NAD (NIKKEN ACTIVITY DESIGN lab), which started as a division of Nikken Sekkei, not only designs the latest offices, but also researches future plans for offices 10 years from now. We spoke to Takeyuki Katsuya, director of Nikken Sekkei's design department and director of NAD, about the future of office spaces and work styles, which will change significantly due to the effects of COVID-19.

Creating a comfortable workplace that suits the company
Designing processes that foster worker empathy and proactiveness

"Woven Planet Group" (formerly Toyota Research Institute Advanced Development (TRI-AD)) is the latest project realized by NAD in collaboration with Nikken Sekkei's design department and Nikken Space Design together with the client. be. Woven Planet Group, the Toyota Group's self-driving software development company established in 2018, brings together top engineers from around the world. The goal of the project was to create a workplace where they would want to work, one that would allow them to be highly productive, customize their own work, and work together as a team.

``NAD emphasizes input before designing.First, we hold workshops with clients, go out with them to see similar cases, and have researchers stationed in actual offices to repeatedly observe the company. In addition to conducting various research on the culture and work styles of clients, we also provide input to deepen our client's understanding of the issues."

Why do we need to go that far? Katsuya says that it is possible to understand overall changes from data, but when it comes to individual issues and perspectives, it is not possible to read from numbers.

``It is said that we are living in a data society, but if we only look at digitized big data, there are things we miss.These include personal experiences and unique perspectives. We need to understand the company's challenges, as well as its culture and work style, by combining individual-targeted user observation with collective-targeted data analysis and research. We propose a one-of-a-kind workplace tailored to each company."

With the democratization of work styles, offices will undergo major changes and evolution.

We asked Katsuya, who is in charge of the latest office design, about offices and work styles after COVID-19. “Remote work, which COVID-19 has opened the door to, is likely to become established as a basic working pattern in the future, if not in all companies. As a result, control over work will shift from companies to individuals.In other words, the democratization of work style will progress.I don't think so.However, I don't think so. I think that will change."

In the future, the office will no longer be a place for simple desk work, but will become a place where value is created and where relationships are built between people and between people and companies. Exchanging ideas with colleagues face-to-face in the office and interacting with people outside the office helps with creation, and daily chats deepen interactions between workers and strengthen relationships. Katsuya says that sharing the same space with other members will increase their sense of belonging to the company and increase their empathy for the culture of the company they work for.

“I think that NAD was quite advanced in remote work even before COVID-19.One of the members used to work while traveling around the world as a demonstration experiment of work style, and We received an email from a different country.Since the spread of COVID-19, we have also been working completely remotely, and we have recently held a face-to-face meeting with all members, which is somewhat difficult to do online. Exchanging ideas at meetings is an effective way to generate new ideas, and we reaffirmed the importance of face-to-face communication.In Japanese organizations, the higher the engagement with the company, the better the performance of the group. We believe that offices where everyone can gather will continue to play an important role in fostering this engagement and fostering a sense of team unity."

NAD believes that the concept of an office as a place to work will crumble and that offices will transform into spaces with new functions and roles, so what should we do with offices in the future? There is no end to the inquiries we receive from companies.

“With more options for where and when to work, commuting time is saved and living locations become more diverse, people are becoming more interested in the richness of their lives.This new way of living and working is We believe this will lead to the creation of unique ideas and new businesses that have never existed before."

The spread of COVID-19 is not only a cause for pessimism, but also an opportunity to create future ways of working and living. You will probably need to reevaluate your life plan to see how you can make use of it.

(Titles omitted)

Takeyuki Katsuya

Nikken Sekkei Design Department Director and NAD Office Director

After graduating from Kyoto University's Graduate School of Engineering, majoring in architecture, he joined Nikken Sekkei in 2000. In 2016, he won an international competition to renovate FC Barcelona's home stadium, Camp Nou. In 2019, he was in charge of the redevelopment of Shibuya Station, "Shibuya Scramble Square East Building (Phase I)," its observation facility "Shibuya Sky," and "Ariake Gymnastics Stadium." Since 2020, he has served as the director of the NAD office in addition to the director of the design department.