Starcom MediaVest Group, a leading international media agency, promotes itself as “the human experience company”. The business promises its clients an unrivalled offer ‐ positioning its people as the primary source of its competitive advantage and promises to ‘grow its clients business by transforming behaviour through uplifting, meaningful Human Experiences’.
The move to a new building came with the brief to create a space for SMG that would maximise on collaborative ways of working in order to support its people and, in doing so, ensure its promise to its clients could be met.
EDGE, understanding the method of working required by SMG, used the business strap‐line of ‘The Human Experience Company’ as the D.N.A. to inform the design. This focussed on the basics of maximising human interaction.
Over 5 levels of the Turnmill building in Clerkenwell, EDGE has a created a highly functional workshop which is stunning in its simplicity and detailing and remains true to the ethos of the new building’s design. Breakout areas are flexible, to allow the staff to configure them in whatever way suits their activity. Seamless technology allows the spaces to retain a basic low tech feel, to promote conversation and the free flowing of innovative ideas.
Visitors are always met by someone from SMG and either taken to levels 1‐4 for informal meetings or straight up to the 5th floor. The 5th floor, managed by a ‘maitre de’ ‐ the ‘Peggy Mitchell’ of SMG, houses no desking. The space is entirely dedicated to flexible, workshop activity, with partition blinds to allow for the areas to be divided. There is also a stage for product display. At the far side of the floor are two acoustically sealed pitch rooms.
There is a stunning terrace that wraps the entire south, east and north sides of the floor.
Levels 1‐ 4 operate a strict hot desking policy to ensure that the 5th floor remains desk‐free. On each of these floors there are meeting rooms pulled in towards the core, each having glazed tops to ensure the space is made to feel as open as possible. Each floor also has a centralised display and ideas island and various creative break‐out spaces throughout.
‘Moving to a brand new office is normally a once a career opportunity. It is so much more than a new address. It is the opportunity to reset the culture of a company and the way it works. This was the brief we gave EDGE – to provide a functional space for 577 people but to create an emotional change that accelerated collaboration and creativity. And that’s exactly what they delivered.
‘EDGE has created a human friendly environment which offers a mixed palette of space in which to work, SMG is now spoilt for choice. Yet the design is intuitive it doesn’t need to be explained how it should be used – it just happens.’
Derek Morris ‐ Starcom MediaVest Group
