The Leader - July/August 2008 - (Page 62)

Wor kpla ce desIgN : r efle ctI Ng o ur chaNg I Ng W o rld aNd W o rk p atte rNs pedestrian-friendly parks and spaces – a scheme its City Fathers knew was critical in order to make the city economically viable and a place where people would want to work and live. As a result, companies are taking notice and considering Birmingham over the high rent districts of London. At the company level, many businesses are feeling pressure from the economic downturn to cut costs, yet instill a positive and inspiring work place environment. Accordingly, more companies are choosing to renovate interior work space rather than build new facilities and consider overall campus design. “Companies will not coNvergINg factors sacrifice quality,” Weber predicts. “But they will not No doubt workplace The Real Estate Software Product build much new space.” environments are rapidly To help you Compete in a David Turner, busichanging along with some Flat World ness development director cityscapes and corporate at Cincinnati, Ohio-based mentalities. Companies are KZF Design, concurs. He finding that worker mobilsees two divergent trends: ity remains the No. 1 factor the need to shrink real affecting office design of estate costs by reducing the future. With technology and consolidating locanow making it possible for tions, and the need to more people to work from address the different and multiple locations, more innovative work styles of and more companies are the younger generation finding it necessary to right workforce. size their office facilities. “Companies that have “That’s because as techexpanded over the past nology advances, people few years by adding lease are increasingly more able space, and are now tryto connect without being ing to shed that space face-to-face,” states Jack to reduce redundancies Weber, corporate intericreated by multiple locaors principal at Nashville, tions,” Turner remarks. Tenn.-headquartered Thomas Friedman has written that we are now challenged to “Many are looking to creGresham, Smith & work in a ﬂattened world. Manhattan Software can assist the ate universal plans to proPartners. “Consequently, corporate real estate community in working in this ﬂat world. We vide additional flexibility the office becomes a place can connect you to all of your valuable locations and assist you in in consolidation and future for employees to meet and collaborating on all of your CRE work whether it is across town, on the other side of the country or in a foreign continent. reconfigurations. Those work together for a period who believe in allowing of time. It’s no longer a individuals to tailor their place to call home.” work space to meet their But Weber contends, citpersonal needs are lookies and states need to take www.manhattansoftware.com ing to mobile solutions to an active role in addressing Boston . London . Sydney solve this problem.” livability issues in their Consequently, KZF communities. Design offers several solu“Quality of life issues tions: a universal plan with one size office and one size workare becoming increasingly more important as Baby Boomers begin stations as well as partially mobile work environments. Here to retire and the pool of qualified workers becomes smaller,” he workstation splines are maintained for power and data distriemphasizes. “Attraction and retention is a huge factor right now, bution with mobile furniture in between that can be reconfigand attraction starts with the state and the city, then the company.” the le ade r 62 J u ly / a u g u s t http://www.manhattansoftware.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Leader - July/August 2008

The Leader - July/August 2008 Leadership Contents Message from the CEO Real Estate in the News Organizational Design Accommodating Growth Responding to the Challenge EMEA's Building Energy Rating TVA's Shortcut to Success ANZ Banking Group’s Jane Hamilton Tractus Asia’s Dennis Messeroll Arizona’s Greg Weiner Workplace Design Workplace Directory The Texas Report Industry Tracker Discovery Forum Findings Career Development Congratulations to 2008 Corenet Global Award Winners! Young Leader Economic Development in the News Connect with Corenet Global A Look Ahead

The Leader - July/August 2008

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