october 2015 BCBusiness 29 illustratioNs: victoria park
Tear Down Those Walls
D - I - Y M a n a g e m e n t
how do you get employee buy-in for a move from a traditional to open-plan office? we asked
tracie crook,
coo of Mccarthy tétrault llp, which is moving to a more open arrangement,
and omicron's director of design operations alan hancock, who regularly helps
his clients transition to open plan environments by Felicity Stone
appoint chanGe chaMpions
"Sometimes the most vocal opponent
can become the biggest supporter
of the change if they understand the
reasons behind it," says Hancock. At
McCarthy Tétrault, a move commit-
tee helped make the decisions then
explained them to their colleagues
one-on-one and got their feedback.
"We also had them visit the construc-
tion space," says Crook. "We really
brought them along on the journey
to say, 'You're part of this—is there
anything that you're seeing along the
way that concerns you?'"
GiVe soMethinG BacK
Let sta£ know that the move is not just about
reducing space and saving money but about
making the space function better for them,
says Hancock. Make sure there are fun spaces
for sta£ to collaborate and destress, and add
more functional meeting spaces. Provide tech-
nolo¨y that allows sta£ to work in a space most
suited to the task and consider teleworking for
some sta£ where appropriate. "Things like that
can really help the transition to open plan."
try BeFore you Buy
McCarthy Tétrault brought
in samples of furniture and
equipment for sta£ to try out
and vote on. "This was the ˜rst
time we were giving our people
choice in what technolo¨y they
would like to work with," says
Crook. "So they were really
engaged in the process and
making a selection versus us
telling them, 'Here's exactly
what you get.' I think all of us
like to have our voices heard
versus being told what we're
going to be provided."
BeGin the conVersation
A year before starting to build, "we
started with a workplace study pro-
gram," says Crook. "We met with a
number of individuals across the ˜rm
to ˜nd out how they work today, how
they want to work in the future—and
then that was the building block for
our new space." But be prepared to
act upon employees' feedback, says
Hancock. "If sta£ are being consulted
but then they see nothing that they
requested implemented, then that
can create some discontent."
Keep taLKinG
"I think the worst thing for people
is when there's no communication
because it's the unknown," says Crook.
"They don't know what they're moving
into." McCarthy Tétrault brought in their
designer to present various possibilities;
they also explained the reasons for the
move and its progress via a regular news-
letter, in town halls and on an intranet
site with articles and photographs show-
ing the latest developments.
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