Architecture and consulting firm CSMM, which has built a reputation for visionary office architecture and pioneering workplace designs in Germany and abroad, was recently commissioned to redesign the BSH Home Appliance Group (BSH) headquarters. The goal was to turn the Group’s existing building in Munich-Neuperlach into a new “Brand Family Home” designed to meet its current and future needs in form as well as function. CSMM worked closely with the client to define the project goals: to leverage the synergies between the various brands and their employees on the one hand, and to strengthen the individual identities of the brands under the BSH umbrella on the other. Already renowned for its world-class technology and design innovations, the new challenge facing BSH is a growing demand for remote working solutions and a more agile, efficient workplace. What is more, the Group also decided to restructure the entire product development process as part of this broader renovation project. The final workplace design ticks all the boxes with a central hub for interaction and exchange combined with a homebase for each individual brand and dedicated cross-brand spaces for collaboration on enterprise-wide issues such as sustainability.

In the past, product designers only worked on new developments within their own brand, gradually bringing in other specialist departments at a later stage. With the new agile workflows, all of the relevant departments work side by side throughout the entire development process. This innovative, more holistic approach to product development helps the team collaborate across disciplines on issues that are vital for everyone. All at the same time, designers, engineers, marketing experts and other specialist departments join forces to ensure seamless integration of design, functionality and marketing for every new product. This speeds up both the development process and the pace of innovation.

Working with BSH, CSMM developed a so-called homebase for every brand featuring a distinct brand identity that helps staff identify more strongly with “their” brand. Combining communal spaces with brand-specific offices allows BSH to strike the right balance between enterprise-wide teamwork and individual brand loyalty. The common area on the ground floor serves as a social hub for all brands and lowers the threshold for knowledge exchange between members of staff. After all, serendipity and chance meetings in particular promote productive exchange. The staff can also use the integrated kitchen as a showroom. Rather than being brand-specific spaces, the product design and conference rooms are dedicated to product groups that rely on cross-brand collaboration, along with additional cross-brand spaces dedicated to enterprise-wide issues such as sustainability.