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Category Archive for: "Business Strategy"

When a Slide is More than a Slide

I work with a variety of companies, helping them negotiate the changing physical landscape of today’s workspace. With my more conservative clients, it is almost predictable that at some point in the process someone will bring up the slide at Google’s offices. It is something that they use to illustrate the excesses of the new “play at work” landscape, something that is a perfect illustration of dumb design trends and definitely something that they do not want. No slides. This week I had the opportunity to talk to a senior level Googler and asked, ” so, what is with the […]

More Flies with Honey than Vinegar

I have seen a number of interesting discussions debating employee freedom vs the importance of building an office culture through proximity. What bothers me about that is the “vs” part….why not both? The basic assumption of the “vs” argument is that if you want proximity you have to force it and that just isn’t true. Retail and Hospitality have long used the physical space and programming to draw people to them. As the freedom of choosing when and where to work moves from employer to employee, the design of offices need to focus on providing the amenities, look, and feel […]

Yet another post about The Yahoo Event

Everyone is all a buzz with the news of Yahoo’s HR head Marissa Mayer telling all of their telework employees to return to the office or find another job. The Yahoo Event, as I like to call it after all of the attention it has gotten, is quite likely primarily a management issue and not a commentary on the entire history and future of working remotely. The pundits are all over the place with their opinions on whether this is the end of an era or a huge mistake, but sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. In the best performing […]