Where Do We Go From Here?

To the contract-furniture industry, today’s marketplace feels a bit like that old Chinese curse: may you live in interesting times. Commercial real estate does not seem poised for a quick recovery. Money remains tight, developers are skittish, and office-vacancy rates are higher than they’ve been in almost two decades. At the same time (and here’s the interesting part), technology continues to transform the workplace, changing not only the way we work but calling into question how organizations will function in the future. Do places matter? Are traditional offices an anachronism? How do you accommodate four generations of workers, all of whom interact with technology (and one another) in drastically different ways? “Designers love to take on the wicked problem, and there’s no absence of those right now,” says Steelcase’s James Ludwig. We recently invited the design directors of Allsteel, Haworth, Herman Miller, Steelcase, and Teknion to talk to us about the state of the industry, the future of workplace design, and the role sof research in a down economy.
 

James Ludwig, Steelcase
Don Goeman, Herman Miller
Jeff Reuschel, Haworth
Jan Johnson, Allsteel
John Hellwig, Teknion

Was this recession, which struck directly at the core of your business, somehow different?

GOEMAN: Yes and no. Yes, because of the global pervasiveness of the challenge and the speed of the drop. No, because we’ve been through this before and know how to maneuver through the tough terrain.

JOHNSON: We think this recession may have more lasting and fundamental impacts on the workplace. For example, our collective wisdom about the mobility programs that were so tantalizing to organizations in the last couple of recessions has matured along with the technology that enables them.

REUSCHEL: This recession has features which make it unique. One, work-style shifts. The furnishing providers yield their greatest revenue from individual workstations. For a variety of reasons, many companies are dedicating more space to collaborative endeavors and either shrinking or eliminating spaces for individual workers. This doesn’t mean lower revenues but rather revenues from a different section of the catalog—sections that are currently underdeveloped. Second, sustainable practices. Public awareness, government mandate, and, eventually, economics will continue to drive sustainability into the mainstream. One of the primary targets is likely to be the daily commute, which will affect the amount of space needed to accommodate workers each day. And third, technology enablers. As mobile technology improves, the likelihood of working from alternative settings rises. This is not necessarily bad for the industry, but it raises questions about current product portfolios and distribution models. Short answer? Yes, this is very different from past recessions.

Traditionally, forward-thinking companies have used downturns as an opportunity to ramp up their research-and-development efforts. Has this recession changed your research mission?

HELLWIG: The mission has not changed, but the recession triggers a whole series of shifts in how companies operate, which companies or sectors thrive, how people are employed, how companies plan their facilities and purchase furniture. It becomes important to detect these changes and understand their ramifications.

REUSCHEL: A growing economy is a good insulator. It breeds optimism, confidence, and the always attendant complacency (why change when things are going well?). While I’d never wish for it, a stalled economy does tend to force attention on what’s over the horizon. This forced forward-thinking is a good thing for an industry that has notoriously lacked innovation. However, part of the reason for this is a lack of risk taking on the part of the purchasers of interiors products and services. We hope the uncomfortable necessities of this recession will give birth to new ideas on both sides of the blueprint.

What are you researching these days?

HELLWIG: Economic downturns affect behavior a great deal, and with the enabling power of technology and the Internet, things can change quickly.

Our strength in design comes from being in tune with these changes and being able to respond. We cater to customers’ requests for customization, because as well as getting sales, these requests are an early indicator of changing requirements and often give us inspiration and guidance for new product development.

REUSCHEL: One of the most profoundly sustainable advances in history is the principle of interchangeable parts. While furnishings are constructed based on this principle, the buildings that house them typically are not. But we’re beginning to see buildings constructed as mass-produced, “interchangeable” elements (e.g., Fisher’s Rotating Tower). The ability to evolve an interior from one function to another would have a profoundly positive impact on the 40 percent of landfill waste currently attributed to construction and renovation. While we intend to be a part of this revolution, it will take the coordinated efforts of several constituencies to make it a reality.

LUDWIG: The two vectors that are a constant in our view of the future are changes in technology and the sociology of work.

GOEMAN: Mobility, technology, collaboration, sustainability, and asset utilization are the major problems/opportunities now. They’ve been on everyone’s radar over the last decade, and a recession may not change the drivers of change as much as it heightens our sensitivity to them and an urgency to formulate a way forward.