Appropriate workplace strategies in Hong Kong

Abstract

Alternative Workplace Strategies (AWS) is a collective term used to describe changes in the workplace. By intensively reviewing materials about AWS development, it was found that AWS had begun to supplement traditional offices in the USA and some other western countries. Will AWS be appropriate for Hong Kong? To answer this question, a detailed questionnaire survey was carried out to see if Hong Kong organizations are working on a trend for AWS application now and in the coming future. In addition, several in-depth interviews had been conducted to collect Facility Management professionals' opinions on the applicability of AWS in Hong Kong offices. An in-depth case study was also conducted in order to investigate the challenges and impacts on workplace changes in one of the biggest property firms in Hong Kong. Findings indicate that AWS has been adopted by certain sectors within Hong Kong. Furthermore, people expect an increasing number of organizations would adopt one or more AWS in offices. Although there were echoes of past AWS experience in the West, it is found that the impact of AWS in Hong Kong have been less than that reported in North American. This may be changing due to the 1997 economic turmoil, which has initiated a sense of crisis among management as well as office workers and made them more willing to attempt alternatives to traditional approaches to problems than before. Moreover, the rapid development in office technologies has forced some organizations to reinvent their workplace settings. Conservative budgeting of "non-core" business costs, such as facility costs, would be another reason that made AWS proposal more acceptable and practical than before. On the other hand, findings showed that significant problems in converting traditional office designs to alternative offices would be found if organizations changed their office layout simply for the sake of change without spending time to study office needs prior to the project. It is generally believed that changing the workplace setting without getting people's buy-in in advance would make the transformation problematic. For renovation projects, thoughtful planning is critical to minimize chaos and disruptions to office workers. In conclusion, sticking to traditional workplace design would be appropriate for some Hong Kong organizations. It is though necessary to critically capitalize on AWS experience from other countries and avoid the lengthy learning curve before organizations decided if it is time for them to reinvent their workplace, which would have been or will be obsolete in accommodate current and emerging office activities.