The Information Technology revolution is just as engulfing as the Industrial and Agricultural ones were in the past. Technology alters the way we work, where we work and what tools we need to work with. Work now happens any time, any place, and the revolution is both frightening and immensely exciting. To survive and succeed, businesses have to change the way they operate. A sociological revolution is also taking place. No longer can workers expect a job for life, so to counter this lack of security they ask to develop skills in a learning environment. In order to attract and keep high flyers (the gold collar workers) the office interior must underwrite this environment, and facilitate new work methods. Many organizations struggle to understand the implications of these changes, and to decide what their physical manifestation should be. Executives, whilst experts at producing a product, face project management of which they have no experience. Designers, experts in the physical environment, are often ignorant of the users viewpoint. Tomorrows Office explains the whole process of changing the office environment, to sponsors, providers and users alike.
By showing the way change is happening and what its effects are likely to be, and the steps which are needed to create the effective workplace, the book asks the reader to question preconceptions.
Foreword by Professor Charles Hampden-Turner. Introduction. Part I: Background. Context. Purposes and concepts. Part II: Needs. Activities. Communications. Spaces. Ambiences. Part III: Technics. Process. Space planning. Settings. Building services. Furniture. Workplace Examples: VIA International, London; Digital Equipment Company, Stockholm; Defence Research Agency, Gosport; British Airways Compass Centre, Heathrow; Sol Cleaning Service, Helsinki; Barr and Stroud, Glasgow; Chiat/Day, New York; Andersen Consulting, London; The Automobile Association, Basingstoke; Ernst & Young, Chicago; Western Morning News, Plymouth; PowerGen, Coventry. Appendices.