by Brianna Crandall — December 1, 2014—Researchers from Haworth Inc., mindSHIFT and Balfour Beatty Construction have launched an interdisciplinary book that they say changes the conversation about the true conditions of the workplace. According to the partners, recent studies have exposed some “scary and dangerous” realities about the workplace:
- More than 70 percent of the workforce either hates their job or they are just going through the motions; and
- Over half of all office space is wasted.
These realities are partly caused by the fact that today’s workplace detaches and isolates people with industrial era management ideas attempting to force productivity, say the authors. Profound disengagement and soaring chronic health issues result. It is understandable that people do not want to go to the office — they do not think of it as a place of significant or rewarding achievement, conclude the partners.
Haworth, Inc.’s global marketing and innovation leader, Mabel Casey; Rex Miller, principal and thought leader for mindSHIFT; and Mark Konchar, Chief of Enterprise Development for Balfour Beatty Construction wanted to investigate these issues and search for answers. What could help stop the killing of collaboration and creativity? By researching companies with highly engaged cultures, they discovered strategies and tools that can turn the workplace into a landscape of innovation. The book, Change Your Space, Change Your Culture, is the result.
To further set the stage: the authors say it is common knowledge that corporate survival rates are falling; the average lifespan for an S&P 500 firm is down to 12 years. Return-on-assets continues to plummet and is now close to zero. Reportedly less than 3 out of 10 change initiatives succeed. “Innovation has left the building,” they conclude.
The partners assert that it is also commonly accepted that employee engagement is the key to innovation; workers must care about the job at hand. So how does business change a culture of “dreariness and disconnection,” leading to places of creativity, resiliency and growth? The authors learned that the answer has been hiding in plain sight — that office space itself can be the portal of significant change. Months of original research and fieldwork all led to the breakthrough insight that businesses must redesign the spaces where “old and dangerous habits” live.
Change Your Space, Change Your Culture: How Engaging Workspaces Lead to Transformation and Growth is a guide to transforming business by rethinking the workplace. This insightful guide reveals what companies lose by viewing office space as something to manage or minimize. With practical tips and implementation details, the book helps the reader see that the workspace is, in fact, a crucial driver of productivity and morale.
A Kindle edition of this thought-provoking book for those who design and manage workspaces is also available on Amazon.
