CREJ

/ BUILDING DIALOGUE / DECEMBER 2016

Sovos Compliance: Market Nuance, National Standards

Kimberly MacArthur Graham

oston-based Sovos Compliance, with eight offices on

three continents, made its first foray into the Colorado

market in 2015 with its acquisition of ShipCompliant

in Boulder. Part of integrating operations meant integrating

staff and company cultures. With an international footprint,

a defined brand and stringent standards for information se-

curity, Sovos has learned the importance of creating offices

that incorporate nuances of the local market. By recognizing

the character of a place – and the people who work there –

these spaces support employee productivity and retention

and enhance the Sovos brand.

The Experts:

Laura Handler,

Chief of Staff – Sovos Compliance

Kelly Hobson,

Project Manager – Catalyst Planning Group

Megan Walsh, LEED AP BD+C,

Principal – Catalyst Planning Group

Question: Sovos has a geographically diverse real estate

portfolio. What are some of the ways that managing real

estate globally is different from managing a portfolio here in

Colorado?

Laura Handler:

At its core, I don’t know that the challenges of

managing facilities around the globe are

that different from managing a local or

Colorado-based operation. We’re still fo-

cused on what our employees need, how

we keep them engaged and productive.

How is the environment supporting them

and inspiring them? And how do we can

manage that environment efficiently and

effectively, while being compliant with local

codes and our corporate requirements?

Geographic nuances come into play across time zones

and on different continents. We have eight offices on three

continents and, often, we take a slightly different approach

because of the way the local market is structured. But real-

ly it’s about supporting all our employees across those eight

offices.

Q: Sovos is working now to develop global office standards.

How are you planning to create efficiency and consistency in

your portfolio with these standards?

LH:

For each location, we get to know the local market and

try to incorporate some customization for each site. The glob-

al standards we are developing maintain consistency and ef-

ficiency, but along with global scale, there needs to be local

customization. Plus, what you do with a

permitting agency in Boston is different

from in Boulder. So we partner locally to

learn the market, and we extrapolate what

we would do globally. It’s a balancing act,

like anything else.

Megan Walsh:

You’re developing a baseline

or a kit of parts, but incorporating market

nuances that speak to the local geography

and the employees.

Q: You want people traveling the globe to know it’s a Sovos

office. How do you create that consistency without making the

offices feel cookie-cutter?

Kelly Hobson:

Each office has a different feel, but you know

when you walk in that it’s a Sovos office.

Our projects build on existing design el-

ements, but we maintain levels of con-

sistency with things like signage and IT

infrastructure. You can’t get absolute con-

sistency, but the way each office and each

employee is treated – that’s always the same.

LH:

Good point. We also have to maintain

absolute information security in all our of-

fices. We have the same high standards, but

the way we implement them may vary, based on the local

market. But it is paramount that we keep our data secure, so

the overall intent and compliance level has to be the same

across all locations.

MW:

By developing standards, you leverage efficiencies

and economies of scale across your procurement strategy.

Then, as you acquire and optimize, you also start to have

standard inventories and protocols on site. Some of these

overall consistencies are tangible, like branding, furnishings

or wayfinding, and some are intangible, like security and IT.

By applying “market alignment,” you find culturally appro-

priate ways to apply these standards without being rote or

repetitive.

Q: Sovos has such a geographically rich portfolio. As you

grow, are you seeing trends in the market that support where

you are or where you need to be?

LH:

Well, one trend goes back to data security. We don’t

compromise in any of our markets; we apply the same stan-

dards and bring new offices into the fold. We’ve found that

new acquisitions are excited to bring their clients the So-

vos brand and level of security. Nearly all companies are

focused on this need now and the markets are responding

with more dynamic data security. This isn’t a local trend, but

something we’re seeing internationally.

Another trend is the need to collaborate and coordinate

globally. Big in-person meetings really help, but like most

businesses, with eight offices, we’ve had to learn to how to

coordinate, collaborate, even resource a project remotely. It’s

the way of the world, and it’s been a good challenge to solve.

Q: The remote coordination was a big piece of the Boulder

project. How did you approach that?”

LH:

Our Boulder office was our first capital project in Col-

orado, as well as our first time moving into a market in that

way – without as much legacy information. Our headquar-

ters is in New England, with some offices across the country

and around the world. Plus, Boulder is a newer office we had

acquired only about six months prior. So we knew we want-

ed to partner with a project management firm.

Q: The Boulder office is a very trend-forward project. From an

end-user perspective, how has it impacted Sovos overall and

your other properties?

KH:

A lot of the project was really about change manage-

ment. It went smoothly because the team was very hands-

End Users

Laura Handler

Kelly Hobson

Megan Walsh