he foosball and shuffleboard tables was how great they looked too—well-crafted and elegant. They really do look more like decorative pieces than functional games,” Ly Nhon, AIA’s CFO, agrees. Like Marcus at District Eight, Ly Nhon has also noticed that the games, along with a more modern office design employing additional concepts like free-seating and greater openness, are having a positive impact. “There is a palpable sense that we are promoting innovation and creativity, especially compared to our previous workplace which employed traditional cubicles, enclosed meeting rooms, and where seating was assigned to staff. This is a major change for us,” Ly Nhon confirms.
“Over time I’ve become more aware of the impact of the games pieces on the teams here. Staff have expressed appreciation that we are promoting non-traditional ways to interact in our office. This also helps to remind them that the company they work for is open to trying new things in the pursuit of employee satisfaction,” AIA’s CFO smiles finally.
“Bell Labs was a golden era,” their director of acoustic research, Dave Matthews, once told a Wired writer. It seems Vietnam is moving towards its own golden era with its developing start-up eco-system, and with high-end Vietnamese brands making inroads into international markets. And right now, it’s being driven from offices designed by local designers like Lab Saigon with the same philosophies that helped Bell to become an unstoppable corporate powerhouse.
This post is also available in: Vietnamese