May 4-May 17, 2016 —
COLORADO REAL ESTATE JOURNAL
— Page 11
Office
I
magine waking up in the
morning with no smart
phone, a missing laptop
and no connection to the inter-
net. Most people today would
have a difficult time simply fig-
uring out how to do their job
that day. It’s hard to believe
that just 20 years ago, we didn’t
have access to these tools. In
a relatively short amount of
time, technology has complete-
ly transformed the way people
work.
At CBRE, technology plays a
key role in our global initiative
called “Workplace360,” which
is our innovative approach to
workplace strategy designed
to promote flexibility, mobility
and productivity. We believe
so strongly in Workplace360,
CBRE is rolling it out in its
own offices around the world,
including, most recently, here in
downtown Denver.
While many people believe
technology simply serves to
drive efficiency, leading work-
place strategy experts at CBRE
have realized that emerging
technology is having a pro-
found impact on the workplace
in many more advantageous
ways. Within this article we’ll
review how technology is sup-
porting health and wellness ini-
tiatives, driving mobility, and
maximizing productivity and
collaboration.
n
Technology is supporting
health and wellness initiatives.
Health and wellness is a major
priority for today’s workforce,
and many companies are dis-
covering wellness programs’
potential to
i n f l u e n c e
c o r p o r a t e
culture and
attract talent.
In a 2014 sur-
vey by Work-
force maga-
zine
and
VirginPulse,
87.4 percent
of employ-
ees
stated
that wellness
p o s i t i v e l y
i m p a c t e d
work
cul-
ture, and 88
percent said access to health
and wellness programs was an
important factor in defining an
employer of choice (The Busi-
ness of Healthy Employees: A
Survey of Workplace Health
Priorities, 2014).
Technology can play a sig-
nificant role in influencing
employee behavior and con-
tributing to a company’s health
and wellness efforts. In our new
Denver Workplace360 office,
CBRE has introduced a number
of tech-driven wellness initia-
tives including sit-stand adjust-
able desks, a digital step-tracker
competition and a healthy food
micro market within the space.
“The sit-stand adjustable
desks break up the monotony
of the day and help employees
feel more alert and energized,”
said Carson Erard, senior asso-
ciate with CBRE’s Workplace
Strategy Group. “Fitness track-
ers on employees’ phones and
wearable devices can also be
leveraged for
an optional
health initia-
tive, while
the informa-
tion
those
devices pro-
vide can be
used to create
some friendly
competition
within
the
office, pro-
moting both
wellness and
culture.”
CBRE has
incorporated healthy food
options into employees’ daily
routines through a service
called HUMAN, which pro-
vides access to healthy foods
via self-service, touch-screen
kiosk technology. According to
HUMAN, healthy employees
are happier employees, which
contributes to overall company
success.
“We provide technology and
accessibility to the nutrition
employees need to be happy
and at the top of their game
– with energy all day long,”
said Barbara Hankins, owner of
HUMAN Denver. “The simple
fact is that happy employees
are more motivated, more likely
to be engaged and more likely
to accomplish the things that
businesses need to get to the
next level.”
n
Technology is driving
mobility.
Compared to the desk-
top computers, dial-up modems
and corded telephones of
decades past, today’s technol-
ogy means
emp l o y e e s
are no longer
chained to
their desks. In
CBRE’s new
d own t own
Denver office,
all employees
have access to
cutting-edge
t e chno l ogy
that promotes
their ability to
freely move
throughout
the space.
Universal plug-and-play tech-
nology allows employees to
connect wherever they are and
access everything they need to
complete the task at hand. Each
employee simply needs his or
her personalized wireless ear-
piece and laptop to work any-
where in the office and take
advantage of the multiple work
environments. Employees can
freely move from workstations
to huddle rooms to private
focus rooms – all without drop-
ping their call.
CBRE has also introduced free
addressing – a system where
assigned desks and assigned
offices no longer exist. Each day
employees are empowered to
choose where to work based
on the specific tasks they need
to accomplish that day. To help
address the various tasks, CBRE
has incorporated 15 different
ways to work throughout the
space, from focus rooms to con-
ference rooms and even a café
area CBRE calls the “Heart”
of the office.
This
free-
address envi-
ronment is
only made
p o s s i b l e
when every
employee has
access to per-
sonal tech-
nology that
allows him or
her to seam-
lessly move
throughout
the office.
"The next evolution of work-
place is all about flexibility and
choice,” said Erard. “Companies
today are realizing the value in
offering flexibility and choice to
all employees and empowering
employees through technology
to decide what the best envi-
ronment is for them as an indi-
vidual.”
n
Technology is maximizing
collaboration and productivity.
Two heads are better than one.
This old adage speaks to anoth-
er benefit of the high-techWork-
place360 approach – increased
collaboration and productivity.
Within a CBRE Workplace360
office, collaborative technology
is pervasive in shared spaces –
from multiple monitor set-ups
with one-click screen sharing to
single power plug-ins designed
to accommodate everything
from laptops to smart phones
and tablets. These investments
in technology foster produc-
Hadley Cox
Vice president, CBRE
Occupier Advisory
and Transaction
Services, Denver
Mark Floersch
Senior associate, CBRE
Occupier Advisory
and Transaction
Services, Denver
Drew Thomas
Sales assistant, CBRE
Occupier Advisory
and Transaction
Services, Denver
Hank Cox
Executive vice
president, CBRE
Occupier Advisory
and Transaction
Services, Denver
