The Leader - March/April 2009 - (Page 30) HEADQUARTERS THAT SERVE AND SELL: CREATING COMPANY IDENTITY AND INCREASING PRODUCTIVITY THROUGH SITE DESIGN Lite-On’s Taiwan Headquarters NVIDIA campus doesn’t use hidden systems that merely fulfill the regulations but theirs will divert rainwater into a new creek routed to the front of the property that everyone must cross. The riparian water channel will use biofiltration to discharge the water cleaner than when it started. At the same time, the creek confronts visitors and employees with a subtle sustainability-reminder every time they enter or leave. Another aspect of NVIDIA’s corporate culture is employee-driven innovation, and the natural work environment is important. Company founder Jen-Hsun Huang dismissed outright the idea of creating a traditional corporate campus. “Most employees have already gone to college so why re-live that experience? People come to NVIDIA to work and that's what we want the environment to enhance." How do landscape and natural systems contribute to employees’ work? One direct connection is employee well-being and productivity. NVIDIA’s facility will maximize access to daylight with plenty of windows and including atrium features to give workers easy access to sunny, green views. A workplace study commissioned by the California Energy Commission found 7 percent to 12 percent higher productivity among workers with green and daylit views over control groups. Lower health-care costs are also an important factor. A U.S. study showed workers without green views reported 23 percent more cases of illness than those with exposure to landscapes and gardens. A feng shui consultant was hired to review NVIDIA’s preliminary plans, and the consultant gave it strong support because of the radial design and symmetry. One example is how the employee is given equal footing and respect. A headquarters’ public entry is usually the only lush and featured access point but NVIDIA has made the employee entry equally special, eliminating the “back door.” SGI/Google: The Serious, Fun Workplace It’s an interesting anecdote of Silicon Valley that a highly creative, outside-the-box firm should create one of the most innovative corporate campuses of its time, only to have another highly creative firm take over the space. SGI, known at the time as Silicon Graphics, designed a corporate campus in Mountain View in 2000 to reflect a corporate culture personified in its unofficial motto, Serious Fun. When its graphics-software business declined to the point of no longer needing 2 0 0 9 THE LE ADE R 30 MARCH / APRIL
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