Re-balancing is a buzz word that crops up everywhere these days, re-balanced economy, re-balancing of global resources, re-balancing of Corporate Real Estate portfolios. It suggests we are out of kilter with what we consider to be the necessary stability for moving forward in a directed way. Now, more than ever, people in Real Estate and Design are uncertain about the timing of the next upturn that will allow our industry to return to business as usual.

But perhaps there will no longer be “a business as usual. Most trend spotters agree that it is easier to see the overview of what will happen in the next 20 to 30 years than it is to pin down what will happen in the next ten. Why is this? The progression of science and technology is inevitable, but cultural behaviour is less predictable. Often both the workplace and workplace practices are out-of-sync with the demands of business and the workforce.

The economic cycles of the 20th century may no longer be operative in the New World of Workcreated by advances in technology. Herman Miller through research and customer experience has looked at Global Trends that will affect working practices and the workplace. We live in an age of evidence based research upon which we make our decisions about design, but in a time of drastic cultural change such as now, using workforce metrics by measuring the current physical environment does not necessarily give a clear indication of what the future workplace should be like. Looking at global indicators from a local perspective, we examined some of the factors influencing changes that will transform working practices through the transition period of the next ten to fifteen years and the likely impact these changes will have on the office environment.

Workforce Demographics The Creative Class, a term coined by Richard Florida in 2002, represents the new mobility of innovation economics. They are very mobile and “at home in the Global Economy. At the other end of the spectrum, are the service occupations which are tied to the local environment. Comprised of everything from healthcare workers to small businesses, this sector will continue to grow robustly. Another demographic overlaid and generated by the economic shift during the next 10-15 years are the Boomer class and the generation now in their 20’s. Ini tially because of the recession, they are choosing under-employment rather than unemployment, and bar a few Boomers who continue at a reduced capacity in their current profession, the majority are cropping up in the service categories as part timers or full timers regardless of their level of education. This represents a trend that is irreversible during the transition period.

Population Movement This flexibility in working practices will continue to play out on a global scale with major re-sets of certain industries to different countries. Companies will be required to get their resources in the right place globally and we will see multiple headquarters functioning as centres of expertise in different locations around the globe. Climate change is and will continue to effect population movement affecting the economies and traditional industry bases of some countries.

The Rise of the Individual What began as the rise of the individual, “dont just express yourself. Invent yourself”, to quote Tom Peters in his 2003 book Re-imagine! Business Excellence in a disruptive Age, has resulted in a much more self-aware autonomous workforce in the 21st century. This massive shift in social structure combined with major and rapid advances in technology are transforming our expectations of work and the workplace. But its not just the social structure that is being re-aligned.

Innovation Economics Innovation economics is the reformulation of traditional economics to put knowledge, new technology and entrepreneurship at the centre of economic policy. Based on two fundamental tenets, the first being that the central goal of economic policy should be to spur higher productivity and greater innovation, and secondly, that markets relying on price signals alone are not usually as effective as public-private partnerships in spurring higher productivity and greater innovation. Combining new technology, a self-aware workforce and a different economic philosophy is creating demand for a more flexible and collaborative working environment.

The Connected Countryside One viewpoint holds that Europe has rocked itself to sleep in the face of the emerging economies. What is the European model for the next ten years? Some countries like the Netherlands are already over 90% connected to Broadband. The UK government has set an aggressive target of rolling out rural fibre optic broadband to create the best broadband network in Europe by 2015. There are already an estimated 401 million internet users in Europe in 2010, that’s 65 out of every 100 inhabitants. But does that mean we are abandoning cities for working in rural areas?

The Renewable Cityscape On the contrary, although the internet will facilitate working rurally, the lack of housing and public transport and local amenities means that many young people, at least in the short term, are leaving and moving to the cities. Not all jobs will centre around the office building as they have done in the past. Cities will adapt to become better places to live, farmers markets, small communities, more green and children friendly spaces. Innovative organic food initiatives like “Food from the Sky” are already emerging. The service industries are growing. Pollution levels will be cut and cycling more widespread in all urban conurbations.

The Office Landscape What does this mean for the office landscape? Like educational institutions, the office of the future will be a 24 hour facility. And it will be treated as an educational facility by most of the young people that work there. Likewise, because of the internet, homeworking will be integrated into the learning environment. Critical evaluation skills and problem solving will be valued more than ever. All of this makes good environmental and financial sense. In the short term the most significant obstacle to re-imaging the school/office/community integration will be to change the belief systems of the older generation.

Key Results•A changing workforce with different priorities•User control of products and environments •The office as the place of learning•Involvement and interaction with a demand for healthier lifestyles

Currently only 10% of the worlds population benefits from “good design”; however, companies are beginning to see the value and profit in designing for the other 90%. The reduction in spending has created a more discerning and empowered consumer who expects to be involved in the process. Biomimicry, the design strategy that involves looking to nature to solve aesthetic and technical solutions, is now being taught in design schools. This is a movement that is just one of the many eco-friendly requirements of Generation Y. Gen Y are only beginning to make their weight felt but many are now starting families and are passionate about creating a sustainable planet for their children. During the transition years this will be critical in re-positioning their approach to work. All the elements of the existing office environments will still remain but greater thought is given in the design to the way in which we use them. Coming into the office will be a matter of choice rather than a daily requirement. People will want to come to the office because it is the primary source of “State of the ArtAmenities. Companies who just focus on increasing density will lose out to those with better facilities.

Involvement and creativity are the threads to carry into the examination of the office environment. Herman Miller carried out research by immersion over a 3½ year period with 50 mostly Fortune 500 companies including 33 that are global and/or international and 7 A&D and property management firms. Overall we found that there is a striking similarity in what customers want for their working environments.

Furthermore, they held two things in common, wanting to know that they are not alone in their issues and, secondly, how did they compare to other companies inside and outside their industries. A comfortable majority of customers identify four priorities as the most important attributes for their ideal workplace: collaboration and connection, flexibility, user control, and branding.

How does this match up with the changing world community and technological advances? In the transition period of the next ten years it is imperative for management and employees to adopt a common language. As our research has consistently discovered, culture and belief systems are slowest to change.

In summary what are we to plan for in designing and managing our offices for the next 10 to 15 years? At Herman Miller we see the physical constituents of the office itself being similar to those of today. It is in our Working Practices that we will see the biggest changes. If today is the prologue to tomorrow, then we are already seeing the seeds of those changes.