Stories
Workday: Tokyo Head Office Relocation Project
01 BACKGROUND
Workday K.K.(Tokyo headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; hereinafter Workday), a leading provider of cloud-based financial and HR applications for enterprises, has relocated its Tokyo headquarters to Roppongi Hills, Tokyo in July 2022. The relocation is aligned with its objective to drive a higher level of engagement with employees and enhance the company’s workplace experience.
Workday places importance on six core values: Employees, Customer Service, Innovation, Integrity, Enjoyment, and Profitability, and believes that when employees feel fulfilled and happy working at Workday, they will be motivated to meet customer needs to the best of their ability, and their actions and other performance. The relocation project was initiated based on the corporate culture of supporting employees to realize their full potential.
Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) is pleased to have the opportunity to partner with Workday to fulfill their Tokyo headquarters relocation requirements. Our scope of services included tenant advisory, workplace strategy, office design, and project management.
02 The Solution
Office Operation Strategy Consulting
Experts from C&W’s Tenant Advisory Group developed an office operations strategy based on market analysis to help Workday deploy a more effective relocation plan with better terms for the company. We assisted Workday in contract negotiations, selection of relocation options, space programming, negotiation of new lease terms with the building owner, and communication between Workday’s global headquarters and Japan office.
To meet Workday’s desire to relocate to a symbolic Grade A office building that drives its corporate culture for its employees, C&W worked closely with Workday throughout the building selection and negotiation process. Roppongi Hills was eventually selected for its iconic location, cutting-edge building specifications and a larger floorplate size than the original location.
Office Design Through Workplace Strategy Consulting
When Workday approached us about their relocation plans, we developed a concept for their new office, focusing on how to realize their six core values of “Employees,” “Customer Service,” “Innovation,” “Integrity,” “Enjoyment,” and “Profitability,” as well as to provide an environment where employees feel comfortable and want to gather in the office.We conducted discussions and surveys with all employees to investigate and analyze their expectations and requirements for a post-COVID workplace environment, with the assumption that hybrid working would continue in the future. We learned that everyone expected the office to be a place for collaboration among colleagues rather than just a workspace. This concept served as an important starting point prior to the design and build stage.
C&W Japan Design & Workplace team used this employee feedback, as well as statistical data on employee use of office space, industry benchmarks, and best practices, to create a new office design that embodied Workday’s core values. The most important aspect of the design work is to incorporate the employees’ aspirations for the new office into the blueprints.
03 The Results
Formulation and execution of the relocation project was based on a data-driven approach as well as full consideration of what a post-COVID workplace should look like. With data on actual office use by each internal department and the adoption of hybrid working, Workday was able to create a workplace that provided sufficient open and collaboration space as requested by its employees.
C&W is very proud to have completed this long-term relocation project over the past four years and to have been able to embody Workday's core values in the new office design.
In addition, the new office reflects the feedback of Workday’s employees, which included the following
●Enough private rooms for videoconferencing
●A spacious café and break area that also serves as a place for interaction among colleagues
●All work desks have electric desk lifts to support wellness in addition to enhanced workplaces
●Visitor spaces to welcome guests and other visitors
●Installation of a mural wall that expresses Tokyo’s vibes with Workday’s branding elements
We are very pleased with the outcome of the relocation project and the satisfaction of our employees. We sincerely hope that the new office will contribute to Workday's future growth.
Aspiration of C&W’s Designer
"Workday seeks to make their products comfortable and intuitive for users, regardless of cultural background, language, or location. Not only do they strive for global best practices, they are constantly creating ways to improve functionality and deliver a comprehensive experience globally. With this in mind, we designed their office with a focus on ease of work that is fun and intuitive for everyone."
Katie O'Brien
Associate Director, Design & Workplace
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