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What could work for future workplaces, beyond working?
Corporate Real Estate Journal,
7
(4),
352-368
(2018)
Abstract
Workplace is changing. It is no longer just about working; it is about living. Bold initiatives by visionary business leaders have shown us the power of transformation that the workplace has over otherwise staid businesses drifting along with the status quo, while their competitors act to overtake them. The fact that over 40 per cent of the Fortune 100 companies from 15 years ago no longer exist is testament to this ‘adapt or die’ reality. This paper analyses the changing dynamics and identifies drivers, needs, challenges, and indicates solutions. The collective goal of this paper is to kick-start fresh thinking within organisations as to how their workplace programmes can offer high value to the businesses they serve. It raises a call for a new generation of thought leaders able to identify new roads to success through integration of a creative mix of new and expanded disciplines, far beyond the current scope normally associated with physical workplace solutions. To do this successfully businesses need a laser-like focus on the challenges, and new leaders need to break traditional barriers to reach the most valuable solutions. In a sense the nature of change to which we aspire moves this work well beyond a workplace context … but to ignore the obvious catalytic qualities of the workplace to engender creativity, create a common sense of purpose and develop specific deliverables through a project-derived momentum would be to miss a great opportunity. The current authors are therefore enthusiastic about continuing their search for a new generation of business improvement hosted under a workplace banner.
Keywords: workplace; future-thinking; transformation; real estate; leadership; multidisciplinary
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Christopher Hood trained and qualified as an architect. He has often moved outside his formal training, and certainly outside ‘the box’, in order to seek bold, innovative solutions in the field of corporate real estate (CRE). Chris has written numerous articles and books, presented papers at major events, holds a US patent for furniture design, is a past winner of the Corenet Global Innovation Award for his pioneering work on sensor technology and is active in several leading industry thought-leadership and advisory groups. Following a 30-year career at HP and five years at CBRE, he is now a Director at Advanced Workplace Associates, a high quality advisory group specialising in helping organisations through the process of workplace change. Chris attributes his broad international experience (he has completed projects in over 24 countries) as the driving force behind his current thoughts about the next generation of workplace; broad, multidisciplinary integration drawing in exciting new disciplines and areas of research never previously connected to workplace design.
Anupam Nanda is Professor of Urban Economics and Real Estate, Academic Director of the Centre for Intelligent Places and Director of the MSc Real Estate Finance programme at the Henley Business School, University of Reading, UK. Previously, Anupam worked with the market intelligence group of Deloitte & Touche in Mumbai (April 2008–November 2009), where his focus areas covered real estate and private equity sectors. He was at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) in Washington DC (April 2006–April 2008), as Senior Research Economist, where his responsibilities included developing and implementing housing market research studies and was a member of the team forecasting state and metro area housing markets in the US. Anupam has also taught undergraduate Economics and Public Finance at the University of Connecticut. His academic papers have been published in several top international journals, eg Journal of Urban Economics, Energy Economics, Regional Studies, Energy Policy, Real Estate Economics, Applied Linguistics, Review of International Economics, World Economy, Journal of Real Estate Research, Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, etc. His works have been sponsored by both UK and international public and private funding bodies and companies, eg Innovate UK, Real Estate Research Institute (RERI) in the US, UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, UK Dept of Energy and Climate Change, Investment Property Forum (IPF), The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), etc.
