Establish a sustainable, employee-first design approach

The design started by aligning with our overall enterprise goals, one of which was to consolidate real estate.

Prior to the retrofit, we had two floors in PENN1—mostly individual workspaces—where utilization was only 60%. Our goal was to consolidate into a single floor, rebalance the use of space, and increase utilization by 20–30%.

• Replace "me" space with "we" space

  The original office was a place people came to do individual work. The retrofit is considered a hybrid work hub designed to be a center for talent and collaboration.

• Create inclusive and equitable experiences

  Before the retrofit, 18% of the workforce was 100% remote. Post-retrofit, we expected almost all employees to work remotely at least part of the time, which meant the design must consider that all meetings would include at least one remote attendee.

• Understand utilization

  The tri-state area serves about 1,700 Cisco employees, of which 500 regularly use the office.

• Reduce power consumption

  Power consumption needed to be radically optimized and reduced.

• Anticipate technology transformation

  Our expectation was that there would be two more technology lifecycle upgrades over the “life of the space” that should be accommodated without the need for a remodel.

• Prioritize health and wellness

  We sought to maximize natural daylight and fresh air.

• Apply data-informed design

  Spaces should be designed for meetings with fewer than five people to facilitate more frequent, smaller groups. Data sourced from existing Cisco video endpoints from PENN1 revealed that the average meeting size was 3.7 people in-person and 2.5 when remote.

• Employee movement

  We expected employees would move around during the day, with 5–6 different touchpoints within the office.