Why beauty brings people back to the workplace
Contents
Introduction
Beauty in the eye of the beholder
Flexibility and the future of work
How to inspire human ingenuity
Introduction
A Melbourne office building that has graced postcards and nightly news bulletins for three decades is being boldly reimagined to inspire connections, creativity and community.
When Melbourne’s 120 Collins Street opened its doors for the first time in 1991, it was the tallest tower in Australia – a title it would hold for 14 years.
A modernist masterpiece reminiscent of New York’s best buildings, 120 Collins Street was also among Melbourne’s best addresses. Located at the Paris end of Collins Street, amid luxury boutiques and exclusive restaurants, it was a workplace for some of Australia’s captains of industry.
But what we want from a workplace is very different today. “Office styles have changed as much as our wardrobes. Just as people no longer wear three-piece suits to work, they don’t want to commute to a cold corporate office,” says Investa’s Senior Asset Manager, Claire Clark.
“Investa has always been a leader in collaborative office design and spaces that inspire. Our revitalisation of 120 Collins Street is an example of this leadership. By reimagining 120 Collins Street for contemporary times, we are breathing fresh life into one of Melbourne’s most beautiful workplaces.”
“Beautiful” may seem a strange badge for an office building – but the best workplaces aren’t just functional. They also bring a sense of majesty and magic that simply can’t be found on the couch or local café.
If we can pray anywhere, why do people still come together in places of worship? If we can watch a play on YouTube, why do we still love live theatre? If we can view paintings on the Internet, why do museums and art galleries still capture our hearts?
And why, if we can work from anywhere, do workplaces still matter?
The experience of being in a physical space cannot be replicated online. Attractive and inspiring architecture elicits strong emotions and cultivates an atmosphere of community, creativity and connection. Most of all, pleasant places nurture a sense of belonging.
“We are drawing out some of the most attractive heritage elements and, by linking the old with the new, are creating an original and inspiring sense of place.”
Brendan Looby, Fund Manager, Investa
120 Collins Street is a building with beautiful “bones”. Investa’s team – guided by the building’s original architect Hassell – has worked hard to bring that beauty to the forefront of its significant lobby revitalisation.
The new lobby’s double and triple-height glass walls, with floating mezzanines and a gallery-style glass atrium roof, will flood the building with natural light. An extension of Melbourne’s iconic laneways, the lobby will overlook a garden that evokes a church cloister of serene and private spaces.
The stripped-back design showcases the warm brickwork and clerestory windows of the precinct’s historic buildings. On one side is St Michael’s Church, constructed in 1866, with its polychrome brickwork and Romanesque arches. On the other side is the three-storey, red-brick Professional Chambers, opened in 1908, with a gabled Queen Anne roof and Tudor gothic windows. The church tower and professional chambers will bookend a buzzing new café.
“The design accentuates the courtyards and creates new ‘third spaces’ for people to connect and do their best work,” says Brendan Looby, who as Fund Manager to Investa’s Commercial Property Fund, is responsible for one of Australia’s largest portfolios of prime grade office buildings.
“We expect the new design to attract high quality food and beverage operators that, instead of offering ‘grab and go’ meals, will add to the precinct experience.”
The finishes are evolving from “hard, corporate and masculine” to soft fabrics and tones “that are almost residential,” Ms Clark adds. The refurbishment will also create new bookable meeting rooms and first-class bathroom facilities, as well as new prime Collins Street retail space that will entice a high-end fashion brand.
The building’s pièce de résistance is surely the Sky Deck, which can accommodate up to 150 people. Tenants will have exclusive access to the Sky Deck to host everything from Friday night drinks to fashion parades, yoga sessions to book club meetings.
According to Investa’s Future of Work Survey, 89% of businesses rate employee wellness as either “very important” or “extremely important” when weighing up workplace options. Tenants are looking for amenities that support wellness, like rooftop and open-air space, and casual communal spaces,. The Sky Deck ticks all three boxes.
An ‘immersive deck’ will provide space to congregate alongside barbecue and bar facilities. The ‘viewing deck’ will capture the skyline and offer a birds’ eye view of the church spire standing sentinel.
“Social spaces, like the Sky Deck, bring people together and remind them that they are part of something bigger than themselves – whether that is as part of a team delivering important work or as part of a city.”
Claire Clark, Senior Asset Manager, Investa
The office, as a central human connector, evolved with each generation. But Covid not only accelerated a host of trends, like agility, flexibility, mobility and digital technology. It also converged those trends. Two years is all it has taken to transform the way we think about where and how we work.
Far from flat-footed, Investa’s team was thinking carefully and creatively about the future of work long before March 2020.
“We spent five years considering the whole site, the trends and technologies that were influencing the future of work, and the competitive set, to ensure this remains one of Melbourne’s best workplaces,” Mr Looby says. “We think quality office space in the right location will continue to draw people into the office.”
"We have 350-plus tenants in our portfolio – and each of them is making subtly different decisions about their workplace. They are all trialling and testing new ideas, but none are eliminating their office.”
Brendan Looby, Fund Manager, Investa Commercial Property Fund
Investa’s Future of Work research found most people will work 1.9 days from home, on average, depending on the industry type and tenant size. This is roughly one extra day a week on pre-pandemic work habits.
Other surveys reveal a similar story. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s study of more than 32,000 people in 25 countries put the figure at 1.7 days. A study by global management consultant McKinsey finds nine in 10 organisations are switching to hybrid working.
“Flexible working is here to stay but people are craving connection,” Ms Clark says. “Younger workers, in particular, need onboarding, mentoring and osmosis learning – and that can’t happen effectively online.”
After two years of staring at the same spare bedroom walls, many people are also yearning for a change of environment to freshen their perspectives. “It is easier to collaborate face-to-face and work through challenges in the workplace. But there’s also nowhere better to inspire a sense of belonging.”
Offices weren’t always designed with that sense of belonging front-and-centre. Evolving from the factory floor, offices prioritised productivity above all else. As we redefine productivity for a world where machines take over the most tedious of tasks, we must also redefine the workplace for community, creativity and connection.
In this context, the new workplace – embodied in buildings like 120 Collins Street – is not one that impresses with its corporate magnificence, but with a beauty that inspires human ingenuity and interconnectedness.
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