Ennead Partner, Peter Schubert, FAIA,
authored an article “To Fix the Office, Go Back to College” published
in Commercial Observer,
which discusses how office environments can take cues from academia to create
spaces that encourage communication, collaboration, and camaraderie, and
ultimately make the post-pandemic office a place more workers
want to be.
From recruitment to productivity, he details the
benefits of a curated, campus-like office environment, noting the
importance of offering a variety of space types and of programming those to
support active learning, as happens in educational facilities. He
explains, “Physical space alone isn’t the answer, and this is a place
where most offices fall short. University spaces are deeply programmed, with
orchestrated community learning events and curated thought opportunities
available at all times of day. This kind of curation can’t be replicated at
home, and when coupled with well-designed, diverse physical spaces, can help
achieve the type of innovation we experienced on campus.”
To read more about taking the
office back to school, find the full article here.