The Leader - May/June 2008 - (Page 34)

M ul t i - G e n e ra tion a l Wor k For ce DesiGn: p ri ce W ate rHo us e co o p e rs o p e ns a ne W He aDQ uarte rs in ire l anD aligned with the company’s aspirations as an organization. Steelcase worked with PwC management to map out the organization’s goals, including critical success factors for the project, workplace issues, an internal SWOT analysis, and other measures. Interviews with partners, group discussions, and planning workshops followed. PwC carefully defined the changes they wanted to make in the organization’s culture, workplace, and business practices. All levels of the organization got involved in the discussions. Donal O’Connor, PwC Senior Partner, says the questions struck at the core of the business: “What sort of an organization are we? What do we want to be? How can the work environment help us achieve that? Involving the staff meant people felt very engaged. They personally saw the results as we went through the process.” “I give great credit to the Steelcase team, who provided a tremendous help,” he says. “Early on, I was just so enthusiastic about what people would like: the gym, the restaurant, etc. But they took me aside and said, ‘Donal, that’s great. But it’s better if your people come up with the ideas.’ “ A key milestone was mapping where PwC saw itself as an organization today, and where it wanted to be taken. “The Steelcase team showed it very cleverly and simply. Where our people said they wanted the organization to go, and what the leadership team said. It was a perfect fit,” says O’Connor. “Seeing that we were all on the same wavelength was an important point in the process.” Transportation was one of the issues raised by PwC’s people. Being able to get to and from the downtown area was important, especially for younger people attracted to Dublin’s dynamic urban culture and entertainment scene. They were concerned that planned transport to the new location would not be in place by the time of the move. To address this concern, two online transport surveys were conducted eigh- teen months and six months before the move. PwC people identified where and when they needed public transportation and that information was used as a basis for supplementing public transport. PwC buses now run throughout the day between three city center connection points and Spencer Dock, and complement the city’s bus and rail services. Attracting and retaining young talent is a key issue for PwC. Ireland is approaching full employment. Workers are increasingly interested in appropriate work/life balance. It’s a tough industry that PwC competes in, and to continue to hire and keep the top professionals is an ongoing challenge for them. They used Spencer Dock not only as a chance to reinvent their workplace, but as a catalyst to changing their culture, and ultimately to help them attract and hold on to the best talent. Spencer Dock’s interior design by Liam Mullally, partner of Mullally Leonard Partnership, Dublin, expresses the PwC culture in an invigorating, colorful workplace. “Where one works should be visually stimulating,” says Mullally. “So every time you go around a corner at PwC, you get a peek of some different colors, something new. People need color – especially in our Irish climate where at least fifty percent of the days are dull – you need color to enliven the space.” Daylight floods the building’s nine floors via a central atrium as contemporary furniture provides an open vista to even the furthest workplace setting. People meet and talk in both formal and informal spaces throughout the building. They also enjoy a 200-seat restaurant, Starbucks coffee dock, fitness center, and state-of-the-art training and meeting tH e le aDe r 34 MaY / j u n e 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Leader - May/June 2008

The Leader - May/June 2008 Leadership Contents Message from the CEO Real Estate in the News Green Real Estate Work Without Boundries Building Flexibility Into the Business Strategy Multi-Generational Work-Force Design Work Force Longevity Analysis Wells Fargo's David Nelson Pennsylvania's Michael Rossman Globalization 2.0 Site Selection Consultant Directory The New York Report: A Core of Traditional and State-of-the-Art Opportunities Discovery Forum Findings Industry Tracker Young Leader Career Development Effective Leadership Economic Development in the News A Look Ahead In Our Next Issue Calendar of Seminars Index of Advertisers Executive Development Spotlight

The Leader - May/June 2008

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