The New Rules of Engagement

Change is natural for every business. It can be disruptive or it can be transformative. When Hylant set out to reshape its corporate offices, it proved to be a catalyst to engage and re-energize team members.

Steelcase and NBS first guided Hylant management and staff through a discovery exercise. By mapping user experiences, their priorities came into focus. One was to find new ways to enhance wellbeing. A second was, with such a deep bench of experienced team members, determining how this invaluable industry knowledge could be shared organically with younger colleagues. Now the goals were clear for the NBS design team.

Giving individuals more control over where and how they work is one way to boost wellbeing. A separate, but related trend, is the merger of work spaces with social spaces. NBS integrated these two ideas to create a number of new spaces that offer a variety of seating and worksurfaces—which in turn convey choice and control. These are comfortable settings for teamwork and that all-important intergenerational learning. The new workcafé is perhaps the ultimate fusion of social space and workspace where team members can meet with colleagues or work independently in a pleasant, communal space.

Another important concept in the redesign is the correlation between movement and wellbeing. A little mobility can go a long way. Besides alternate workspaces, height-adjustable desks were provided for all 65 employees. Sit or stand, team members have one more option to get comfortable and be productive.

While engagement and productivity are driving issues for employers, a healthy work life is a growing issue for employees. Designing an environment that responds to both is the challenge—and one that NBS and Hylant accomplished beautifully.

To find out how this insurance brokerage has earned “Best Places to Work” for nine consecutive years, visit Hylant.com