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7/28/2019 When Space Matters: a report on what works and what doesn't in workspace design.
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when space matters (forcollaboration, innovation &
knowledge transfer)
in the build up to KMUK 2013, I asked the
speakers to reflect on the importance of space.
This is a summary of the responses with a few of
my observations thrown in for good measure.
24 June 2013
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contents
observations from the chair 4a summary of findings 5
my workspace 8encourages collaboration 8does not encourage collaboration 10
memorable moments (where) 12collaboration 12innovation 13knowledge transfer 13
reflection 14where and how (you work) 16
making a case for radical change? 19positive impacts 19negative impacts 21and where the jury is still out 22
interesting conversations (where) 24its about a frame of mind and people as much as location 24
real vs. virtual workspace 26a symbiotic relationship 26importance of f2f contact 28
appendices & bibliography 30why space matters 30postcards as a stimulus for conversation 30
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probably the best coffee in the World 31
about the author 34
acknowledgements
The report has been made possible thanks to the input of:
Alim Khan
Alison Turner
Barney Smith
Chris Collison
Christine Rubner Hultmann
Ditte Kolbeck
Dr Bonnie Cheuk
Dr Susanne Etti
Gwenda Sippings
Jean-Pierre Bouchez
Louise Lorton
Margaret McNaull
Mark Field
Nick Milton
Paul J Corney
Rob Benson
Ron Young
Stephen Perry
Sue Mucenieks
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observations from the chair
Work space matters! In my early days cramming for exams Idseek a quiet spot. I craved solitude to concentrate but contact
(body language, expressions as well as sounds) to stimulate
creative juices and share experiences.
Ive recognized as Ive worked with and in different cultures that there is no
silver bullet. Individuals need different environments and surroundings to be
creative and to share. And they need time. Heres an example:
Over dinner some years back I was seated next to two authors who confessed towidely differing methods of stimulating their thought processes:
I always keep a notepad by my desk to record thoughts Id had while
asleep; I take a recorder with me when walking the dog as thats
where I get me best inspiration
Today much of what knowledge workers do is driven by the need to
collaborate: with peers, clients, management, stakeholders and competitors. A
lot of that collaboration is now conducted in virtual workspaces using social
media tools, in their infancy a decade ago when the first KMUK event was held.
So I thought it might be interesting to repeat the exercise my colleagues atSparknow and I ran with the delegates at KM Europe (the last to be held in the
UK) in 2002. We asked 6 questions about their workspace (environment and
practices) and how they thought virtual working might impact them in the
future. I am indebted to those KMUK 2013 speakers who responded this time.
So many interesting exchanges take place around
water coolers, coffee machines and even going toand from prayers (in the Middle East).
Organisations that recognise and exploit these
opportunities are pursuing a strategy of what Id
describe as Orchestrated Serendipity.
Heres an example of a room in Khartoum, Sudan,
used to run a working session entitled, when you
look at things differently, the things you look at
change
This exercise is an effective cross cultural way of
getting people to think differently about a task or
challenge: the change of venue and profession
proving a catalyst for innovative thought and
sharing.
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a summary of findings
Ive highlighted some of the answers (unattributed) that stoodout for me and compared them against the tips Id provided in
a recent blog post entitled why space matters...
What to think about when planning physical collaboration spaces:
* Importance of light, food and the demise of the managers dining room*Serve great coffee and make space memorable
*
Use unexpected spaces for exhibits
*Analyse flows (of people and knowledge) and be opportunistic*Create a knowledge (and information) hubmy workspace
Throughout the responses there are differing opinions on what is the optimal set
up to encourage collaboration. I recall dreading going into a trading area, then
as now totally open plan, feeling like I was entering a bear pit and many people
are uncomfortable with conducting conversations in full sight and sound of
others. As a virtual knowledge worker for 15 years I find I need a combination
of both personal space (and quiet) and collaborative space (and personal
contact).
In helping a client to plan an open space environment (claims area) a few years
back we paid much attention to giving people the ability to create their areas
with a sense of their own character or that of their team.
my workspace 2013
* this open environment is very conducive toknowledge sharing and collaboration particularly
as the knowledge team sits amongst the client
serving staff and are considered part of the teamas a result
my workspace 2002
* Paul and I have recently moved offices and nowhave adjoining offices with the FIRST connecting
door in the Commission About half our work is
directed, and half we have freedom. This door,
and our communication through it has changed
the dynamic and is wonderful. It creates lots of
possibilities for collaboration, even with
individual offices.
memorable moments 2013
* We sometimes use the formal meeting rooms forinformal drop in sessions for staff to come and
find out about our services...
memorable moments 2002
* s office. Its fun to get in there, it's a niceplace. There is a bouncy chair you can sit on and
jump up and down. There is candy. There are
sharp comments. People come to get playful andto know things. People bring gifts. Started by
giving out candy, and then people started to feel
a bit mean just taking, and not giving, so a kind
of ritual of `giving to take' started to establish
itself so people bring candy now
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memorable moments
This question yielded some vivid descriptions. Perhaps the most striking
takeaway: the workspace environment is critical for stimulating the way
people work and think about work.
My memorable moment was at a clients in Jeddah where Victoria Ward and I
had gone to run an awareness-raising event with senior management at the startof the programme of work to develop a knowledge management strategy. Faced
with the prospect of conducting hands on sessions in an auditorium we scoured
their buildings for a suitable open space with comfortable seating. It took a lot
of cajoling to persuade their top brass to work in a breakout room. Once the
political/etiquette hurdles were overcome the session ran smoothly and got the
programme off to a flying start. Interestingly this theme reappeared in one of
the speakers responses.
reflecting where and how
I loved the I do my creative thinking on a horse comment from 2002. It bears
out the earlier anecdote about the authors. In my case I used to retreat to my
study with a clippings file but today with so much material in digital format our
systems have become the messy office and we use search engines to try and
make sense of the mess.
a radical case for change
Its clear that in the success stories a huge amount of preparation has gone into
the relocation. When a client moved across the city, consolidating a number of
businesses under one roof in an open environment, the biggest challenge was tobuild a metaphorical bridge between the old and the new. People were able to
visualise themselves as a Tardis like room was created in the old building where
all discussions about the new offices were held. And a blogger sited in the new
building to provide regular updates and images during construction.
reflecting where and how 2013
* our open plan layout really doesn't suit me andon office days, I rarely get through the work I
hope to do due to constant interruptions and
noise. Sometimes, this can be stimulating and
the conversations are good but I now do at least
1 day at home to have some quiet space. But Inow always feel behind as can't be productive in
the office.
reflecting where and how 2002
* I use my office for 'getting things done'. When Iwant to reflect or be more creative I go to
another room or even to my house in France for
peace and tranquillity + no phone!
a radical case for change 2013
* We created guidelines for working in an openplan office right down to telephone etiquette,
noise levels, desk sizes etc. In the old
environment many conversations were held in
offices, Partners were rarely seen or heard, staff
kept to their own teams and rarely engaged with
other service lines etc. In the new environment
while there were challenges to begin with and
some adjustments for senior staff in sitting out
in the open we settled down quickly and for the
first time everyone knew each other by nameand on sight. There was a lot more
collaboration, cross service line interaction,..
a radical case for change 2002
* Yes, the sales team were all moved toteleworking from home. We had to set up
mechanisms to ensure continuing human contact
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The most striking comment though that illustrates the negative impact a change
in workspace policy can have:
In Aberdeen, the free lunches were stopped as part of a cost-cutting
drive in the early 90s. The result? Packed lunches. People stayed at
their desks. All day. Had anyone offered to the business unit leader that
for a mere 3 per day they could significantly raise the level ofcollaboration, networking, sharing and deliver a resulting increase in
motivation and productivity... He would have bitten their hand off!
interesting conversations
No surprises here. Its where people feel comfortable. Is this why there has
been resurgence in interest in creating workspaces that foster collaboration?
real vs. virtual
We are a more networked society today than 2002 and people (youngsters in
particular) are much more comfortable working cross-border and ethnicity. A
friend was describing how his son and peer study group located in 5 countries
did their homework concurrently on line using a combination of Skype,
Facebook, YouTube and Search Engines, each performing a different (unspoken)
role as part of a team. That the tutor could be Skyped in periodically is an
illustration of how far social media is transforming the way we work outside of
the corporate firewall (at least in academia). That generation (rent as they
are known by some) are less constrained by political barriers, ethnicity and
religion and you are what you write. While they are networked virtually often
their face-to-face (f2f) interpersonal skills are under developed.A theme throughout the responses that underscores the above example is that
some f2f contact is vital to build the trust all communities need to thrive; one
of the rationales perhaps behind the early network collaboration systems that
used to be known as expert networks such as BP Connect?
interesting conversations (where) 2013
* The number 8 bus from the main station to theend of the line (which is also the main building
entrance) is generally referred to as the
"collaborating center", a designation usually
bestowed on universities or other partners
interesting conversations (where) 2002
* Tend to stand on the staircase, or, like here,just stand in the same place in the corridor and
wait for people to pass me by. Standing still in a
thoroughfare.
real vs. virtual 2013
* Replicate rather than replace Just a fewminutes ago, I finished a Webex session with the
UN which had me allocating 30 participants tobreakout "rooms" which contained materials and
videos. I was able to visit each room
momentarily to check in on progress, spot
people raising their hands, share back the
outputs on a group whiteboard, "smiling",
"laughing" and get votes and prioritization from a
group representing 20 different countries,
before conducting an open discussion with
everyone. I would go as far as to say that it was
even more productive than the equivalent
physical workspace.real vs. virtual 2002
* Virtual space is good for exchanging information,even complicated stuff such as designs but you
need you need real contact for developing
relationships and for closing deals
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my workspace
Q Do you think your own workspace encourages collaboration?Tell us about a recent incident where this happened
encourages collaboration
*Yes, very much so. Once a week we have a knowledge-sharing meeting,which is sometimes rich and sometimes rather empty. Once a month wehave a brown bag session, where a colleague invites for a discussion based
on material we are supposed to have read before the session
*
Our physical workspace is open plan and as such everyone is visible from
Partner down to entry level associates. This open environment is very
conducive to knowledge sharing and collaboration particularly as the
knowledge team sits amongst the client serving staff and are considered part
of the team as a result Most recently one of the teams was working on a
regional proposal and the knowledge champion who overheard his colleagues
connected us to the proposal lead immediately so we could assist with some
of the research etc.
*Yes. We are all on a large open floor and the different departments caninteract and have conversations easily. Some conversations are non-workbut that builds relationships which can result in more effectivecollaboration
*one place that I work occasionally with collaborators is the cafeteria,which is brightly lit, has plenty of space with round and square tables,electrical outlets and a decent wifi signal. I was recently working with a
snippets from 2002
My office building has won awards but my own
office space is quite small. Work 90% of time at my
pc.
Old building, 3 offices, most networking round the
door.
We have several buildings along one road and
people tend not to mix between them. But we do
have a collaborative platform, on-line, and people
make good use of that.
My working on papers doesnt really encourage
collaboration but with everything people exists via
others and experience have taught me that paper
as well as a lot of other things only becomes better
at having had at least another pair of eyes to look
at it, so I try to build up partnerships with other
researchers where we go over each others things.
Working at Oresund Network, do encourages
collaboration due to open office space, and the
project that I'm working on is a joint project,
analyzing on focus groups etc. so we do need to
discus the research conducted. Also it is a very
small office so we all help out when it is needed.
It does NOT. The architecture is based on long
corridors with offices left and right. Little open
spaces for meeting and interaction
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colleague on preparing an important upcoming meeting in this place, when
her boss and several members of her team showed up unannounced.
Suspecting that one of his team was working "offsite onsite", I think he was
trying to extend his walkabout management style into new territory! In any
event it gave some level of formal recognition to this informal practice
*
I have an office of my own, with an open door unless I am in a meeting, andthe rest of the team (42 people) are in open plan. My office is available for
use by team members when I am out. The only problem is that because of
the need to store residual paper files, and to lock things away nightly to
comply with Information Security policies, we have a wall of cabinets
splitting the team in half. I do walk around to see people where I can, in my
own team and elsewhere, rather than relying totally on emails or phone
calls. As I walk round, I am likely to get approached about a work issue
which might otherwise not be raised. If I'm visible, people remember more
readily that it would be useful to involve my Department's expertise in their
projects
*My physical workspace (home office) encourages serendipity, but thats aconsequence of my lack of discipline, rather than a conscious drive forinnovation. My disdain for filing means that I often have multiple clients
materials out together and sometimes that leads to useful connections and
parallels. My virtual workspace is more a collection of spaces to work with
clients, so is fragmented by nature (and requires a good memory for
passwords!). Finally, my social workspace is probably the most collaborative
whether through LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or even some antiquated
Yahoo Groups its always good to connect when youre working alone.
Keeps you sane.
*Yes and no! It does encourage conversation but we still have silo working. Ithink there's an assumption that open plan equals collaborative working butthere are very few huddle type areas which would actually help much more
snippets from 2002
Yes, because it is open plan. If you have a problem
you can throw it open to everyone by calling it out
across the office
Yes, because it is open plan. If you have a problemyou can throw it open to everyone by calling it out
across the office
In our office everyone sits in cubicles with their
backs to each other. Its pure Dilbert! We have
recently set out a big table around which we can
meet and it has made a big difference. People get
together around it very easily.
Yes it does. People like to use my office because ithas great views of the countryside and nice art on
the walls. Also we can use the main office when we
need to work collaboratively to produce things. We
have a conference room with lots of whiteboard
space on the walls and we have lots of other
resources around us such as flipcharts, web access,
coffee etc. It is possible for me to feel isolated
from the team when I am sat in my office and they
are all next door but I can easily remedy this just
by walking over or by actually moving my workplace
in to the general office.
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*This requires well-defined meeting structures and good meeting facilitationif we are to create a good knowledge sharing environment. In mydepartment we are still struggling with weekly departmental meetings and
monthly Lync / video meetings which is not creating any value because of
missing facilitation
*
My own workspace is a mobile office - laptop, mobile etc. I collaborateonline, remotely, in person with client or colleague. As I am working
generally 'of no fixed abode' I win and I lose - Im more easily with people,
but teams are distributed.
* I used to work in a biochemistry research institution. The head of thedepartment sponsored morning coffee every day of the week. The institutestaff was invited each day to go to the library for 30 minute for a coffee
break. At times it was show and tell especially after a weekend but normally
this morning tea invitation enabled conversations between different groups,
provided knowledge exchange that let to collaboration. At the time it was
just something I took part in but looking back now - with a KM hat on - this
was a little investment from the department but had a massive impact on
collaboration and staff engagement.
does not encourage collaboration
*I observed that collaboration is not encouraged in academia andresearchers working in an enclosed space, are individualistic and do notshare their research, except informally and social and professional
affinities...
*
Short answer is no. My workspace is open plan and hence encourages localcollaboration i.e. with colleagues seated in the same area as I can easily see
who's available etc. However, it positively discourages broader collaboration
e.g. with team members and colleagues not in the area as it inhibits the
ability to just pick up the phone to chat to somebody as I need to find a
snippets from 2002
Its a warehouse office, very small, not much
collaboration.
Our workspace is based around very individual
offices but collaboration happens despite this -
around the coffee machine.
No, workspace doesn't encourage collaboration - we
work in 'cubicles'. I get round this by making a
special effort.
People are missing the canteen environment where
most of the collaboration used to take place.
Yes, our offices are largely open plan and people
communicate well. We also have a constant flow of
associates, course delegates and candidates flowing
through the office which stimulates conversations
and learnings. Like our CKO summits where we
bring together world leaders. It's a combination of
a meeting and a space. In a castle in Dublin, log
fires, relaxed, people who see themselves as peers
are given privacy, retreat, permission and time.
Paul and I have recently moved offices and now
have adjoining offices with the FIRST connecting
door in the Commission About half our work is
directed, and half we have freedom. This door, and
our communication through it has changed the
dynamic and is wonderful. It creates lots of
possibilities for collaboration, even with individual
offices.
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memorable moments (where)
Q Are there any parts of your building or workspace which youassociate with memorable moments of work? Tell us about a
time and place when this happened.
collaboration
*the response to a global crisis saw our local floor conference roomexpropriated for an emergency response team. Normally our meetings therewere 10-15 people... Now there were 60 people packed in, with laptops and
cables everywhere, staffed round the clock, with a media circus outside in
the parking lot nearby. As the corporate library is also nearby, normally the
atmosphere was even calmer than most regular office spaces. For the few
weeks that it lasted, the complete opposite was true, and the sense of
urgency and uncertainty was palpable anywhere in the vicinity, on people's
expressions, and from the energy, noise and bustle.. Afterwards, when the
space reverted to its normal usage, there was no trace left at all of what
had happened there: the room was left as it was found originally and the
sense of calm was restored as well.
*
Our team is quite small so we work well together as conversations generate
lots of ideas and are enjoyable. We've recently invested in magicwhiteboards so we can draw and note things down almost wherever we are
*Being holed up in a board room working from 7am to 11pm for several daysdealing with how to respond to some unexpected bad data. Telecons withour CEO at 11pm and working against the clock to agree response to release
snippets from 2002
Oh god, the spark' singing' workshop last year. It
destroyed our careers. At the time, we had a boss
who was very technology focussed, not interestedin emotional intelligence. We thought, lets show
her something new, something in km which is a real
catalyst for change. We've always been very
impressed by spark's work, so we took her to your
workshop. Disaster. She hated it. From that
moment, we could never get anything done. Had
lost all our political capital. In fact, things got so
bad we had to move....
Anyway, that was the best thing that could have
happened. Now we are in the right kind of
Directorate, doing the right kind of work and can
probably do lots of work with you. For example,
one research programme in our unit is into the
mobile worker. I can see spark working there. And
ever since then `singing' has conjured up to us the
meaning of knowledge management. The point is to
`sing'. When we were moving, I walked into Ann's
office and saw a flipchart with `sing' written across
it and we both looked at each other and
remembered the spark workshop.
NB Editors comment: At the 2001 KM Europeevent in Den Haag, in the middle of the
technology exhibition hall Sparknow ran a
workshop which started with people singing. It
had a major impact contrasting nicely with the
traditional vendor stands.
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to the global stock markets before they closed for Christmas. Having our
finance director going out for take away food for us and having our lawyer
come in from a Christmas party to review some materials in full dinner dress
- I can still remember his red bow tie.
*
The kitchen area does at least make people say hello.
*
I am a connect member with the Melbourne Hub - a co-working space inMelbourne, Australia. The set up of the space is accommodating a variety of
work styles from open and collaborative to private. A weekly mixed-lunch
encourages members to get together to learn from each other and to provide
space to promote collaboration.
innovation
*The entrance of the Aalborg University in Copenhagen is a huge hall. AFriday afternoon young people came in. Two, three, four or five at the time,carrying sleeping backs, backpacks, beers, a pram, you name it. They talked
and gestured enthusiastically, and I realized this was the game-
development-weekend including a competition on producing the best
computer game over 48 hours. The participants built their workshops in the
hall by moving tables and chairs, utilizing the walls, the staircases the pram
they brought. In short: everything. The room was not invented for such an
event, but the exited game-developers from all parts of Europe were
extremely creative. The high involvement, the engagement the good spirit
and the exited atmosphere made this a memorable moment of work - hard
to consider it as work
knowledge transfer
*Most recently the regional team I was sitting with won a very large projectand the Partner who got the call stood up and called the team togetheraround his desk to announce the win, congratulate the team involved and
snippets from 2002
s office. Its fun to get in there, it's a nice place.
There is a bouncy chair you can sit on and jump up
and down. There is candy. There are sharp
comments. People come to get playful and to know
things. People bring gifts. Started by giving out
candy, and then people started to feel a bit mean
just taking, and not giving, so a kind of ritual of
`giving to take' started to establish itself so people
bring candy now
In the office kitchen, in my office. Normal coffee,
water cooler kind of thing. Informal focal point of
the business. Strength of chance encounter
Moments of Gestalt in my office, a clicking
moment.' My office, at home, a backroom in a
basement flat. I associate all my memorable
moments with being at my desk in my office -
machines and pcs, music playing, nice lighting,
moments of Gestalt. For example when building a
new presentation there's a clicking moment, like a
recent presentation on knowledge mapping. I
needed to summarise and suddenly found out how
to. It's a kind of womblike environment. The
environment makes it possible.
I have recently renovated my office space, new
furniture etc, and this has made a big difference to
how I feel about it and my work. There is a lovely
view out the window and even Wind Chimes in the
tree outside
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rang the office sales bell so everyone in the building knew about the win -
the office atrium is an open space so staff from all the floors above and
below got up to see and hear the news first hand!
*a memorable moment for me was bumping into the Finance Director on thestairs and asking about budgets for the year ahead and 'off guard' he gave mean insight into the up coming process that enabled me to pitch and getmore. When I presented the COWI portal strategy for the Executive Board
their meeting room was furnished with only a small meeting table and 10
relaxing chairs. That means that you can't sit as you normally do at a
traditional meeting and therefore will be forced to change your own habits
*We sometimes use the formal meeting rooms for informal drop in sessionsfor staff to come and find out about our services...reflection
*
My "old" office in another part of the building facing the Olympic Stadium
office which I used when I started my new job, meeting colleagues and going
through steep learning curve. Since then, I moved office twice, and my
friends/neighbours are scattered in other part of the building. Whenever I
walk past this section of the building, it triggers the memory, and makes me
realize "time flies, things happen quickly in this company, we are at a
different stage of the program today"..
* In the corner of my office by the staircase is a shelf with various KM-relatedartefacts from clients. it's my own personal KM Museum! The mostevocative of these artefacts is a laser-etched glass award which I helped
Syngenta to introduce - the "TREE" awards for knowledge-sharing in theirnetworks... Whilst they were just one part of a broader KM and Networking
programme, they somehow sum things up for me whenever I pass them on
the stairs.
snippets from 2002
Working collaboratively with my team to produce a
complex piece of work. We were able to work very
effectively as a team to manage a complex thought
process because we could all be in the same place
and we were surrounded by useful resources
The corridors coz thats where the best
conversations happen.
My teaching experiences in the Business School. The
teaching rooms are very well designed - very
pleasing Scandinavian design with lots of windows
and the students are very close to the teacher
Actually going in to liquidation and then beingbought out. The months of tension felt across the
open plan space were exhausting.
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*The garden: writing a strategy. Somehow getting out of the room and staringat the screen freed me of the operational grind that distractssnippets from 2002
A knowledge caf run by us in Copenhagen (not our
building, but our workspace) was very successful as
much because of what we had to battle against to
make it happen as anything else.
We were supposed to be running a kind of review
session, a knowledge caf for 70. [and had chosen
to use Nimspace as a kind of work shopping tool].
120 signed up.
We had those inseparable chairs, and a security
guard who blocked us making any changes. Not only
that, he would not let us start proceedings earlier
to cope with demand. So we had lots of obstacles.
Everything was against us. But we managed to
uncouple the chairs and take them away, then we
were all spilling out onto the corridor which
attracted new people who were curious.
Then we had to find a way of moving people on, so
we used the wall displays which Nimspace had
created and moved groups on, but left facilitators
behind to continue to facilitate discussions and add
to the walls).
Because we had so many people and no tables and
chairs and had to move them around, we also
created real momentum, which generated real
energy.
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where and how (you work)
Q How does where you work reflect the way you work?
* I select where I work based on need to achieve certain things, rather thanconstraints. I do like to be outside for creativity.*The easier access you have to colleagues, the more collaboration. For eightyeas I worked as a remote manager in Oracle. My team and my professional
community were spread over Europe, Middle East and Africa. Collaboration
was based on the available technology, which we used as much as possible.
But it was rarely spontaneous. Nowadays I work as a researcher in AalborgUniversity. My research group shares a large room where everybody can see
and hear each other. This makes it easy to ask questions, to involve yourself
in on-going discussions, to go with the flow so to say. The shared physical
room invites for interaction, and it becomes easier to collaborate.
* It certainly does. In the office, I feel it is more formal. When I work athome, I feel slightly more relaxed (especially when it reduces travellingtime).
* In Myers Briggs Terms, I'm an ENFP. The 'P' at the end means that I have atendency to be spontaneous and am easily distracted, and have a tendencyto have several pieces of work "open" at a time - just like we do on our
Windows desktops. My physical desk space reflects this! My office is in the
roof or our home, with windows and a balcony to look over the mean streets
of Ascot - so I'll regularly take a screen-break and take documents outside..
Fresh air = fresh thoughts?
snippets from 2002
I like to concentrate; it gives me a feeling of
separation from domestic life.
I work better in isolation. Tend to walk around.
I am based in an open plan office which suits me
because I like to work with others - not on my own
in a private office
Well good and bad can be said about open offices,
usually it effect it positively since the mood around
the office is friendly so it is fun being at work also
you have to be effective when everyone around you
are just that. On the other hand when everything is
hectic phones are rings and people talking it can be
hard to concentrate on certain aspects of research
analysis.
My desk is messy because I'm not there much and
when I am I am usually multi-tasking and I like to
leave things where I know I can find them. Also,
leaving things out reminds me what I was up to
when I walked away from it.
My own workspace is very conventional. It is always
in a different state of order or chaos according to
the different stages of any project I am working on.
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* I work globally with a number of colleagues and my own team who are basedin different countries so that means using social collaboration tools is key toinstant responses and discussions on hot topics, decision making and problem
solving. We also use video conference and TANDBERG Movi which allows us
to "see" each other and feel more connected but this is not as spontaneous
as chatting to a colleague over a desk partition or at the coffee machine.
That being said we make use of what we have so tools like sametime/instant
messaging or just picking up the phone to call each other happens more
frequently and there is more transparency and sharing as a result because it
is important we all know what is happening in the business as it happens in
order to support exceptional client service globally.
* I am finding it increasingly important to seek a quiet, interruption-freeenvironment when doing certain tasks, particularly, for example,strategizing, or writing of substantial length. This may seem to take us back
to the days of an office with a closed door, but in fact such places are more
common than they would first appear. Where I work provides an abundanceof such offices, so the challenge is in synchronizing work patterns with
colleagues so that meeting time, concentrated alone work time, and
serendipitous encounters can all occur in healthy proportions. Having a
"coffee culture" actually helps in this regard, as most people prefer to use
one of the three main cafes on the main floor, rather than vending machines
scattered on floors throughout the building complexes.
*our open plan layout really doesn't suit me and on office days, I rarely getthrough the work I hope to do due to constant interruptions and noise.Sometimes, this can be stimulating and the conversations are good but I now
do at least 1 day at home to have some quiet space. But I now always feel
behind as can't be productive in the office.
* I'm sitting in open-plan office with small meeting room with transparentglass walls and therefore you can see who is present and who sits and workand is accessible and who is in a meeting. Via my PC I use Lync very much to
snippets from 2002
Actually I do all of my creative thinking whilst
riding a horse.
I work at a PC because that's the nature of my
work. Other people seem to be able to work in
messier environments than me.
My office, as well as having a pleasing visual
aspect, is to me an enclosed and protected space -
it is here that I am able to do my deep and creative
thinking.
I use my office for 'getting things done'. When I
want to reflect or be more creative I go to another
room or even to my house in France for peace andtranquillity + no phone!
My office is not ideal but at least its in part of the
main office. It's a bit restrictive and not a real
reflection of where I work which nomadic, email,
or in front of a flip chart. Email is best for
distance, when you know people, when bilateral is
best, for groups a flip-chart or a whiteboard
Cluttered. Before it was clutter, and overwhelmed
me, it was helpful material. But now its
overloaded. I love the curtains. They are a kind of
colourful South American print. The other day I had
them closed, I hardly ever have them closed, and I
was really struck by how much they mean to me.
Makes me feel safe in here, linked by telephone
lines to the outside world.
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send small messages and handle fast discussions and benefit a lot from the
presence function Lync has.
* In my own office I am able to concentrate on report writing and strategic orpersonnel issues. I am also able to have open conversations with mymanagement team about issues and plans. At other times, I can gauge what
is going on in the team from walking about, and having casual conversationswith staff about things they might not otherwise think to draw to my
attention. This helps me to know how we are interacting with other teams in
the company, and enables me to open conversations with other Heads of
Departments if I know we have helped them in a specific area recently.
* I work in a virtual team that has a global footprint.. We have several tools inplace to make it easier to access information, to share content and to beconnected. My collaboration is based on the available technology. The
spontaneous chat over a cup of tea or coffee is not possible in this set up. I
enjoy connecting with people in person. Technology is helping but it does
not replace the beauty and power of F2F interaction.
snippets from 2002
Its full of green plants. Its very important, its not
just an office but `my space' open and welcoming
as well as my space.
Paper, chaos, untidy, reacting to innovations. No
command and control. I think `tidy cupboard aredanger zones', a sign of a problem. In the EC, too,
there is an explicit rule (written down) about
window status - how many windows you are
allowed, depending on seniority. The other thing is
the open door I was telling you about and how well
this works to create semi-shared, semi-private
space.
Now have a `double Dilbert corner cube' but don't
know how it will work yet. Formerly on the (x)floor of a skyscraper in New York and couldn't move
for paper, books, piles of things etc. A kind of
snail's shell rather than a womb. A mess. This is
critical for knowledge work. See Malcolm Gladwell
`The Myth of the Paperless Office', as written up in
New York Review. The point of knowledge work is
that you have not structured things yet, so you
need to spread them out, look for patterns and
connections, cluster, reorganise. Most people who
work with complicated ideas spread them out. The
reason you spread things out is that you don't knowwhere you want to put them yet.
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making a case for radical change?
Q Have you ever witnessed a company change its workspaceradically? What happened?
positive impacts
*Yes, i have seen a transition from closed offices to open plan. Initially therewas great reluctance, but two things made the transition easier. a) themanagers went open-space as well, and b) the quality of the selected office
furniture was excellent. This latter point made it clear that open space was
an investment, not a cost cutting measure. Over time, everyone came to
appreciate the open plan setting.
*Yes - the creation of a knowledge hub from an enclosed and quiet library in2001Some people migrated from their normal desks, some people startedusing the space as their main working space. Everyone started using the
library and giving it a new lease of life. The estates and facilities people
were resistant, they ended up replicating in all of the offices.
* In my first knowledge role the office practice I worked for moved to an openworkspace environment and I was asked to be the change managementleader for our floor. We had a great external consultant come in to assist
with the move and the potential challenges it would create. We created
guidelines for working in an open plan office right down to telephone
etiquette, noise levels, desk sizes etc. In the old environment many
conversations were held in offices, Partners were rarely seen or heard, staff
kept to their own teams and rarely engaged with other service lines etc. In
the new environment while there were challenges to begin with and some
snippets from 2002
positive impacts
Yes, the sales team were all moved to teleworking
from home. We had to set up mechanisms to ensure
continuing human contact.
Yes, the business started in a converted house and
then moved to a big open plan office that was well
though out in advance to ensure co-location of
colleagues. Made a big improvement.
Yes, but not radical enough. We went from
corridors and offices to open spaces
When I worked for Elf. We went to a mostly open
plan arrangement. Was probably an improvement
but very gradual. I noticed the contrast when, after
a while, I went to visit our French office which still
had cellular offices, and I really noticed the
difference. Not a radical change, but a subtly
shifted culture.
Have just made a team office in the same corridor.
Its open plan. Talk more to each other.
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adjustments for senior staff in sitting out in the open we settled down
quickly and for the first time everyone knew each other by name and on
sight. There was a lot more collaboration, cross service line interaction,
Partners were more accessible and visible and staff felt engaged and part of
a bigger team. The design and layout was sensitive to the size of the
practice, they created comfortable and appealing coffee areas for teams to
have informal meetings and quiet rooms where you are able to have
confidential conversations etc if you need to away from your desk. In this
new space you saw most of the team every day and not only once a month at
a team meeting and the use of colour, plants, wall art and notice boards
helped make it a positive working space.
*At KPMG in the late 90s when there was a shortage of space the Partnersagreed to reduce the size of their offices to create more open plan space forstaff. This went down well and helped deal with problem. There were
many Partners who were not happy but it was driven by the senior Partner.
*
I remember visiting the British Airways Waterside building and being blownaway by the impact of the space the stream, cobbled streets, olive groves
and Boeing 747 wheels. I was surprised by the design subtleties which
encouraged people to connect right down to the way the cobbles were
arranged to be less bobbly in some areas to being people together
(particularly those wearing stilettos!). GCHQs donut was also impressive
and I know it had a significant impact on openness, awareness and
serendipity there but the Daily Mail would have balked at a publicly funded
olive grove!
*
My company has moved from two buildings where groups/offices were
spread over several floors and different buildings to one floor. Especially an
area called "green space" for lunch, functions, events has provided a great
space to meet other colleagues / teams that in the past you would have not
met unless you worked on a project together.
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negative impacts
*BP had its fair share of smart environments, but more memorable was thenegative impact of changing a workspace policy. In Aberdeen, the freelunches were stopped as part of a cost-cutting drive in the early 90s. The
result? Packed lunches. People stayed at their desks. All day. Had anyone
offered to the business unit leader that for a mere 3 per day they couldsignificantly raise the level of collaboration, networking, sharing and deliver
a resulting increase in motivation and productivity... He would have bitten
their hand off!
*A few years ago my company moved from a very colorful building with a lotof space, paintings on the walls and potted plants everywhere to a buildingwith only one color white. White on the walls, in the roof, on the floor, the
tables only different color was the chairs which were black, and a small
group of lamps which were green. No paintings, no potted plants. Nobody
was allowed to have a picture of the family or other personal things at the
table. I felt like being hospitalized with serious illness. Even 30-40employees shared a room, I felt isolated. I felt my brains stopped exploring.
I felt so uncomfortable, I preferred working from home, even I am a very
extroverted person. I realized I need joy for being creative, efficient and
productive.
*Oh my god. Yes, to save costs. My company collapse people working in 2floors into 1. As a result, director who used to have an office now have toshare office with another colleague. The staff working in the open plan have
to squash together (4 instead of 2 in a row) and sit closer with less space
between them and less privacy. People don't really like it, and some put on
headset to make calls or to reduce distraction. Internal meeting rooms
become tiny, like toilet cubicles, and we laugh about them.
snippets from 2002
negative impacts
Legal and Compliance went to open plan for
lawyers. It did not work. They said it was not a
quiet enough thinking space. It was a lost
opportunity for collaboration.
.
.
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*.I observe a change envisaged in my university, and it has been a verystrong resistance from researchers who did not wish to question the subtlerelationships within the 'compartmentalized workspace
*One international organization in Geneva that I worked for, changed itsoffice space for its communications department from closed offices to openspace. This occurred after a fire had severely damaged that floor of the
building, so it was likely an opportunistic decision. The nature of the work,
and the preferences of staff, did not seem to figure in to the equation. As a
result, both productivity and morale declined, and resentment grew against
the privileged few who were allowed to keep private offices. Eventually a
cluster pod arrangement was made that went some way towards addressing
the concerns.
and where the jury is still out
*
Our organisation is new, following reforms - brings together people from a
range of legacy organisations as well as lots of people new. The policy is hotdesking which for most of us is a change. Some good points - can sit
somewhere different every day, avoids too many empty desks - some bad
points - have to check in which is an additional task every morning and a
pain when you forget and find your desk has been rebooked.
* I was involved in the planning of a radical move from offices to a brand newopen plan building and to hot desking and team areas in local governmentThere was initially a distrust of the idea, and a Change Management team
was put together to prepare staff for moves. My involvement was primarily
to do with reduction of paper records storage, and people responded well to
invitations to get rid of paper, and to store essential records offsite.
Competitions spring up, and posters described the destruction of papers "
the weight of an elephant" etc to put some fun into an important exercise.
The Change Management Team had a timetable of communications heading
up to the move itself, and this included a programme of hard hat visits to
snippets from 2002
and where the jury is still out
Yes, and its amazing how many reasons people will
come up with as to why the new approach can't
work - all of which disguise the fact that basically
they have learnt to associate space with status and
get very upset when it seems that they are losing
something
The company I worked for some time ago hired new
premises and moved our division there. The
building was far from the centre of the town and
commuting was quite complicated, but people
shared big rooms (the building used to be factory).
The co-operation was quite good but I do think that
the reason was not space and new equipmentt but
the qualities of the vice president. When he left
the company the situation got worse.
Us noisy engineers used to be in a basement being
mostly rowdy and fun. They moved us to a software
area (Dilbert cubicles and silence). Swings and
roundabouts really - harder to collaborate but
easier to focus.
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the new building before it was occupied. Collaboration areas were built into
the space, alongside team desk areas, and meetings rooms were kept to a
minimum for meetings with members of the public, or personnel issues.
Once the move had taken place (just after i left for another role) , I
understand that the number of employees was less than anticipated, so
there was less hot desking than people anticipated, but the informal
meeting areas were popular.
*My organisation has started to move much more toward open plan thanindividual or shared offices. Where the construction of the building allowsinterior walls have been removed and some big open plan areas created.
New buildings are all created as open plan.
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interesting conversations (where)
Q Where do you have your most interesting workconversations?
its about a frame of mind and people as much as location
*Wherever Interesting people are!* I have my most interesting conversations in coffee shops, in bars and on thephone. The phone conversations can be the most radical -as these can
happen at the drop of a hat and stimulated by an idea but they are the
most random and often the most productive - particularly if it is sunny, and
Im sitting in the Garden with a diet Coke.
*These happen in many different places in the office, on sametime/instantmessage, in meetings, on the bus on the way home, via our other socialcollaboration tools.
*The most interesting conversations are undoubtedly those that take placebetween academic community professionals with affinities. Tacit exchangesare particularly rich. But I personally use and transfer these exchanges by
formalizing them for consultants in my office (IHRD). These two spaces are
interactively combined.
*
Both add-hoc coffee machine conversations with people from different
departments which update me on what others are doing but the most
informative conversations are 1 to 1s with my senior team in meeting rooms.
*The number 8 bus from the main station to the end of the line (which is alsothe main building entrance) is generally referred to as the "collaborating
snippets from 2002
The kitchen is good.
Coffee Shop
Around the edges of formal meetings. You grab
someone. You have the important conversations
Through the open door.
In the cafeteria.
Tend to stand on the staircase, or, like here, just
stand in the same place in the corridor and wait for
people to pass me by. Standing still in a
thoroughfare.
Kitchen and flip chart.
Coffee machine
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center", a designation usually bestowed on universities or other partners.
People are able to easily converse about work life as well as life outside of
the office - coming from home, they usually discuss the latter, coming from
work, the former. Perhaps it is the freedom from workplace norms that
leads to interesting work conversations, or simply sitting side by side on a
bus on a journey
*
usually after meetings on way back to desk as something in the meeting
has triggered a conversation. We've also tried "mingle and munch" to
encourage people to talk to one another as they weren't! We've tried this
over lunch and a "coffee morning" style.
* I can meet in the office, at the coffee machine, in the meeting rooms andvia the phone, externally. for me it is not about where I can have meetingsbut I found it more important to want to share knowledge.
* In my office or in my boss's office. That's where we discuss strategic issuesand planning and initiate new ideas which I enjoy.*No one place - could be anywhere but generally I would say that they areface to face conversations rather than phone, VOIP , v/c etc.*Anywhere, at the corridor, on the phone with an overseas colleague, athome with friends over dinner who sparkle work ideas, at a conference
reception (certainly not during a conference presentation!).
*Via MS Lync (instant messenger).* In client offices, usually as part of client internal conferences.
*
I have had very interesting conversations at work that happened very
spontaneous as someone noticed that I was visiting their office and we had a
F2F over coffee, it could be with a colleague that I connect with the first
time via instant messaging and we continue to have a call, at a conference
, on a bush walk with a walking group.. .it can be everywhere.
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real vs. virtual workspace
Q In your experience, can you ever replace real workspacewith virtual workspace? How?
a symbiotic relationship
*Replicate rather than replace Just a few minutes ago, I finished a Webexsession with the UN which had me allocating 30 participants to breakout"rooms" which contained materials and videos. I was able to visit each room
momentarily to check in on progress, spot people raising their hands, share
back the outputs on a group whiteboard, "smiling", "laughing" and get votes
and prioritization from a group representing 20 different countries, beforeconducting an open discussion with everyone. I would go as far as to say
that it was even more productive than the equivalent physical workspace.
*Sometimes you have to. You would never do so by choice, but if you need avirtual team, you need a virtual workspace. How is a huge question - I builtan entire knowledge asset on How to Run Virtual teams, and you could not
condense it down to the back of a postcard. Some of the key things you need
to consider are Team Formation, Team Alignment, Leadership, Work
practices, and Cultural sensitivity.
*
Im writing this sat on a boat in the Laguna in Venice A few tips to
remember: just because an online meeting is not in physical presence does
not mean that normal meeting disciplines do not apply! Remember
objectives, agendas, chairing, breaks etc; add in multi channel (e.g. chat),
make sure everyone is in the same environment (do not mix the two). I
manage 90% virtual.
snippets from 2002
future workspace
Yes well just a simple thing as being able to log on
at home and boom you are at work or at least have
access to all that is needed to work. In the future
even more so with web cams etcI could imagine
some kind of development in a virtual office
concept so when I log on at home everything is the
exact same as the office and it is the same for all
working here.
Also a long the lines of Knowledge management and
intranets, which making working at home the same
as working at the office, also with new technology
the possibility of logging on anywhere in the world
becomes a reality for more people and once it is
incorporated, it will seem natural that we are morevirtual than physical present which again used
correctly releases time for leisure etc. which is
becoming more and more valuable.
My workspace is partly virtual as I am involved in
distant student programme and we communicate
with students by the Internet. My communication
with the department goes partly through Internet
too. I can work with virtual workspace but I miss
the face to face communication from time to time.
The balance between virtual and face to face is
very important by my opinion.
Yes, and given the global nature of the SKA
network it is essential. It works pretty well but we
do also run global conferences, rotating around all
of our key country bases
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workspaces are collaboratively created and inhabited can also be influenced,
often to great effect, generating a sense of ownership, purpose,
commitment, and enthusiasm for the work at hand.
importance of f2f contact
*
No - the richness of conversations, face to face with people, cannot be
replicated by virtual workspaces. The different paths a physical
conversation quickly takes can be very rewarding and the connection you get
interacting with people builds trust and mutual understanding.
*No I think you need a combination - for me, virtual is hard if there is noexisting relationship but very happy to work virtually when I have metpeople face to face - we are hoping to use Office 365 to enable collaborative
working e.g. coauthoring would be more effective here than via email which
we currently overuse.
*
It requires a lot of training to handle dos and donts when video
conferencing. You can of course be forced to have meetings via video
conferencing, but I would prefer in an initial phase of a new relationship to
meet face to face. Video Conferencing requires special good preparation
from the meeting moderator and other participants at the meeting.
* I do liaise with our designated home working colleagues on video and voiceconferences, and we share information, documents etc through intranetworkspaces. However I believe it is preferable to meet people face to face
to make these methods work best. In a global law firm, virtual team working
was often the only way to make any progress, and it was sometimes difficult
to get opinions at those meetings from members of countries where theculture was less assertive when senior managers were involved in a call. Our
library service in my current organisation is 90% online and research
enquiries come in by email or telephone, and this works for the customers
and the service provider.
snippets from 2002
Yes, in some ways. We ran a research special
interest group for the DTI in teleworking. Audio-
conferencing is a fabulous tool if well matched to
the purpose, and well managed. I remember a
closed conference on KICKS, an BT audio-
conferencing system.
There were four of us there and the meetings
worked really well. Partly because of familiarity
with each other, also for familiarity with the
system. We learned some things which are now
enshrined in good practice guidance, and I can tell
you much more about. For example, you need two
chairs for a conference call; a chair to get through
the agenda and a moderator to makes sure
participation is effective. Call it a technical chair
and a participation chair.
You need a 5-minute warm-up, so we used to start
our calls at 5.55. We experimented with longer, but
5 minutes is enough for people to call in, go
through the informalities as you would with a
normal meeting etiquette. And don't have them too
long either. Overall meetings end up shorter,
sharper, better.
You need both. Virtual space needs to be very
welcoming and open, so that it is joinable, not
private, not excluding.
Yes. You need to understand its limitations and
opportunities. If you are writing for the web, you
need to understand language, catchy titles, format,
form and content, when to use poetic license to get
a point across
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*To a large extent I think yes, as long as there is planned F2F meeting/gettogether to feel the personal touch and build personal relationship, to get toknow the person. How? An employee can work anywhere by providing them
with communication technologies at employees finger tips: videoconference,
telepresence, phone call, skype/facetime, online chat, social platform. Of
course, need to agree on work objectives/targets with the employee and
then empower them with the tools to access people/content and to
communicate anytime anywhere.
*No in my experience you can't. I have access to a range of collaborationtools to facilitate virtual working and you can deliver using them but nothingbeats getting folks together face to face to build relationships and to
accelerate delivery. I would always advocate some face:face work for a
team or group that need to work together over the longer term.
*On an occasional basis, but only with social tools and collaborativeworkspaces. The social element needs to come first.*
This is the way I have worked for the last 8 years. It is exciting meeting
people from around the globe. However the opportunity to meet F2F at least
once is extremely valuable. It provides just that extra level of trust that is a
strong foundation. Interacting in a virtual team is very different from
working with your staff/ team members face to face. In a virtual team you
miss out on the spontaneous conversation, It is also provides several
challenges to ensure you are well connected, to ensure you give ample time
to hear teams needs and what is important to the individual as you don't see
them in person on a daily basis.
snippets from 2002
Its no coincidence that Ann and I are linguists and
think a lot about language. Also important to have
playfulness. I wrote something headed up
`knowledge workers of the world unite' recently
and followed it with a smiley face so people knew I
was being playful. That kind of thing.
No, only partially. It's a serial monologue (email).
You can't avoid the real workplace. You need to be
able to `objectify' things, to visualise, to be able to
touch things. That is the way new ideas come up.
Partly. It does improve comms. Chat, for example,
is well used by compliance (less so by lawyers).
Avistar*, desktop conferencing, is particularly good.
It stops the `pissing match' of hierarchies about
who has to go to whose office.
Yes, no problem at all. Often better creativity as a
result of more virtual collaboration.
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appendices & bibliography
Though a piece of research conducted and funded byknowledge et al (www.knowledgeetal.com) it felt right to
publish this as a Sparknow document in recognition of the
original design thinking around postcards and space that have
been a consistent part of Sparknows Knowledge Management
work since its formation in 1997.
why space matters
I was recently asked by a new business focused website to write a thought pieceon this. The Wall St Journal, Marrisa Mayar of Yahoo and a conversation with
Professor Clive Holtham of Cass Business School were the genesis for why space
mattershttp://www.findtheedge.co.uk/innovation/managing-creativity/why-
space-matters-for-collaboration-innovation-and-knowledge-transfer in which I
discuss the concept ofOrchestrated Serendipity.
postcards as a stimulus for conversation
Slow Knowledge: uses of the postcard in re-forming organisational time, place
and meaning: 'In search of time' conference, Palermo, May 2003 Stephanie
Colton, Angela Dove, Victoria Ward*, Clive Holtham,
NB Victoria Ward will be examining how postcards can be used in futures
forecasting in a paper to be published jointly with Andrew Curry of the
Futures Company in August 2013.
Method
Since the theme of this years event is around
collaboration, the use of social media and virtual
working Leah and I thought it would be good to
recognise the anniversary of KMUK by looking back a
decade and decided to resurrect a postcard exerciseabout workspace run at KM Europes last visit to the
UK in 2002 and compare and contrast the outcomes.
Here is a the front page and a first page response
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probably the best coffee in the World
Originally the Information Technology department was located in traditional
offices with corridors and individual offices and had very little in the way of
communal meeting spaces either formal or informal. It became apparent to the
department that this was not conducive to collaborative working or the
exchange of knowledge and information. The senior management and expertisewas hidden away in their cells and there was no way of bringing together large
project teams which was becoming a real necessity.
An opportunity arose for the department to move to a new space which they
accepted and it was decided that an open office concept would be embraced.
The refurbishment was duly completed and the division moved in to what was a
completely open plan space.
This was partly successful in that it did allow large project teams to work
together and collaborate. However, it quickly became clear that there were
major problems with the lay out and not just because the senior management,
in particular, found it a major culture shock. There was a lack of meeting rooms
and private spaces which meant that there was a noise problem and specifically
tele-conferencing became almost impossible. It also meant that there was
nowhere to go to have smaller enclosed meetings which resulted in one manager
having to carry out an appraisal with a colleague in his car in the basement car
park ! Air conditioning and heating also turned out to be a problem in such a
large open space since those on the outside of the space were getting a
different climate to those in the middle. All these problems were exacerbated
by overcrowding when a separate group of employees were temporarily
relocated to this space. However, as a result, .and the IT operating company
lobbied for and were given permission to seek new premises again, albeit that
any refurbishment costs would come directly from their own budget.
This is taken from an interview conducted by a
member of the Sparknow team with a prominent IT
professional.
The idea of using a postcard as an object for
stimulating conversations and inspiration should beattributed to Victoria Ward,
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Search commenced in April 2000 and in July, a building in central Den Haag was
identified of which they wanted three floors. The whole building then also
became of interest to the .. Group at which point the Group Facilitation
management wanted to have some input. and his relocation team persuaded
facilities that their need was immediate and that they had some specific needs
that they wanted to incorporate into their refurbishment programme, which
was, after all, coming out of their budget.
The relocation team worked in close partnership with the groups external
architects to work on a brief for the ideal lay out and design that would
encourage collaborative working throughout the operating company despite the
not inconsiderable difficulty of being spread on 3 floors.
Work commenced in December and was completed in June 2001 and the finished
space includes
*A large informal lounge space on the middle floor. To ensure that peoplewere attracted to this space, from there respective lower and upper floors,Bram and his team invested in the best coffee machine in the world
around which there are various comfortable and informal seating
arrangements. This was an immediate success and is used constantly for a
variety of meetings both informal and more formal, as well as for the
occasional big event or celebration. It is an environment that clearly
encourages debate, conversation and collaboration amongst the whole
operating company by providing an open, informal space as a focal
destination point.
*
The remainder of the space on this floor is taken up with different sized
meeting rooms (including tele-conferencing facilities ) which are bookable inadvance.
*The lower and upper floors are given over largely to open plan offices,
albeit with clever glass partitions with integral white boards to maintain a
feeling of openness whilst reducing noise and climate control problems.
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There are also designated hot desking areas on these floors for visiting
workers from which they can access their own computers via portables.
Initially, the use of space and investment in luxuries was criticized by some
outside the operating company, as being wasteful. However experience has
shown that the reverse is the case with real and valuable knowledge sharing and
collaboration being fostered by the space.
It was a considerable investment risk for the operating company but now they
have more staff concentrated into a smaller area (square meters) than their
original arrangements.
One unforeseen drawback was that their coffee is so good that when the other
floors were completed and other group companies moved in, people from these
other divisions would feel free to use their space and drink their coffee, so a
swipe access card system was introduced for the lounge. Again this caused some
consternation but Bram pointed out that the cost came out of IT operating
budget and that if outsiders wanted to use it they could, but at a unit cost per
person.
They have now invested in a juke box for the lounge area to be used at certain
times.
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about the author
I help people and businesses to realise their potential: as anAdvisor; business manager; coach; facilitator; and project
director.I have a broad global experience working at all levels across a range of
industries: energy, finance, development, government, information, knowledge
management, retail and software.
To contact me:
Skype: corneyp I twitter: pauljcorney
Office + 44 (0) 1323 728287
Mobile +44 (0) 777 6085857
www.knowledgeetal.com
My early background was financial yet eclectic: I
spent 25 years in the City as Senior Manager at
Saudi International Bank and as a Vice President at
Zurich Reinsurance.
Since 1998 Ive run a portfolio of activities: Strategy
& Business Advisor to the CEO of a software and
consultancy group Sopheon PLC; Information &
Knowledge Advisor to the CEO of a leading
reinsurance broker BMS Group; and Managing
Partner Sparknow LLP.
An early pioneer of intranets in the mid 90s and one
of the first knowledge managers in the City of
London Ive led many challenging assignments,
often cross culture, and frequently cross continent.
I was a visiting lecturer on knowledge and
information management at London Metropolitan
University and have published numerous articles the
most recent of which is featured in Making
Knowledge Management Work for Your Organizationpublished by Ark Group in 2012. I speak at and
chair international events. In 2013 I am again
chairing KMUK, running a masterclass on knowledge
capture and retention and helping the health
industry in Sudan to share knowledge.
Diplomacy intrigues me. I am a member of the Royal
Institute for International Affairs (Chatham House)
and the Institute of Directors. Ive been the
Chairman of Pyecombe Golf Club and the Manager
ofHassocks Football Club both of which taught me
the need for effective engagement.
Since stepping back from the role of Managing
Partner in the fall of 2012 Ive combined business
(leading km practice at Sparknow) with pleasure
(helping to get a charitable initiative off the ground
in Sussex and advising and mentoring a local
business through the early stages of its
development).