VTG’s move to its “new home,” a modern office building in the HafenCity district of Hamburg, is planned for 2026. The company combine Consulting is helping VTG design the new office concept. In the following interview, three combine consultants – Sandra Gerber, Kathleen Günther and Judith Wulhorst – share with ON TRACK what’s crucial to keep in mind when planning a modern working environment.
The pandemic transformed the world of work. A lot more people are working remotely or from home, the occupancy rate of office spaces has dropped, and the demands that younger generations in particular are placing on employers are a lot more value- and less career-oriented than they were before.
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Mobile work is now a given. Employees are more concerned with questions about the culture and structures of collaboration, the management style, and the extent to which their employer embraces sustainability in everyday working life. All this has to be taken into account when designing new office concepts.
Criteria for modern office concepts
The consultants from combine always ask which specific tasks and activities people come to the office to perform. Depending on the answers, a wide range of different workspaces are ideally available so that employees can work together, be creative, talk with each other in isolated rooms, speak on the phone in quiet places, or seclude themselves to conduct research. And just as important is having areas in which coworkers can exchange ideas in a relaxed atmosphere. “One of the big reasons why people like to come to the office is this kind of face-to-face interaction,” Sandra notes. And other important factors include the office’s location, catering facilities, sustainability-related features and accessibility via public transport.
„One of the big reasons why people like to come to the office is this kind of face-to-face interaction.“
Hybrid work – combining the best of both worlds
“Hybrid work is here to stay,” says Judith. “This means that companies need to give their employees the equipment and spaces they need to be able to easily work or collaborate with each other both in the office and remotely.”
And then there’s the issue of mixing the two. As Kathleen explains: “The challenge is to make the informal part, which usually takes place before or after the actual meeting, accessible to colleagues in the home office, too.” To this, Sandra adds: “These unplannable moments are missing in the virtual space. But that doesn’t have to be the case. For example, employees can schedule these times either on their own or together with their team members.” This can be a fixed time to chat during the week, she continues, or having everyone agree to start a team call a few minutes early so that there’s time for some informal interaction.
„Hybrid work is here to stay.“
However, the need for evolution also applies to management. And the key to this will be trying out new formats, deliberately creating space for interaction, and defining the “rules of the game” required for this.
Finding the right office concept
Judith knows that there’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all kind of office. “We look at each company on a very individual basis, analyzing its culture, its management structure and its values while also asking if there are any special requirements for certain individuals or units,” she explains. At VTG, this so-called “dedicated needs analysis” was conducted over the summer.
„These solutions need to be flexibly adaptable to changing external conditions.“
Another factor that goes into designing an office concept is the issue of how employees get to and from the workplace. This is an important issue – and one that can definitely pose some challenges to companies. When it comes to our new home in HafenCity, one of the commute-related challenges is parking spaces. This is because HafenCity’s mobility concept is primarily geared toward sustainability and prioritizes walking, cycling and public transport. “That’s why we’re working with VTG to identify some alternatives, such as the car-sharing or Park+Ride offers planned by HafenCity officials,” Sandra explains. In line with VTG’s purpose, the high sustainability standards of the office complex in HafenCity also played a particularly important role in VTG’s decision to move there. “Throughout the planning phases, there will be space and time for everyone to get involved and help shape the project – though it won’t be possible to perfectly meet every wish,” Kathleen notes. “We help companies find the right solutions for their needs depending on building parameters and pre-formulated planning guidelines. At the same time, these solutions need to be flexibly adaptable to changing external conditions.” After all, when it comes to how we work and the equipment we use to do so, one can already notice today that the pace of change is steadily increasing.
By the way, give the ride-sharing app twogo a try. It can be used by all VTG employees at all locations.
You can find more on twogo on VIBES.
Very important: Getting the impacted involved
“How’s that supposed to work?” This kind of reaction is very normal when a new modern office concept is being devised for employees. “Change breeds irritation,” Sandra says. “And that’s why we engage in dialogue rather than blindly coming up with a concept.” One crucial thing to remember is that the really key phase begins with the move into the new building. “People need to learn to work there and, more importantly, managers should lead by example,” Judith emphasizes. The consultants from combine will also be there to provide assistance during this process. “One thing is certain: having a modern design for the working environment and well thought-out, needs-based amenities for hybrid working will provide more flexibility and make a positive impact, including on job applicants,” Kathleen notes.
The New Home project team will keep you informed about any progress in their planning efforts.
Over the past decade, combine has carried out office assessments at roughly 17,000 workplaces. As part of this, around 357,000 measurements have been taken at intervals of 1-2 hours over a period of at least two weeks in each case to determine how many people were actually at their workstations in the office. The results of the analysis show that attendance rates have been clearly declining since the pandemic. In the current year, an average workstation utilization rate of roughly 41 percent was measured.
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