Welcome to the next installment of our work+place history. Today we feature Cagri Kanver’s 2009 contribution to Medical Tourism Magazine. 
Cagri shared that overall cost and related benefits of green building can be achieved for any organization by implementing sustainable initiatives. In the article, he offers a model for measuring the economic value of green including an environmental benefit evaluation.
Read the article: Going Green – New Words in a New World
If you have some time to read some more HOK workplace history, check our previous posts:

Work+Place History (2): The Leader 
Work+Place History (3): Facilitating Change
Work+Place History (4): True Collaboration
Work+Place History (5): Working Abroad

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I recently met some representatives from SERVCORP, a company that rents office space to individuals and organizations that are looking for an office presence but do not want to commit to their own costly lease. Having a strong personal interest in workplace trends, I decided to check them out. SERVCORP is an Australian company that recently broke into the U.S. market by setting up shop in a few cities, including two suites in high profile, class A buildings in downtown Chicago. Recently I had the chance to tour one of their suites and I have to say their operation is very well put together. They offer rentals of both Executive Office and Virtual Office space. Their tagline “Everything But The Office” seems to sum up a growing trend in where the future of physical office space is headed. I found this succinct promo video for the company which highlights the idea of having a “big business infrastructure, without the associated costs”.
Two of the more prominent workplace trends these days are the continued growth of a mobile workforce (less people in offices) as well as companies reducing their overall real estate portfolios (less space being rented). This recent Wall Street Journal article is just one of dozens of recent articles reporting the reduction in office footprints in this country.

That being said, what will eventually become of all the corporate real estate out there? Will the soaring skyscrapers, the greatest of corporate status symbols, be reduced to nothing but ghost towns? In ten years will my corporate headquarters simply be [...]

One of the reasons we started Work+Place was to share HOK’s workplace expertise – developed over the past 15-or-so years.  While our experts have been sharing their latest and greatest thinking – everything from the obesity epidemic and the impacts of Mexican drug cartels on the workplace to research, potty humor, and workplace pranks, we thought it might be fun to dig back into the annals of HOK’s workplace experience and see what we could find. 
As you can see from the graphic above, we’ve had lots of experience with single project and full accounts, giving our team a rich set of data to mine.  This post is the first in a series highlighting our thought leadership through publications.  Keep an eye out and see what we’ve said and how our thinking has evolved.

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Just saw this article in the Chicago Tribune and think it’s a great example of schools trying to leverage the use of cell phones in the classroom instead of trying to stifle the natural progression of technology. The mention of cell phones in the classroom typically brings about negative commentary; they’re a distraction, kids will use them to cheat on tests, it potentially infringes on teachers and students privacy, etc. But this article highlights a few schools in Illinois that are refreshingly trying to embrace the inevitable, realizing that cell phones can in fact prove to be very useful education tools.
In Elmhurst, IL, York Community High School Principal Diana Smith plans to sit down this week with students to talk about the possibility of their using cell phones for academic purposes. The Elmhurst school currently requires that phones remain off during the day.
“What we know about kids now is they are used to having so many sources of technology available to them,” Smith said. “I think we need to be in step with them on it.”

The discussion of these policies in schools got me thinking about how this relates to technology policies in the workplace. While many policies are borne out of necessity, it is also no secret that the new generation entering the workforce is accustomed to having the best technology at their fingertips and will expect their future employers to either match or even exceed that expectation. I foresee more and more high schools and even elementary schools adopting policies for cell phone use in [...]

 
Imagine many years ago you started your own business and with hard work created a successful enterprise.  Suddenly you are forced to leave your city because your livelihood and, more importantly, your life, are threatened.  For many in Mexico, this has become a reality due to the warring drug cartels seeking to dominate and control the highly lucrative drug, gun, and human trafficking business. 
For this story I won’t go into all the details but what’s relevant is that many people are extorted and kidnapped by the cartels to raise money for weapons and resources to fuel their operations.  This happens to the small “mom and pop” businesses as well as larger organizations with many employees. 
It’s the latter that this post focuses on because the smaller businesses typically don’t have the means to relocate – they either succumb to the extortion or go out of business altogether.  Many of the more affluent and higher profile business owners have chosen to relocate across the border or somewhere else in Mexico that’s potentially safer and where they can maintain greater anonymity.
Since my wife is from Mexico and her family has two primary businesses, I am observing the reaction to this crisis firsthand.  My wife’s family owns and operates an educational institution and a construction firm.  The challenge for them, which is the focus of this article, is how to effectively run and manage your business remotely with little planning or expertise. 
This week we are visiting my wife’s family for the first time since they have [...]

It is a nearly-indisputable fact that technology is one of the most prevalent and important trends in the workplace these days, and we have it to thank for so many incredible advances in our lives.  But some people may describe this trend as more of a rampant one, that is spiraling out of control and virtually taking over peoples’ lives, both at work and at home…which begs the question, is there such thing as “too much technology”?  And are we over-extending ourselves by indulging in all of the latest tech trends?
This article ran in the NY Times a few months ago as part of a series called “Your Brain on Computers.” It was sent to me by my mother—by way of her siblings—who mused that they don’t believe themselves to be victims of this technological stronghold, but that they believe their children surely are.  The article is rather long (I skimmed it while at lunch outside, on my blackberry—go figure), but is full of juicy technology tidbits and some surprising facts that shocked even me, a solid “Gen Y-er.”  Some fun facts:

“In 2008, people consumed three times as much information each day as they did in 1960”
“Computer users at work change windows or check e-mail or other programs nearly 37 times an hour”
“At home, people consume 12 hours of media a day on average, when an hour spent with, say, the Internet and TV simultaneously counts as two hours. That compares with 5 hours in 1960.”

None of these struck me [...]

We recently took a few minutes to talk to Julian Tablada, AIA, LEED AP.  Julian is a VP at HOK in Atlanta and has over 30 years of experience in providing strategic planning, workplace strategies, facility process improvement, architectural design, project management and CAFM solutions.
Julian received a B. Arch degree from Louisiana State University. He is a registered Architect in the State of Georgia, and a member of the American Institute of Architects.
In his spare time, Julian loves spending time with his family (Sonya, his wife, and three adult sons), sailing, travelling, painting, and sketching.  Julian is also dedicated to mission work in Central America.  He is the project manager for Third Lens Ministries, a Christian non-profit organization that is building community centers in the underserved villages of Honduras in support of medical missions to the mountainous region.
What is your current role?
I am currently a specialist in the Atlanta office of HOK’s Advance Strategies group.  I have the opportunity work on a wide variety of projects and primarily focus on workplace strategy, programming, and change management and project management.
Currently, I am serving as the project manager on a really cool project: the Fort McPherson Master Plan.  As part of the Base Realignment and Closure program, Fort McPherson is closing and we are master planning the 488-acre site on the south side of Atlanta to be developed for a new Bio-Science research, mixed-use community.
Prior to joining HOK Advance Strategies in 2007,  I was with Facility Resources, a consulting company that my wife [...]

Don’t just work from home. Creep out your employees from a distance!
I saw this article recently about the robot that visits your cubicle. Advertised as a “telepresence robot”, Anybots aim to connect workers more seamlessly through the use of video cameras, still camera and a microphone. The basic concept is that, working anywhere from a laptop, you can log into one of these robots which reside in your office and the robot essentially becomes your “avatar”. Your Anybot can zip around the workplace interacting with coworkers; stopping by your desk, sitting in on meetings or impromptu collaboration sessions, heading over to the factory to see what’s coming off the production line, etc. The video demonstration on their website gives you the idea.
While I do see some of the fundamental advantages of “Robot Boss”, I still can’t help but think of all the hilarious and awkward scenarios that could play out in our workplace culture:

It looks like a Segway had a one night stand with a vacuum cleaner. I hope the cleaning staff doesn’t try to use Robot Boss to buff the floors.
People will definitely dress up Robot Boss in embarrassing clothing. Mine would have a handlebar mustache and dress accordingly for the seasons and holidays. 
If you put a piece of paper over the sensors, can you laugh as Robot Boss crashes into walls because it can’t see straight?
Will people eventually prefer Robot Ross to in-person boss? If in-person boss wears cheap cologne, then yes.
I’d like to see Robot Boss take a client out to lunch. Good luck catching a cab, Robot Boss!
I’d be freaked out if [...]

Wherever I go… it goes!!!
For my birthday this past year, I received a Kindle. While I was instantly excited, I was also a bit skeptical. I am a serious book purchaser, and was concerned what this new toy would do for my dream home library. Now that I’ve had a chance to spend some quality time with the Kindle, I can say with confidence that I LOVE IT! What I really love about it are the functions that I was unaware of when I opened it. I had no idea that I could send, receive, and edit documents from the little booger. The best benefit for me is the ability to travel as an even lighter road warrior. Instead of having to bring my laptop, work documents, plus two books and a magazine, now I can just bring my Kindle and my laptop. Sometimes, when I’m really wild, I don’t even bring the laptop. Thanks Kindle (and Dan for giving it to me)!

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Interesting conceptual project from textile designer Celine Marcq: reactive wallcovering that abstractly visualizes energy use. The idea is that your wall can help indicate how much electricity you are using, ideally making us all more conscious in general. This would be especially helpful for those people who have bad habits of leaving everything plugged in. The ambient light is a reminder that even though something isn’t turned on, if it’s plugged in it’s still pulling in electricity. Gets rid of the whole “out of sight, out of mind” mentaility that gets us in trouble in oh so many instances.

Monitoring and displaying energy isn’t necessarily a brand new concept. Several quality companies are leading the effort to track energy usage. My colleague David Ivey recently posted on HOK Life about measures we’re taking in our Chicago office, implementing  Lutron Quantum and EcoSystem to monitor and display energy usage. These measures have helped our Chicago office be recognized as one of the top ten LEED projects in 2009 according to Interiors and Sources Magazine
The reactive wallcovering is definitley a step in a more aesthetic direction to keep us informed of energy usage. I’m sure pretty soon our offices will be these Matrix-esque environments displaying all types of information. Hopefully the visual overload won’t be too seizure-inducing. I would like to hear of any other examples of aesthetic ways to monitor energy or raise awareness that any of you readers have come across.

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