All in a Day is an article on day-to-day routines by Lauren Renner, a young knowledge-thirsty woman who works as a financial analyst at Steelcase and epitomizes Generation Y. Her working day consists of numerous team meetings, interspersed with phases of working alone. Her favorite work devices are: her smartphone, laptop, wireless mouse, and a mobile keyboard. And because she works almost exclusively digitally, she carries few bits of paper about with her. At first glance, this may seem typical for the young Generation Y. Research conducted by Steelcase shows, however, that favoring a specific work environment has less to do with age than with the working style.
For Lauren Renner, a typical day begins with a visit to the WorkCafé, an internal «third place» that also offers space for eating, working or discussing current projects with colleagues. This location provides a deliberate overlap between individual working and teamwork, and is also suitable for making phone calls or writing e-mails. Depending upon the particular task, however, different environments or infrastructure may be required. For this reason she relocates her workstation several times each day. For example, she communicates with colleagues in different time zones using a video conference system. At team meetings, she discusses the new finance concept, using state-of-the-art projection and working surfaces.
Lauren Renner argues that success today is measured in terms of the work performed and the assigned responsibilities, and that dedicated workstations are no longer relevant. Instead, the key is having access to equipment that optimally supports her, and that gives her the freedom to realize her working style.
Source: SteelcaseMAGAZIN 360°
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