SPACES WITH TD BANK
Exploring the future of work for B2E is really about consciously thinking
of making employees better able to collaborate. The B2C area is about
creating the branch of the future. My area of focus is really B2E.
How did this idea of the Workplace of the Future begin at TD
Bank and why?
“
Both the
technology and
the spaces are
reflecting the
reality of a more
mobile work
environment.
ML: We are in year two of a multi-year program, currently mostly
active in Toronto (Canada). It is a corporate initiative that grew
around an employee retention program and is a partnership with
corporate real estate and information technology.
It is really about informed space design. Technology is no longer
an inhibitor. Work spaces now evolve around the employee
experience and involve universal access, multi-screens as well as
the use of hoteling concepts for office space.
Is the Future of Work more like an overall philosophy?
ML: It’s really both a philosophy and a scope. There are specific
projects that will transform a certain number of floors and there are
design patterns that include more meeting rooms, more technology
and more light/air.
So are the benefits around savings in real estate costs?
ML: I wouldn’t say that was the total benefit. While there are better
densities in terms of space because flex space allows for more
employees per floor, perhaps the more significant benefits are
around employee engagement.
Speaking of scope, how many people do you have to support?
ML: We oversee the personal productivity requirements for
the bank for about 89,000 employees. This includes end-user
computing applications, collaboration tools and communications
technologies.
Wow, that’s a big number! What kind of new use cases do
you have to support from a technology perspective, for the
workplace of the future?
ML: With the focus on interaction, we need to support more access
and the ability to roam. Both the technology and the spaces are
reflecting the reality of a more mobile work environment.
TD has also gone large on Social Business – including online
collaboration, communities, blogging, video and telepresence. And
getting the right tools is non-trivial.
19