Influencing Organizational Culture Through Office Design
“I must be on the wrong floor.” When I walked into the new Vancouver office of Miller Thomson LLP, I thought I’d pressed the wrong elevator button and ended up in a high tech firm. Two receptionists were perched on barstools at a circular, high-top station, rather than behind a long desk. I could see past them into an open-office area where lawyers and staff were working side by side. The whole floor was filled with sunlight. To my relief, I spied the wall of bound legal texts and realized that I had indeed arrived at my destination.
Office design speaks volumes about firm culture and brand.
Employees, clients, business colleagues and anyone else visiting an office will interpret the signals sent by its design as indicators of firm culture. The symbolism isn’t much different from a dress code or logo.
Some spaces seem rigid and uninviting. Some make people feel comfortable the moment they arrive. And others, still, challenge notions of identity and image traditionally associated with a profession.
According to branding experts and business professors Majken Schultz and Mary Jo Hatch, “the added value of symbolism rests on a brand’s ability to create or avail itself of a common understanding among stakeholders and the opportunity it gives individuals to participate in sustaining or changing that understanding….it translates to economic value when stakeholders support the company because of the meaning the brand conveys.”
I hadn’t visited the previous Miller Thomson office, so I asked its managing partner, Mike Walker and his fellow partner, Karen Dickson, what they intended to achieve with the new design and how it is actually being used now that they’ve moved in.
Were you worried that lawyers would insist on having a traditional office? How do you accommodate different work styles?
Dickson: We tried to create options. More than 30 lawyers opted for offices. Everyone else opted for the open-space concept. We have different seating areas where people can take their laptops or phones. There are banquettes for people who’d like to have coffee and sit across from each other, an atrium that provides natural light and a “forum” space that is popular for reading and traditional desks.
What about privacy? There is a lot of open space and the common gathering spot seems to be in the middle of the floor plan.
Dickson: Glassed-in “quiet spaces” with doors are interspersed throughout the office. When we need to call someone or have a confidential conversation, we usually use those.
How does so much open space foster employee engagement?
Dickson: We wanted to reduce silos between people and practice areas. We also wanted to improve internal communication generally by getting lawyers out of their offices. People see each other more often now; the increase in transparency is literal, figurative and tangible.
Does the design relate to a firm-wide strategy?
Dickson: This type of design makes sense on the west coast. It fits the clientele of our office here and the way we work. That said, a lot of visitors from our other offices see the value in it. It’s also nice to see associates have opportunities to learn from partners just through the casual conversations that seem to happen more often now.
Walker: A lot of our clients are information workers. We visited their offices and tried to learn what worked for them and what was happening in their sectors. Innovation in firm culture or strategy doesn’t come naturally to a lot of lawyers; we had to find a way to innovate rapidly, because – let’s be honest – the pace of change in the practice of law is demanding that we get with the program sooner rather than later. We wanted clients, lawyers and staff to receive a clear signal that our firm is open to change and open to trying something different.
As I left the office, I was reminded of organizational psychologist Ron Friedman’s recommendations to increase employee engagement: “provide opportunities for people to experience autonomy, competence and relatedness on a daily basis. Autonomy can be grown by providing options on where to do their work…[competence can be fostered by creating] a workplace that provides them with immediate feedback…and [relatedness can be supported by] creating communal workspaces that allow coworkers to bond.”
Open office design rarely pleases everyone. Background noise distracts. Clients worry about privacy. Extroverts feel judged and introverts feel irritated. I suspect that more law firms take the opportunity to move in this direction, though, despite resistance. It is encouraging to see the change.
(Full disclosure for the record: I do not consult to Miller Thomson.)
The headline to this post certainly got my attention which then turned to Silicon Valley. The following two articles came to mind: “Over and Above: Studio O+A Designs HQ For Uber” Interior Design, October 27, 2014; and Mike Isaac, “Inside Uber’s Aggressive, Unrestrained Workplace Culture” New York Times, February 22, 2017.
The first article from Interior Design states: “The brand is sexy and mysterious on the outside but totally transparent inside”. Further, “Kalanick insisted, right from the outset, on design, design, design—to play to the 700 employees as much as to visitors.”
The second piece from the New York Times describes the recruiting and culture as: “‘When new employees join Uber, they are asked to subscribe to 14 core company values, including making bold bets, being ‘obsessed’ with the customer, and ‘always be hustlin’.’ The ride-hailing service particularly emphasizes ‘meritocracy,’ the idea that the best and brightest will rise to the top based on their efforts, even if it means stepping on toes to get there.” The story that unfolded was one of an extremely toxic culture.
Looking at the above statements and descriptions leaves me to wonder whether design really does influence culture. Does this notion of design influencing culture require further study and reflection? Or is there evidence that design really does influence culture and it’s not just about trend and being stylish at the altar of innovation.