Basler Versicherungen provided a pilot area for testing the reorganization and redesign of office space. For 94 staff at the insurance company this not only meant getting used to a new location, but also a new way of thinking! Employees no longer have their customary fixed workstations, but get to choose from different options. The “New Basle Working World” concept was conceived by planning firm Total Office Management from Nänikon, Switzerland, and realized in cooperation with Lista Office LO. Rather than rely on standard workstations throughout, the idea combines traditional workstations in the Home Base with standing desks equipped with monitors for on-a-whim chats and short presentations, plus several short-term workstations.

Moreover, there are more tranquil areas such as the Quiet Zone for focused individual work, or Think Tanks from the LO Minport furniture series for confidential meetings. Rooms are organized flexibly to cater to the varying needs and procedures typical of creative project work, and employees have the appropriate setting with suitable furnishings for every kind of task. The Flow Work system by Lista Office LO integrates all levels of furnishing, while at the same time ensuring the office is not perceived as monotonous or boring. If the pilot areas prove popular the concept is to be extended to other areas. Rolf Kälin, Managing Director of Lista Office LO in Basel, is convinced: “Farsighted companies have realized that using space efficiently is not just about condensing the working area, but that it has to do with providing attractive work options.”