If innovation is the Golden Egg, a well-designed
workplace is the Golden Goose
INNOVATION
AT WORK
BY BRIAN J. BARTH
For many people, “work” unfortunately is not a word with which they make
positive associations. Being confined to an 8- by 8-foot cubicle under the glare
of fluorescent lights, performing some rote task over and over, is not anybody’s
idea of a good time. And, being subjected to that reality day after day, year after
year can lead to a host of health problems, both physical and psychological.
It also doesn’t make for very productive or dedicated employees.
One blessing of the explosion of technology-based firms in recent years is a
recognition that long-term profitability is strongly correlated to innovation,
not just employee efficiency. Holistic, creative thinking underpins not just
“disruptive” new technologies, but improved ways of accomplishing almost
any task.
Thinking outside the box is hard to do when you’re in an ugly cubicle, however.
Which is why forward-thinking corporations are increasingly looking to
transform the workplace into the proverbial “happy place” for their employees.
Employee coffee shops, comfortable sofas, video games, beer on tap—
nothing is off limits in workplaces where feeling good is embraced as the fuel
for success.
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Y “Office design should not only inspire innovation,
but the workplace should be the innovation.”
