San Diego, CA – Walking down the main aisle of the sales floor with Alex Will at iHeart San Diego a little smile starts to spread across my face. I can’t help but feel like we accomplished our goal. As we turn the corner the hallway wall flashes a bright splash of red on the crisp white office-scape. The sales floor is abuzz with 40 + account execs, some sitting, some standing, all closing at their height-adjustable desks as they work through Tuesday afternoon.
“Glad to see everyone taking advantage of the HAT desks. In some offices it never takes.” I mention, but Alex is already ahead of me. “Here is my spot” he beams with dubious pride, “I’m near the door in case it gets too loud. I just bought a house 10 minutes away”.
Many of the account execs on this sales floor came straight out of private offices. The transition is not for everyone. I am not too worried about it though. Knowing this was the case we huddled up during the design phase and created as much privacy at each workstation as one could hope for in an open plan layout.
It sure beats the alternative. Up until the recent remodel the iHeart San Diego team was spread between two floors. Production and most of the leadership team was upstairs while the DJ’s and radio show hosts were grinding away in the studios down below. People were working together for months and never meeting one another. There were miscommunications and a lack of cohesion between teams. It was not ideal.
Now rewind to August 2018. Alex, the consummate salesman, (who I have never seen outside of a suit complete with a pocket square) waltzed into the BOO Furniture showroom. With little fanfare, he announced that we were to be iHeart media San Diego’s new furniture partner.
Really? Why would we want to do that? I asked, but I already knew the answer. Alex, if we set up your new space I want to talk about the project on the air. Can we do that? Next, I get an email from Alex. He has found the perfect person for us to work with to broadcast our vision. Nick Hardwick, 11 year NFL player & former Charger & FOX Sports broadcaster. (Slow your roll SD, the chargers may be gone but Nicks still here.)
You may be thinking, what the hell does football have to do with office furniture? But that’s the thing. It has EVERYTHING to do with office furniture. Let me explain. Since Mobey Dick was a minnow the guys and gals running America’s boardrooms have been using sports metaphors in business. Why? Because they ring true! The same dynamics, the same realities that affect a sports team ON the field affect YOUR TEAM when they are IN the field.
Who knew!? The reality is that a team is a team. Your office furniture forms the environment in which your team thrives or dives. Getting it right is important. Your office is your home field. This is where you train, where you prepare for the big game. So when Alex suggested Nick the whole thing started to make sense to me.
Your Office Is Where You Make It
At the end of the day, we are all trying to reach our full potential. On the individual level and the organizational level. Your team cannot reach the next level if they lack the platform to do so. How is your assistant supposed to crush it every day with a pinched nerve in his shoulder because he’s been hunched over every day in a cheap chair you bought online sight unseen?
How are your creative teams spread across 3 states supposed to brainstorm if you don’t have a functional conferencing solution set up? These are hang-ups we see every day in offices across southern California.
When we say “Your Office Is Where You Make It” We are saying that your office is where you and your team achieve success, where you thrive. It also is, well…where you make it! That could be a traditional office, a co-working space, or a nice spot on the beach with your iPad and a cold drink.
Sometimes Alex and Nick prefer to work at their desk or in the studios at iHeart headquarters where they can catch up with the team and push projects forward. Other times the chit-chat is too much and they need to get away and pound through a deadline. Either way, their office furniture should support their needs, and THAT is the goal.