In late 2018, Auckland Zoo completed construction of their new Administration Building. Prior to completion, some administration staff were working out of several locations around the zoo. A core objective of the new building was to bring staff together to create a more unified, collaborative and inclusive environment, and for teams located outside the building to feel invited and welcomed.
To ensure the space was flexible enough to allow for future headcount growth, Auckland Zoo also wanted to explore the feasibility of adopting new ways of working and an agile seating model. BGIS were engaged to provide change, communications and relocation services to support employees through the transition.
A series of engagement activities were undertaken to determine the current state of change readiness and prepare staff for the relocation. The results informed the change management plan and provided an understanding of the behavioural, physical and technology changes required to be implemented. Activities included workshop facilitation, leadership interviews, relocation readiness activities, change and communications delivery, and a pre- and post-occupancy staff survey.
The post-occupancy staff survey results indicated that staff felt more productive with the new ways of working and are positive about unallocated seating arrangements.
In 2018, BGIS were engaged to develop and deliver an accommodation strategy to achieve greater efficiencies in utilisation of Bank of Queensland’s (BoQ) primary Brisbane office, and the release of an additional leased property in Brisbane and subleasing a floor in Sydney. To achieve this, BGIS facilitated the consolidation and restack of 700+ employees, implementation of a new operating model and workspace fit out works to support the consolidated work force.
Collaborating closely with the onsite BoQ Facilities Management team, Workplace Solutions delivered this key initiative from project inception to strategy development and through to post-project support and closeout.
As a result, BoQ gained an increase in effective utilisation of facilities, implementation of new ways of working and realisation of significant commercial savings across their Brisbane and Sydney portfolio. For staff, it was a seamless, well-supported transition experience.
Community Corrections has a large and diverse property portfolio that accommodates approximately 1500 full-time and part-time roles, with services delivered across more than 65 office locations. They had a requirement to undertake a Workplace Modernisation Program (WMP) to transform the workspace, generate savings and deliver more effective workplaces, in alignment with their long-term accommodation strategy.
BGIS actively engaged with Community Corrections staff and created advocacy for the Workplace Modernisation Program, through a broad program of engagement with leadership and staff, data analysis and observation. Activities included directors’ workshops, focus groups with a cross section of roles and teams, a staff survey to provide insight on individual workstyles, observation study, and an amenity view of existing offices, as well as analysis of workplace, technology and equipment utilisation and role profiling.
The Workplace Solutions team developed a roadmap for Community Corrections to create a more conducive workplace for staff to support different workstyles, enhance collaboration and improve amenity. With the aim to future-proof workplace planning through best practice and refreshed design guidelines.
NSW Police is undergoing an evolution of its workforce composition and workstyles. Significant increases in headcount are expected, along with a change in the diversity mix of its staff and officers. BGIS consulted with the client to develop a strategy that addressed both the workstyles of their staff and the intended design of the physical and technological environments that drove the quantity of space required.
Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected through leader interviews, pop-up engagement sessions, team workshops and observation studies. Overlaying the data sources to the commercial leasing options resulted in a balanced, holistic Workplace Strategy development.
Outcomes included greater understanding of current and future state workstyles and requirements, formulation of design standards, the creation of a digital strategy roadmap, scenario planning for future headcount projections, a recommendation of space consolidation forecasted to realise 4,700 sqm of space, the identification of the key behavioural change risk in delivering the consolidation and development of a change management plan, as well as developing a workplace strategy and business case providing a pathway to achieve a $50M capital contribution to refurbish Parramatta Headquarters.
Four different BGIS product lines have worked together to seamlessly deliver a new standard in Workplace Experience for Rio Tinto Brisbane. Over 1600sqm of space has been transformed into distinct zones for project, individual and collaborative work as well as an ‘Ask Bar’. The space doubles as both a functional workspace and a pilot zone for Rio Tinto’s new office, due in 2021.
An expanding Workplace Experience offering has been embedded into the new floor. As a result, internal staff and external visitors have a heightened experience on the floor. Data collected through engagement feeds into decisions on design, space management and future stacking and adjacency requirements.
A key priority of the recent refurbishment of Central Park (33,000 sqm) was ensuring sustainability initiatives were implemented across all aspects of the project by both the contractors and the internal BGIS team working on the project. BGIS has made embedding sustainability across all facets of the Rio Tinto account and supply chain a key priority.
Initiatives included LED lighting and sensor lighting installed across the tenancy, elimination of single-use plastic and paper cups, window blind management regime to diminish thermal impact, an improved recycling program for paper and cardboard, centralised stationery hubs, improved air quality and ambience with the installation of 1800 plants, and working with vendors to utilise paperless systems, as well as re-use of furniture and equipment such as chairs, tables, sofas, storage units, desktop IT kit.
As a result of these undertakings, the building’s National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) rating increased from 3.5 to 4.5 and energy use per headcount was reduced from 297kWh to 72kWh, while the centralisation of stationary supplies significantly reduced unnecessary wastage. The Rio Tinto staff embraced the project wholeheartedly, and were actively involved in engaging groups for the redistribution of surplus second-hand and end-of-life materials and equipment, which went to furnish mine site offices in the Pilbara and replenish IT and stationery supplies for schools and community groups.
To support both an internal push to revitalise the workplace and an upcoming lease event, BGIS led a workplace review and strategy development. The dual objective was to provide a needs analysis of space quantity and type to be translated into a strategy for both short-term and long-term deliverables.
Interviews with organisational leaders and team workshops were held, and the data collected was cross referenced with internal and external benchmarking. Development of typical workstyles and their requirements allowed for creation of work setting archetypes. The classifications enabled the creation of space demand plans and site-selection analysis.
Outcomes included the definition of a workplace design playbook, creation of space budget for new lease event, overview and mapping of requirements by both team and work type, workplace site selection analysis, concept design for a pilot space to test new work settings and workstyles, creation of a change and transition framework to bring the pilot space to life, and a recommendation to reduce the overall portfolio by more than 10,000sqm. Engagement with senior leaders also led to thoroughly understanding the business’ current challenges and future needs and requirements.
Shell required a workplace change strategy that aligned to both the existing, global Shell Connect workplace model and the local accommodation strategy, and which would successfully transition staff to a new, agile way of working.
Delivery of projects using Shell’s new internal workplace standards had not yet been achieved globally. BGIS worked with Shell to study and analyse Shell’s requirements, while aligning with the knowledge and expertise present in the BGIS change toolkit. An integrated approach was developed, combining the extensive experience BGIS brought to the project and the client’s specific requirements. BGIS worked with the client to ensure the right team was assembled, including the deployment of FM staff in the change team to ensure the operational sustainability of the model. The change team delivered a variety of activities, including change strategy formulation, workshop facilitation, leadership interviews, restack strategy and benefits measurement and realisation, as well as change and communications delivery that ensured consistent level of change readiness for all staff.
Having been rolled out internationally, the change strategy framework has received global recognition within Shell. In addition, Shell recognised BGIS’s successful delivery by presenting the team with their internal Shell Experience Excellence award for its engagement and delivery of frontline change management services. The project continues to deliver on its aims to create a more connected and agile organisation.
In 2018, BGIS was engaged to design and deliver refurbished End of Trip (EoT) facilities at the Virgin Australia Head Office in Brisbane. The organisational benefits gained through increased fitness, reduced absenteeism and improved mental performance from active commuting had the potential to generate an annual value of $2,600 per person. With a budget of $350,000 the goal was to increase patronage by 40 per cent following completion of the upgrades.
With a primary client objective of encouraging greater rates of active commuting, BGIS first set about identifying factors which discouraged cycle commuting. Analysis and staff surveys revealed insufficient shower quantity, unsuitable lockers, and poor ventilation to be the greatest barriers to cycle commuting.
Collaborating closely with the onsite BGIS Facilities Management team, and with a robust change management plan, Workplace Solutions had the breadth of knowledge and skillset to deliver this key initiative from project inception through post-project support and closeout.
As a result, EoT patronage for Virgin Australia Headquarters increased by over 130 per cent – based upon locker and bike rack registrations – equating to a CO2 reduction of 16,480kg per year. The project was completed two weeks ahead of schedule, on budget, leading to a superior commute experience for Virgin Australia staff.
