An invited guest at KM Legal UK in Canary Wharf I was looking forward to a less participative role at Ark’s flagship event for Legal Knowledge Management professionals. But the keynote speaker was unable to attend and so at very short notice (2 hours) I agreed to talk about a topic which I’ve been spending a fair bit of time on these past few months namely “Developing Effective Collaborative Knowledge Spaces“.

A separate account of that event and the NetIKX afternoon I ran the previous week on a similar theme will appear in due course. Suffice to note both were very well attended with enthusiastic participants.

I want to focus instead on my visit last Thursday evening after KM Legal to Aecom‘s London office in Aldgate. I confess I knew nothing about them even though as I discovered I’d seen their work in many countries.  When Malcolm Weston, who was at the NetIKX event and gave an interesting description of his organisation’s building, asked if I’d like to see what they’ve done I jumped at the opportunity. And I’m glad I did.

In gauging how effective the space is I refer to some of the elements Neil Usher had used a few weeks ago in Lisboa at SocialNow in a great presentation describing the collaborative environment he created at Sky.

Here’s how 4 of his 12 stacked up at Aecom.

daylight

One of the prime contributors to an effective collaborative environment, it was noticeable how Aecom had maximised the use of natural daylight especially for breakout areas.

Ambient lighting is supported by excellent desk top lighting that can be adjusted for different tasks.

influence

I have always believed in the importance of plants. Aecom appear to agree as each ‘hub’ or work area is separated by plants not filing cabinets or screens as many organisations do.

refresh

Nutrition is key: few of today’s ‘factories’ house manual labour of the sort that was common twenty years ago.

It’s about refreshing the brain so Aecom provide great food at great prices in a wonderful setting.

space

Texture and soft materials are hugely important in creating moods and absorbing sound. Two great illustrations: canvass chairs for individual conference calls and soft furnishing and fabrics outside of the client meeting rooms.

and finally

I chose not to find out what Aecom did or what it stood for before I went hoping that it would become clear from the way their space is planned.

Words that came to mind as I toured their building: professional, quiet, understated, calm, dedicated, experienced, innovative.

Aecom’s office housed over 5 floors 4 of which are interconnected by an internal staircase (all protected by fire proof materials) had been really well thought through and feels like its a great place to work.

It serves as a great flagship for their London operation, part of a global organisation that in their words,

“Worldwide, we design, build, finance, operate and manage projects and programs that unlock opportunities, protect our environment and improve people’s lives.”