Modern Coworking Space for Bank Employees in the Post-COVID-19 Era

· space design case studies,work

During the multiple lockdowns of the COVID-19 pandemic home office became the norm at RaiffeisenBank Bulgaria. And even though internal surveys showed that both managers and employees were happier and more productive, the issue of unused office space remained. The bank was looking for a new concept that will reimagine and optimize the office space it was renting. The proposed concept had to be low-cost and reuse as much as possible already available furniture.

client brief

Rethink the bank office space in the post-COVID-19 era and create a pilot for a new generation of co-working spaces for the bank employees.

client

Raiffeisen Bank Bulgaria

our approach

Our main focus was to evaluate the needs of employees in the new era. We started by asking questions and organized several co-creation workshops with employees. Why would employees go to the office? Which activities are better done in the home office and which ones are better in the office? How could we ensure seamless teamwork across offices and across platforms? The answers to these questions gave us the direction for exactly how the new coworking space should look and feel like, how it should be managed in order to avoid over or under usage, and how should home office and digital platforms be integrated.

duration

6 months

key results

A team-centred office that allows co-creation, socialization and hybrid work, and offers lego-like modular design that is aesthetic and playful. 50% reduction of rental space.

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success factors

An open-minded client who understood that we need to look at the end-to-end experience of employees and work to integrate the new co-working space with the home office and the virtual office. One of the main success factors was the involvement of Facility, Digital Transformation and Human resources departments and the dedication of ambassadors from all the teams impacted by the redesign. Even with online workshops, we succeeded in engaging these participants and received ample input from all of them. The project is implemented in partnership with design studio 7561architects.

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