Spacial Awareness: Banking on the right space

American Express’ Singapore office at Mapletree Business City provides tools to help collaboration between each employee’s individual working styles.

This is important in supporting the company’s flexible culture and celebrates the diversity within the organisation.

Yoshimi Nakajima, country manager for American Express Singapore, said 40% of the workspace in the office was “shared”, meaning it consisted of hot desks, breakout areas, touchdown areas, a café space and meeting rooms where employees from various businesses could interact and collaborate.

“With the right technology and wide variety of space types – such as open and enclosed, and formal and informal, reversible and non-reversible – we are able to achieve better utilisation of space, and reinforce a highly collaborative and results-oriented mindset, driving productivity, creativity and employee engagement,” Nakajima said.

The adaptable work spaces also allow employees to be more mobile because they can work in their local office and also feel at home at the international ones.

“This also enables better work-life balance of our employees and drives stronger employee engagement,” she said.

She said companies looking to freshen up their offices should have an in-depth understanding of the needs and business model of each business.

Nakajima added it was also important for them to possess effective change management skills.

“We need to engage employees and communicate clearly how the change would benefit the business and employees, what facilities and technologies would be made available. In addition, we must also ensure appropriate company policies are in place to support the change, and adopt the proper technologies,” she said.