Blogs

“Work is not a place, it's what you do - and when and how you do it”. We've been talking about the office for years, but now we're changing the conversation. We've moved from a place-centric view of the office to a work and human centric one. It's not that we don't need to have an office anymore - it's that we don't need to have one in the same way.

For the last 1.5 years, those of us used to working in office spaces have been participating in a global experiment of remote working. What we managed to see is that a lot of the work previously classed as ‘impossible to do remotely’ is actually doable! A lot of companies and employees noticed that one can do their own job - or majority of it from home or restrictions-permitting anywhere else.

Work is crap, right?

For many people, this is an uncontentious statement. According to Gallup, hardly anyone is fully engaged in their work whilst half of employees would change their job tomorrow, and a sizeable number would even take a pay cut to escape their boss. Toxic workplaces and terrible bosses are the norm rather than the exception.

We need to do something, and urgently. We need to decrapify work. But what would a decrapified workplace look like?

"How do we get started with hybrid working?" and "When can we go back to work, back to the office, back to business as usual?" These questions are on the lips of many. While many are (and have been) eager to see restrictions lifted, we must remain patient, and this time around – think and plan ahead. One step and stage at a time - the social, physical and digital workplace need to realign with a new way of working.

Over a year into the pandemic, some voices are still calling for "getting back to work" - as if their staff has been doing something other than work, in the past year. Presenteeism and outdated controlling attitudes, that before have driven people daily into the office under the watchful eyes of managers, are now being challenged by new "hybrid working" models, "work-from-anywhere" policies and "activity-based office" designs. In his blog, Michal Matlon talks about the importance of a culture of trust; and how privacy, distraction-free spaces and different mindscapes can bring out the best out of an organization that does brainwork. It's all about autonomy, flexibility, choice and psychological safe zones.

We are now over a year into a pandemic-induced workplace (r)evolution. To no one’s surprise, views on the role of the office are still polarized. Within commercial real estate, many corporate leaders are hoping for a return to old ways of working. However, inflection points are simply part of life. Covid-19 is a huge inflection point for the office world. Now it’s the customer, both tenant companies and end-users who are in the spotlight, who will have their turn to write the next chapter of what it means to “go” to work. For those whose income and business model is tied to supplying or servicing the world of offices, a beginner’s mindset has become necessary, to survive.

The only thing certain is an uncertain future – especially in today’s marketplace and digitized, global business world. Not only technological disruption can take you by surprise, but increasingly so changes in national and global politics, legislation, economy and effects from climate change. And as we have recently witnessed, the effects from public health hazards. In a world like that, we need a higher degree of adaptability and resilience for sustainable success.

According to a study by the World Economic Forum, the number of emerging jobs will increase from 16% to 27% between 2018 and 2022. At the same time, one tenth of the existing job descriptions will vanish. It has been forecast that more than 65% of the children starting school today will come to work in jobs that do not yet exist at the time when they start school. Work is falling apart at an accelerated pace.

Why do managers, facility and property professionals, designers and workplace consultants choose to conduct a space utilization study? In this blog Maija Patjas, Head of International Relations, outlines eleven reasons that various companies, schools and other organizations have identified as their motivation for measuring the space utilization rates of their premises.

Do you find it difficult to focus on your work when a colleague nearby is on the phone or having an impromptu brainstorming session with another colleague? Many employers are looking for easy and flexible ways to reduce noise and disruptions in their offices and to increase their staff’s happiness. In this blog, Sales Director Finland Tapani Laitila from Framery Acoustics explores possible solutions and up-and-coming trends in workspace design.

We all deserve some creativity and inspiration in our everyday lives, also in our jobs. In this blog, Tiia Rauhamäki, an expert in workplace design, challenges us to take control of our everyday lives, find that missing spark and feel passionate about our work again. 

The following is my own unscientific reflection upon the state of the working world and work environments. Occasionally, it's good to stop and reflect on the past and look toward the future. The years seem to be racing by at an ever-increasing pace, but, as a result, we gain a broader perspective.

The discussion on multi-space offices is heating up in Finland. In my work as a consultant, I continuously come across the downside of the hype, the fear that the basic needs of workers are not being taken into into consideration during this frenzy for change.

In a series of posts called “Mobilize!” I have been writing about flex work. Working with companies who develop their own workplaces and work arrangements, we have learned some valuable lessons on flex work that we can share with you. In this fourth blog on flex work, I will outline how to make flexibility work for you.

This is the third part in a series of blogs called “Mobilize!” In the first installment, I discussed the concept of flexible work in general, and in the second, I got started on the topic of making a case for flexible working. In this post, I continue on the subject of making a business case, setting up KPI’s, measuring impact for improving the working environment.

Let go of the handbrake! Workplaces should embrace the opportunities that emerge with technological innovations, and make the best out of them in work life. The "Why" in the future of work is engaged and inspired people, which is achieved with a combination of empathetic corporate culture, technology and physical elements. This is how we'll create the best possible employee experiences, writes Patrik Etelävuori.

In a four part series of blog posts called “Mobilize!” I reflect on flexible working. In the first installment, I discussed the concept of flexible work in general. In this second part, I talk about how flexible work can be good for not only your employees, but your company as well. 

In a four part series of blog posts called “Mobilize!” I examine flexible working and what it is, why it makes sense and how to get started. In this first part, I want to encourage discussion about the concept of flexible work, and what it’s all about. Stay tuned for more!

Digitalization is the current buzzword. This may sound like yesterday’s news, but it's a fact that digitalization is accelerating in all sectors and is on everybody's lips. Service platforms, ecosystems, disruption and open data are adding to the hype. Even traditionally conservative sectors such as property and construction are waking up to the reality of the digital transition.

Spaces can be designed to encourage certain types of behavior, such as individual work or collaboration.

Choice architecture is used to help nudge us to behave in certain ways – in the workplace, too, where the aim usually is to optimize organizational effectiveness and well-being. 

Traditional workspaces are evolving rapidly toward flexible workplace strategy models. This is just one of the insights offered up by the the Optimaze Workplace Review 2016, a benchmark report based on global space utilization assessment data.

Before we make a workplace change, whether it is moving to a new office or transforming the existing office, or some other workplace change, we tend to conduct a utilization analysis. We want to know how we are using the workspace, so that we can have a better idea of what we might need in the new workspace. How are we working? Where are we working? How much space do we need? What kind of space and workstations/collaboration areas do we need, and in what extent? 

We want to prepare for possible software and file format changes in the coming years, and to create more drawing related services that better serve our customers. Therefore, we conducted a space management feasibility study.