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Transforming a decades-old workplace to support a multigenerational workforce for years to come: A case study
Corporate Real Estate Journal,
8
(1),
65-83
(2018)
Abstract
A well-respected and traditional Chicago-based investment bank and asset management company expands well beyond its Midwestern roots to serve a growing clientele of high-net-worth individuals and institutions across the US, Europe and Asia. Assessing its future, the company’s managers embrace a sweeping strategy to build a towering new headquarters that will cater not just to its growing client base but also its five generations of employees. Through a six-year process of thorough and innovative surveys, testing and design, William Blair & Company arrived at an award-winning office structure that has boosted its business footprint, employee culture and civic presence. Those leading the project say that internal communications and continuing measurement of the work environment, tools and changing needs of employees and clients are key to success.
Keywords: workplace; communications; mobile; data; testing; environment; open floor plan; workplace survey; measurable data
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Erin Murray Butler is the head of workplace and real estate management at William Blair & Company. Since 2008, she has managed the global real estate, facilities, IT support, security, travel and office services for the company worldwide. During her tenure, she has overseen the company’s expansion to new offices in the US, Europe and Asia. Most recently, Erin led the development of the company’s new global headquarters in the William Blair Building at 150 North Riverside in Chicago. During the six-year project, she launched a site search, managed lease negotiations and engaged firm business leaders to plan for continued growth. Before William Blair, she held positions with Marsh McLennan Real Estate Advisors, Inc. Prior to that, she was the director of administration for the Next Door Foundation of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Erin holds a BS in political science and international studies from the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse.
Holly Jeffers is a workplace strategist with IA Interior Architects based in Chicago. Starting out as an interior designer in 2003, Holly developed a passion for gathering data to support problem-solving and maximum efficiencies for her clients, which have included William Blair, Jet Aviation and Amica Insurance. Through each project, she is a steward for strategy from the initial concept to managing the change of the workplace, documenting and tracking the process along the way. Holly graduated from the Illinois Institute of Art with a BFA in interior design.
