Chicago design firm GHK is taking a similar approach on a build-out of new floors at client Zurich US, Baltimore. In an effort to determine best practices, a survey is conducted after each floor is completed and occupied, with the next floor benefiting from the POE done on the one preceding it, says GHK's Klass. Zurich US wants to make sure its facility investment was maximized. POEs also send a message to our client's clients that we care. There's also a space for comments.
Signatures are optional, but most staffers have signed.
The survey includes 15 questions and asks employees to rank the issues above based on an individual perspective, departmental perspective, and level of importance. The survey confirmed that noise management was an issue, so as a result, sound masking, changes in work group locations, and the creation of more huddle areas for teaming were developed for the second floor. The project team has encountered one unexpected frustration. A corporate reorganization during the project decimated the sample size for the second POE and just five surveys were returned. To date, the project is at the half-way point with the third floor about to be occupied.