Posts Tagged ‘collaboration’
June 7th, 2010 in Design No Comments
Gone are the workplace concepts of the 1970′s. Floor plan designs created isolating and non-stimulating environments. Physical barriers of cubicle design, circulation patterns, and the lack of daylight views for most employees blend together to inhibit collaboration and inspiration.
Teams are therefore slower complete tasks, thus affecting team, and individual results.
Workplaces also must be reinvented to accommodate new technologies, beyond just the impact of wireless technology. New hardware and software is causing workers to think and behave differently, and therefore, accomplish daily tasks in a new way. (more…)
March 10th, 2008 in Technology No Comments
Companies are turning to video technology to improve internal training and collaboration, and to expand external marketing programs. Examples in this article range from businesses that post internally created videos on YouTube and other social networking sites to large companies like manufacturer Rohn and Haas Company that has launched its own video site – called Prime Time – to provide its 15,000 employees access to training videos and a wide variety of topics supplied by their peers, while reducing travel and its attendant productivity costs.
Rohn’s videos are created and run using the Studio hosted webcasting service from Interactive Video Technologies, Inc. The Studio tools “combine and synchronize audio and video, PowerPoint presentations and screen captures” with “one-click publishing” on the desktop and track the use of those videos once they are made.
This article talks about the video efforts and sites of a number of companies, all of which are launching videos to take advantage of the massive increase in traffic to video sites over the past few years – one survey found 48% of Internet users visited a video sharing site in 2007. The article also provides production and marketing tips.
With free video distribution on sites like YouTube and lower production costs — people don’t expect high production quality on these sites — even smaller companies are finding that the return on investment from video marketing is 10 times higher than the return from printed advertising.
Source: Heather Havenstein, Computerworld (Framingham); Mar 10, 2008
April 2nd, 2007 in Office Management No Comments
This article declares that even the most consensus-oriented manager must be ready to use dictatorial powers when a collaborative approach is neither appropriate nor desirable. This is particularly true when defending or maintaining collaborative cultures, which are especially fragile when new or when part of a strongly hierarchical organization.
The author lists common types of behavior that need to be addressed in this fashion, including personal attacks and unprofessional, unethical or illegal behavior. He also discusses four basic approaches to take depending on the urgency and severity of the situation.
Source: Paul Glen, Computerworld; Apr 2, 2007
May 24th, 2006 in Design No Comments
This article explores the cutting-edge office design adopted by SCA, a Swedish paper products manufacturer which has its American headquarters in Philadelphia. Acknowledging the fact that “work environment can have a direct impact on productivity and the level of energy, enthusiasm, and creativity,” SCA’s VP of Human Resources requested a new office design from their design firm that was, above all else, “inclusive and team-oriented,” with “everyone treated in a similar way.”
Daylight permeates the new interior of SCA’s offices thanks to glass walls and low panel heights, promoting the transparency in business dealings which SCA values. A central elliptical staircase ties all three floors together, while workstations and office furniture are visibly consistent to avoid any sense of hierarchy. The private offices necessary for several departments were made slightly smaller to save floor space for collaborative group areas. Meeting spaces range from formal to informal, with the most notable placed at each landing of the central staircase.
Another company priority is to make employees feel comfortable. Natural elements like wood flooring, in-floor planters, water features and ample daylighting were incorporated and green building certification was achieved.
The office design elements received rave reviews from employees, who have taken to coming in earlier, leaving later and working more energetically while at work.
Source: Sofia Galadza, Contract (San Francisco); May, 2006
