measures, sustainability goals and
performance evaluations.
Create group and individual
behaviour and performance metrics,
and assessments of how well space
supports these outcomes. These
could include amount and quality of
group and social interaction patterns,
and measures of individual work
process effectiveness, innovation and
assessments of degree to which the
workplace supports these outcomes.
15. ORGANIC
SPACES
We believe Organic Spaces
has value beyond simply
corporate workplace. Here
we explore the potential for
applying ‘Organic Spaces
thinking’ to a number of
other sectors.
SECTORS
NEW
THINKING DESIGN FINANCIAL
MODEL
Learning
Environments
Healthcare
Government
Workplace
Workplace
Wellness
Vertical
Communities
/ Space
Activation
Co-cre8
Pop-up
Workplace
Theatrical
Design
Variabilising
Cost
Leasing
Applications
of Organic
Spaces
Hospitality TM
16. Learning Environments
Existing spaces in tertiary institutionsare no longer equipped to respond to thefrequency of social, political, economicand technological change. The rise ofdistributed space in workplace anddeveloping theories in education havegiven rise to new blended typologiesin teaching, learning and researchspace. Now more than ever educationproviders seek flexible, adaptable andreconfigurable technology-enabled spacecapable of supporting both didacticinstruction and small group working.
Workplace Wellness
Wellness goes beyond just the absence of disease; it involves an
interconnected balance of physical, social, career, financial and community.
Wellness is best approached from a holistic point of view that empowers
those within a space — clients, community partners and members alike —
to learn, experience and share an improved quality of life through design,
technology, movement and interaction. Organic Spaces provide a platform
that enables organisations to operationalise your wellness strategies and
evolve space as we learn more of the benefits of integrated wellness in our
workplaces. Moreover with new building standards such as WELL Building
Standards (DELOS), there exist a large number of specific measures and
measurable interventions that can and should be considered to create
not only a ‘green building’ but a truly sustainable space, where the users
have access to an environment promoting overall wellness (think of
spaces design to calm the mind, reduce stress, enhance creativity, healthy
nutrition, maintain ongoing movement and changes of postures).
Activating Spaces to Create Vertical
Communities
Organisations need to provide spaces that support the new
“global citizen” to work, think creatively, meet and interact
with clients, and not necessarily all within their owned spaces.
Corporate workplace landlords are looking to attract and
retain tenants to fill their buildings as the competition for
high quality floor space increases. There is an opportunity
for building owners to ‘activate’ their buildings by creating
communal spaces where organisations can work outside the
‘company office’ in surrounding buildings and precincts. In
multi-tenanted buildings, there is the unique opportunity to
foster vertical communities through creating shared facilities
as a value-add for potential tenants. These can be supported
in the form of hosted, interactive collaborative spaces also
known as ‘club lounges’. The design, success and relevance of
these spaces relies on the potential for them to evolve over
time as tenants / members needs change. The organic spaces
platform serves to create, constantly analyse and evolve these
spaces based on the needs of the community that inhabits it.
Furthermore, space activation in the sense of unifying vertical
communities can also be applied to larger organisations
wishing to create this sense of place and meaningful
connectivity within their own singular tenancy or building.
High
level wellness
Neutral point
(no illness)
illness
17. Pop Up Workplace
Pop-ups or temporary activations are designed around creating an
experience; they are testing grounds where new concepts can be tried and
tested, including new products, designs, and technology tools. This trend
in retail is now widely accepted, and the opportunity to crossover into
workplace is beginning. By incorporating the lessons learnt from pop-up
and theatre design into experiential workplaces we can create visually rich
environments using very simple components. Organic spaces incorporate
the temporary nature of the pop-up, allowing business to test and improve
new concepts without disrupting business as usual.
Variabilising Cost
Fixed costs have become significantliabilities, as they generally cannot bescaled back fast enough to respond tomarket downturns. As a result we arealready seeing the change to a newbusiness paradigm – from traditionalownership to more of a “pay as yougo” model. This approach ensuresthe relevance of products that can beconveniently packaged up with serviceofferings such as maintenance andfinancing and also guaranteed productrotations and replacements. Variabilisingcosts take advantage of the power ofecosystems that create win-win-situationsand increase a business’s flexibility andresilience.
18. This is the first in
a series of papers
on Organic Spaces.
We will continue to
refine its principles
and thought
processes, and
explore its meaning
and application with
our readers, design
partners and clients. Thoughts?
Want To Know More?
Email us: organicspaces@haworth.com
REFERENCES: Boomers & Millennials, Orangebox | Codesigning Space, Studio TILT | Huffington Post, Despina Katsikakis
