Workplace Accessibility

Kim Vanderland Space Matters Consulting, LLC May, 2013

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Executive Summary •  Work is changing – technology has changed business •  The workforce is changing – Age in place is not just for residential

accessibility •  The rapid rate of change is driving increasing need for:

•  Flexibility on demand within the workspace •  Consistent and universal worker experience regardless of location (in and

out of the workplace)

•  Change is inevitable and universal design is a key tool to help achieve organizational success

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Work is changing

Information is moving faster than ever before, which results in:

•  Increasing global focus

•  Fragile competitive advantages

•  Demand for flexibility

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Global Focus

•  Resources and activities are no longer geographically constrained

•  Speed to market is more critical than ever

•  Using global workforce enables 24 hr work day

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Organizational competitive advantage is difficult to maintain

•  Social networking enables real time consumer reactions and fickle consumer (and workforce) loyalty

•  Innovations bring rapid fire changes with deep impacts across entire industries

•  Business strategies must adapt quickly to these rapidly changing market conditions

The workforce is changing as well •  ~30% of the current workforce reported

having a disability or impairments at work (U.S. Dept of Education)

•  By 2016: •  ~750,000 Wounded Warriors will be

returning to work in the United States (Wounded Warriors Project, 2013)

•  By 2020: •  ~1/4 of the workforce will be 55+ •  Twice as many 65+ workers continuing

to work (US Census Bureau)

•  ~10% of college graduates have a disability (U.S. Dept of Education)

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Innovate or Die

•  Flexibility is a critical need across all of the organization

•  Efficient change is key to achieve market demands

•  Solutions need to be resilient and future proof (change ready)

•  User experience needs to be universal across space and time

Most corporations react to worker needs… at a great cost

•  Lack of formalized process to proactively address workforce needs is resulting in increased costs and risk of litigation (Law.com)

•  Workers are increasingly experiencing impairments at work causing adverse impacts to productivity and engagement (US Census Bureau)

•  The U.S. Government is expected establish rules that put more pressure on corporations to hire veterans and people with disabilities

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Organizations must go further, beyond space, to create “omnipresence”

“...Workplace will expand beyond a focus on “mobility” to include the concept of “presence,” both physical and virtual. Our focus on the expanding range of places where our employees are “present” and actively accomplishing the various requirements of their work, is critical. ” “..mobility support is rapidly becoming a table stakes condition for knowledge workers...critical for competitive positioning”

- Corenet “Real Estate 2020”, May, 2012

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What is omnipresence?

Seeming to be everywhere at the same time...

In business, it is the ability to work productively, drive value and demonstrate engagement from anywhere...even across multiple locations/tools simultaneously

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•  Economic conditions require organizations to do more with less, consistently, and over time (continuous improvement not retrenching)

•  Designing multiple uses for space and time improves user experience, adds to the efficiency and effectiveness (time, space, and money)

•  Flexible work strategies to enable work life integration (next generation of work life balance) are key to attraction and retention of quality workforce

People need to work anywhere…as the workplace

Creation of universal experience expands the idea of flexibility to best enable productivity

•  Look at more than the physical space – IT, HR, and the organizational culture are key stakeholders/performers

•  Enable self-help choices and seamless transitions within the workplace for everyone (collaborative to focus, colocation to distributed teamwork, individual to team space, etc.)

•  Have a process for ADA Accommodations that proactively seeks out solution options BEFORE requests are made

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Start with the leadership vision for the future

•  What is the desired organizational culture?

•  What is the desired personality/brand for the customer?

•  Does the workforce understand both of these relative to their individual roles?

•  What is the best way to get there from here with continuous improvement for all of the above?

Filter leadership visions through universal experience goals to create optimal solutions

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Organizational Goals and Strategies

Organizational Culture

Physical Design

Real Estate Strategy

IT and HR Strategy

Win/Win Solutions

Universal Experience

Goals

Example - Telephony, video, and software solutions integrate well with most commonly used readers,

hearing aides, etc

Example – Activity settings within the workplace have adequate power, sound masking, furniture with

multiple uses

Solutions are defined, published, and readily available to workforce

Corporations are creating communities through consolidated campus locations

•  Corporate campuses create economies of scale for shared services

•  Consolidates 5,000- 15,000+ people in millions of square feet of office space

•  Campuses require same development rigor as communities (infrastructure, traffic management, accessibility, etc)

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Within the workplace, there are great opportunities to add/retrofit accessible options

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•  Standards for technology accessibility and compatibility with most commonly used Assistive Tools (insurance company may be a great source for the tools used)

•  Design requirements for multi-purpose flexibility for all key furniture/spaces – such as murphy desks, TV/AV in movable walls, quick conversion furniture components

•  Plan for pilots to test and learn – don’t assume what works, ask users, pilot concept, then refine designs/tools

•  Communications required to be made available across many channels – Use QR codes, digital signage/presentations with close caption, transcription and/or reader options, etc.

•  Self-serve solutions – Sit to stand, quiet/focus rooms, noise cancelling headphones, etc.

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Hybrid offices with movable desks to support 2-6 person meetings -on the fly

Seating that can be converted to project spaces in 48 hrs

Additional capacity on demand

Height Adjustable Options Dynamic QR Codes

WIFI

USB Power Plugs

Here are some ideas to add flexibility and enable universal experience

Plant walls/panels

Digital Signage with

Reader Technology

Check in… What do you think?

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Change is inevitable, universal design is a powerful tool to help organizations succeed

•  Change the use of time and space to enhance productivity, improve morale, and grow team inclusiveness

•  Improve customer experience through increased worker engagement and empowerment

•  Be change ready, future proof yourselves by creating on demand flexibility before you need it

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Next Steps? •  Let’s stay connected

•  Send me an email to be added to a newsletter

•  Share best practices and lessons learned

•  Spread the word

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Some insights to ponder... •  Google “You can be serious without a suit. Our founders built Google around the idea that work should be

challenging, and the challenge should be fun. We believe that great, creative things are more likely to happen with the right company culture–and that doesn’t just mean lava lamps and rubber balls. There is an emphasis on team achievements and pride in individual accomplishments that contribute to our overall success. We put great stock in our employees–energetic, passionate people from diverse backgrounds with creative approaches to work, play and life. Our atmosphere may be casual, but as new ideas emerge in a café line, at a team meeting or at the gym, they are traded, tested and put into practice with dizzying speed–and they may be the launch pad for a new project destined for worldwide use.”

•  American Express “Living up to our values is our first priority. These three operating principles also guide our daily actions:

•  Offer superior value propositions to all of our customers. We aim to provide products, services, benefits and rewards that deliver more value than any competitor.

•  Operate with best-in-class economics. We focus on managing our business as efficiently as possible to continually improve the quality of our service and invest in growth.

•  Support the American Express brand. American Express has one of the world’s most trusted brands. We strive to always provide the world-class service and personal recognition that our customers expect from us.”

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Contact Information

•  Kim Vanderland

•  Space Matters Consulting, LLC

•  P 804-551-1748

•  kim@spacematters.us

•  www.spacematters.us