Dealing with the office of today.

Today's office is one that promotes flexibility, call it the convertible office. Today's office acknowledges collaboration and facilitates teamwork.

Of course everyone needs always-on Internet service, but do we really need gigabit Internet service today?

I think we still need to redesign our office space to accommodate the way we are doing business today.

To deal with the issues of today and be a little less concerned about what the office of tomorrow is going to look like.

Today we need to focus on:

1. Security

2. Backup/Disaster Recovery

3. High Speed Network

4. Wireless

5. Environmental

6. Flexibility

7. Mobility

8. Collaborative Space

9. Common Spaces

to name a few. Tomorrow we can focus on the robotic, RFID and Jetsons model.

We need to understand how people are using spaces today and design those spaces to accommodate, more than accommodate, facilitate their productive business practice.

In order to design for today it takes an understanding of how people work and the differences from yesterday and how their workspace needs to change.

We need to look at every department and consider what technology, layout, facilities and flexibility would make them more productive.

If we could bring them up to the office of today it would be a quantum leap in office design.

I have said many times that if we, the experts, put our minds to it we could design the office of tomorrow.

It would be the most high tech of high tech, it would anticipate our needs and be waiting for us with a hot cup of coffee and the application we need open on our computer.

The only problem, I just don't know if anyone is ready for that, and I am certain that no-one is ready to pay for it!