2025: Re-imagining the Post-Pandemic Workplace | BCO NextGen Design Competition Winners

2020 Brought forward a series of new challenges for all; from a global pandemic, tackling the impending Climate Crisis, and addressing ongoing issues around Equality and Inclusivity. 

That is why the BCO NextGen were thrilled to bring back the BCO NextGen Competition for a second time in 2020. First launched in 2017, the BCO NextGen membership were tasked with looking beyond the Pandemic and sharing their vision of the Office in 2025.

As the office sector faces seas of change, we challenged entrants to imagine a better future. Entrants were encouraged to think outside of the box to present innovative and thought-provoking solutions that bring to life how the workspace may change over the next five years. 

Entrants were free to choose their own theme related to the current global state, or one of the below:

• Redefining the purpose of the physical office space: Why work in the office when you can work anywhere? 
• Shifting work patterns: The rise of working remotely and more flexibly with teams connected via technology.
• Increased localism: The potential for suburban hubs with blended uses, to support traditional city office locations.
• Reduced densities of office buildings: Opportunities for alternative uses or sustainable re-use to drive greater utilisation and value. 
• Designing Inclusively: Intergenerational working, mentorship and work experience opportunities.
• Increased data tracking, gathering and analysis: To ensure the office is a safe environment to visit.
• Hygienic and healthy buildings: What they require and the role of new technologies to accelerate this

Shortlisted entrants presented their ideas at the 'Pecha Kucha' style webinar on 9 December, with the competition's judging panel announcing the joint winners at the end.

Competition judge and BCO's Immediate Past President Katrina Kostic Samen praised all five teams for the amount of work that went into delivering the presentations and thought leadership while working in teams, completely isolated during the pandemic.

SCATTERED SPACE

By Gina Colley, Threesixty Architecture Ltd 

"COVID exacerbated many social issues such as gender inequality, men's mental health, and isolation of the disabled community. Hopefully, we are now at a place where there is light at the end of the tunnel - an important time to pause and consider how we rebuild some of the structures that have fueled these inequalities. Scattered Space is a model that can help businesses build an agile network of premises. The aspiration behind it is to bring more opportunity, more equality, and more life to the workforce."

FUTUREWORK

By:

- Chris Radley
- Sam Ki
- Benjamin Koslowski

Fletcher Priest Architects.

"Grown from our research and conversations we've had with colleagues, three key themes were health, sustainability, and experience. Futurework is a short animation that looks at where we work and rethinks the workspace as a network of connected places." 

Watch the full recording of the Top 5 teams at the event where the judges had the difficult talk of choosing the winners here.