Margaret Latshaw, Beth Harmon‐Vaughan and Bob Radford
With corporations reinventing and changing themselves with increasing frequency and speed, what is the real estate industry doing to enable that change? This paper presents the…
Abstract
With corporations reinventing and changing themselves with increasing frequency and speed, what is the real estate industry doing to enable that change? This paper presents the perspectives of a corporate tenant, a developer and an interior designer to answer the question of what some companies are doing to make workspace more flexible and to shorten the cycle time for the processes by which workspace is constructed, procured and fitted‐out for new occupancy. The following questions will be answered ‐ In the low vacancy market prevalent in so many parts of the United States, what strategies are corporate real estate executives in high‐growth companies using to acquire space fast? ‐ What trends are emerging in the industry to streamline the processes to build, acquire, fit‐out and manage space? ‐ How is the industry changing its product to ensure that the space that is delivered can meet a variety of users and uses as occupants churn through the space in unforeseen ways?
Details
Keywords
This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/02632770010349646. When citing the…
Abstract
This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/02632770010349646. When citing the article, please cite: Franklin Becker, (2000), “Integrated portfolio strategies for dynamic organizations”, Facilities, Vol. 18 Iss: 10/11/12, pp. 411 - 420.
Organisations face unprecedented pressures to do more, and better, with less. To prosper, organisations must reduce capital and operating costs and increase flexibility and…
Abstract
Organisations face unprecedented pressures to do more, and better, with less. To prosper, organisations must reduce capital and operating costs and increase flexibility and adaptability, while creating a workplace that helps attract and retain the highest quality of staff and enables them to work to their fullest potential. This paper reports on a recent study of how different types of office solutions, from closed offices and cubicles to team‐oriented bullpens, influence communication patterns, and how these, in turn, affect work effectiveness factors such as decision speed, organisational learning and the building of trust. The findings suggest that, contrary to conventional wisdom, more open team‐oriented environments support work effectiveness of individuals and teams better than do more closed environments such as cubicles. They do this while reducing cost and increasing flexibility. Implications for office planning and design are discussed.
Details
Keywords
Franklin Becker and Arthur Pearce
As large organisations grow and evolve, they face the challenge of accommodating change in a manner that contains costs while strengthening the firm’s competitive position in the…
Abstract
As large organisations grow and evolve, they face the challenge of accommodating change in a manner that contains costs while strengthening the firm’s competitive position in the marketplace. Invariably, not only initial capital and long‐term operating costs, but the effect of the real estate decision on the firm’s ability to attract and retain staff, and their ability to work productively, must be considered. To compound an already complex decision, the factors influencing such decisions are often highly uncertain and there are limited data on the impact of such decisions on human resource factors. Yet such decisions must be and are made. This paper describes the Cornell Balanced Real Estate Assessment model (COBRA©), a prototype tool which addresses these issues.
Details
Keywords
Points out that though the planning, design and management ofbuildings has always happened, the deliberate, conscious, plannedpractise as part of organisational design and…
Abstract
Points out that though the planning, design and management of buildings has always happened, the deliberate, conscious, planned practise as part of organisational design and development is relatively new, and growing. Defines a model of the changing facilities organisation as loose, tight and elastic fit. Explains the changing role of facilities management (FM) and of the facilities manager. Anticipates the future of FM as essential to the strategic planning of a corporation.
Details
Keywords
Reports on research organized around the theme “managingspace efficiently”, intended to respond to factors that weretransforming facilities management into a major issue in many…
Abstract
Reports on research organized around the theme “managing space efficiently”, intended to respond to factors that were transforming facilities management into a major issue in many large organizations. Investigates how different types of facilities innovation affect organizational performance, and how to understand the nature of organizational and technological change required effectively to support facilities operations. Uses a comparative case study approach and collects data on topics from 16 countries.
Details
Keywords
Over the last ten years interest in and implementation of different forms of alternative officing (AO) have increased dramatically. AO has, in fact, become simply another tool in…
Abstract
Over the last ten years interest in and implementation of different forms of alternative officing (AO) have increased dramatically. AO has, in fact, become simply another tool in the real estate and FM space planning and design toolkit. This paper briefly describes different types of AO, and then suggests that AO, which has primarily responded to corporate drives to reduce costs, should broaden its focus to explore alternative ways of constructing and procuring space in response to a different organisational change: namely, to be able to occupy space on‐demand. The article describes the concept of a lean portfolio that helps organisations manage uncertainty better through infrastructure on‐demand; and proposes a research agenda for systematically examining different alternative workplace strategies (AWS).
Details
Keywords
It is ironic, but even today we often have more information available about the relative merits of different cars or copiers costing a few thousand pounds than we have about…
Abstract
It is ironic, but even today we often have more information available about the relative merits of different cars or copiers costing a few thousand pounds than we have about buildings costing ten or a hundred times as much. Yet buildings are really only ‘products’ writ large, purchased or leased by firms for specific purposes. They are tools of the trade, meant to help get a job done.
Companies large and small, in every industry, face a common challenge: do more, better, with less. The organisational problems to be solved, while meeting this kind of corporate…
Abstract
Companies large and small, in every industry, face a common challenge: do more, better, with less. The organisational problems to be solved, while meeting this kind of corporate mandate, are also widely shared: attract and retain high quality employees; strengthen brand identity; increase flexibility in the face of highly uncertain market conditions and new technologies; assimilate mergers and acquisitions; accommodate frequent changes in group and team size and structure. This paper describes findings from research that examined the workplace strategies of independent small startup initiatives, as well as those initiated inside large corporations. The findings suggest that it is possible to identify aspects of overall workplace planning and design that reduce costs and increase flexibility while maintaining or enhancing organisational effectiveness.
Details
Keywords
Franklin Becker, William Sims and Johanna H. Schoss
Corporate campuses have been justified on many grounds, including lower operational costs, greater flexibility, stronger corporate branding and enhanced cross‐functional…
Abstract
Corporate campuses have been justified on many grounds, including lower operational costs, greater flexibility, stronger corporate branding and enhanced cross‐functional communication. Despite the tens of millions of dollars spent to acquire and develop them, little research exists that has systematically tested the validity of the benefits attributed to a corporate campus. This paper reports on an initial set of case studies examining one potential benefit of a corporate campus: the nature and extent of communication across organisational units. The results suggest that the amount of cross‐unit communication on a corporate campus may be less than expected. Implications for workplace and collocation strategies are discussed.