New Way: New Workplace
Issue 38 - Feb 08

Cable & Wireless’ new Hong Kong office is the first
to incorporate the firm’s new global branding and
fresh approach to work.

Cable & Wireless (C&W) is a name synonymous with telecommunications in Asia for well over a century. In fact, it was the first company to network Hong Kong to the rest of the world in 1871 when a cable connecting the city to Singapore was constructed. Nowadays, the organisation is known as much for IP, data, hosting and voice solutions it provides as for its history as a technological pioneer.

When the lease on former digs on Queen's Road Central started nearing its expiry date, it became clear that a new environment was needed. Richard Worrall, Managing Director, Visual I's UK, who are contracted to manage corporate real estate projects for C&W global, explains that this was for a number of reasons. "Pricing was a consideration but essentially it was not the main reason for relocating. We wanted a fresh challenge, a chance to relocate to a new "up-and-coming" area and to marry the fit-out to what Cable & Wireless are trying to do globally."

With space requirements pretty much unchanged, and a relatively modest 6100 sqf office needed to house their local headcount of 56, the search began. "The intention was always to stay on Hong Kong Island," explains Worrall, continuing that they considered around 12 locations. Eventually they settled on Taikoo Place, where a 31st floor unit offered "A terrific view, which is absolutely fantastic. We overlook the harbour and it was a way of saying to the team: look guys, this is our customer base," he says.

An office apart
Entering the space through the typical clear glass doors of Hong Kong office buildings, the bright colours of the reception automatically grab your attention. The clear blue lighting, the smooth modern lines of the furniture and the opaque tree motif are placed to create a new impression of C&W. This is done intentionally, Worrall reveals, to match the global re-branding of the corporation that took place last year. “The new brand is very vibrant and energetic and involves a lot of primary colours. As designers we were instructed to try and get as much of the new brand into a refurbishment as we can.”

There are, as any designer will recognise, a number of pitfalls endemic in working with a strong primary colour palette. Worrall, who undertakes the design as well as project management work for C&W’s global portfolio, was conscious of avoiding “An office that resembles a kid’s toy store.” Instead, the branding theme was subtly recreated, and can be seen in a large hand graphic placed on a lime green cabinet, or a line of random text on a glass partition.

New workplace
Following the re-branding effort, C&W are embarking on the process of upgrading their workplace strategy. The initiative aims to create a more vibrant working environment, says Worrall. "This new way of working involves incorporating three zones into our offices: my space, team space and global space. We are trying to stimulate more interaction between colleagues, reduce the number of closed meeting rooms and break down any cellular working areas."

"Hong Kong was the first office globally to get this new treatment," Worrall reveals, we haven't incorporated it 100 percent because of the size of the office, so we tried to identify more informal work areas." This concept will be familiar to professionals involved in workplace strategy. By incorporating "Global Spaces", C&W is replacing the cubicle based desking environment where, unless staff pop their head above their partition they don't have any communication with colleagues. "The idea," says Worrall, "is that within the communal spaces you might bump into colleagues you haven't seen in months, so it generates dialogue and communication and breaks down departmental barriers."

Consultant
As with any office move, there was a certain apprehension amongst staff about the move from Central to Island East. Luckily, there were only a handful of staff members whose commute would be negatively impacted. To achieve staff buy-in for the project, the team interviewed each colleague, asking them what they would like to see in the new office, and how they were working in the current office and what would be a better way for them personally to work.

Their responses were then analysed with a basic "majority rules" approach. As a result of the staff consultation Worrall believes that "Our Hong Kong colleagues had as much input into the design and relocation as the professional team themselves." The main challenge was to then introduce as many of the staff comments and ideas into the design, whilst still following the brand guidelines and overall fit-out quality requirements.

Contractor selection was another important aspect. "We didn't select a contractor based on best-value alone, we wanted a contractor who would work with us, appreciate what we were trying to do, who would understand our ethos," says Worrall. He was very happy with the final choice. "One thing that stands out to me was the contracting side. The contractors were very 'non-contractual', which compared to the UK and Europe was a breath of fresh air." Having contractors who were willing to "buy-in" to the project made a big difference to the project process, he says.

Another factor that separated the Hong Kong office from other global projects was the need for Feng Shui to be taken into account in the selection and design of the office. All staff members highlighted the importance of Feng Shui in the consultation stage and accordingly a Feng Shui master was engaged to sign off on the design. The view, which overlooks both Lion's Rock and the Hong Kong Observatory, was deemed particularly auspicious. Other elements were incorporated into the fitout, with the customary water feature, hidden money and an orange-red carpet underneath the sales team to stimulate their performance.

The office opened to much fanfare in late October 2007, with the space temporarily transformed (see box below) into a plush hotel-style lobby to showcase C&W's commitment to customer service. Following the opening, Worrall has been in close contact with the local staff and plans to return in March 2008 to collect individual verbal feedback on the new office. So far, he says, "We can measure the initial success of the project by the reaction of the colleagues, who are still say: you've left us with a great place to work, and a fantastic opportunity." RFP

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