That's not remotely true. Put the square footage of the above ground sections of the ring into a square 4 story building and then tell me how it would take longer to walk between the two furthest point of a square than it would for a ring.
Your idea for a basic building shape sucks. I really hate to say that but it's true. It's a building for humans. A four story cube sounds like the Borg. A place where creativity goes to die. It wasn't even a consideration.
I might be the lone dissenter, but I look at it this way: Apple didn't become the company they are today by having luxurious offices. They got there by having a stern taskmaster, in the form of Jobs, and by having great, talented people able to pull of the impossible regularly.
I view the campus as a mistake. Keep the cramped offices.
Surely you're joking. Apple is spread throughout several office buildings in the area. This consolidated most employees in one building.
I might be the lone dissenter, but I look at it this way: Apple didn't become the company they are today by having luxurious offices. They got there by having a stern taskmaster, in the form of Jobs, and by having great, talented people able to pull of the impossible regularly.
I view the campus as a mistake. Keep the cramped offices.
The argument that "cramped offices" are responsible for Apple being "the company they are today", is neither true nor logical.
Apple employees aren't working in cramped offices, they are dispersed among various buildings around Cupertino, and into surrounding Sunnyvale and Santa Clara. Apple buys or leases additional space as needed. This is nothing new, Apple has been doing this from the beginning. What consolidation accomplishes is efficiency. That means less travel between buildings. Consolidation also allows for more opportunities to interact, to exchange ideas, and to collaborate, not to mention further foster a feeling of cohesion amongst team Apple. Regardless of the office space, Apple has always sought and hired talented people. The new campus doesn't change that.
Apple's success is due to the alignment of its corporate vision and strategy; an adherence to core values and a focus on innovation; a culture of innovation through iteration; vigorous communication and careful conservatorship of its clear, unified brand identity; anticipation of viable opportunities in the market sector, and the building and shaping of it; the belief that it isn't about getting to the market first, but rather creating the best product and user experience possible; understanding that customer loyalty is a result of building products that people love, not ones that show how smart you are; embracing a start-up's mentality, regardless of company size; understanding that product development should drive sales and marketing, not the other way around; knowing that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, meaning you market the soul of a machine - how it can improve your life, not the parts inside that make it up; knowing that the best ideas always win, regardless of source; the belief that people are the greatest resource: focused, effective, and accountable management, as well as skilled and talented engineers, designers, and support personnel; obsessive attention to detail, design, and the user experience; the belief that 'good enough' isn't, craftsmanship matters; intense focus and co-comittant efficiency as a result of a functional organizational structure of specialization; development and control of its own technologies; prudent allocation of resources to leverage R&D toward deliverable products; growth and continued relevance through the active acquisition of companies and absorption of their cutting edge technologies; efficient, flexible, and effective supply-chain management; tight operational control over manufacturing, procurement, and logistics; strategic partnerships in the formation and expansion of a digital ecosystem; carefully differentiated, yet coherent, streamlined product offerings; control, access, and brand promotion through attractive and valuable retail channels; a passionate focus on the customer experience; etc.
Stated concisely, the essence of Apple's success is that it is the result of its mastery of entrepreneurship at the nexus of technology and design.
Change is inevitable; a company only hopes that it is a result of growth and success, not contraction resulting from failure. Apple's continued success will depend upon how it functions; the consolidation of office space resulting from the new campus can only contribute to that.
As to the Cupertino city council video, what the FRICK is their problem with electric cars? No one has enough for any of their whining to mean anything.
Your comment has very little, if any, thought behind it. How would or could office access in a square building be better than office access in a circular one? Think different for a change. A circular building would actually give you better and faster access to other offices.
I'm afraid that I would agree with the original poster. We have a large circular mall here north of Dallas. Not as visually appealing as the new Apple building. Its a pain in the a** to walk. There are a couple of places where you can cut across to the other side.
But to get to the point, the circular design isn't anything new, and there are core design reasons why everyone hasn't copying it.
Still, its an awesome looking building that Apple is creating.
I'm afraid that I would agree with the original poster. We have a large circular mall here north of Dallas. Not as visually appealing as the new Apple building. Its a pain in the a** to walk. There are a couple of places where you can cut across to the other side.
But to get to the point, the circular design isn't anything new, and there are core design reasons why everyone hasn't copying it.
Still, its an awesome looking building that Apple is creating.
A mall is an incredibly different use case than an office. They also have a huge incentive to try to get you to walk past every single shop.
Edit: I just looked for circular malls north of Dallas. Northpark? If that's the place, it's not circular. And "not as visually appealing" is an understatement of criminal proportions.
I'm afraid that I would agree with the original poster. We have a large circular mall here north of Dallas. Not as visually appealing as the new Apple building. Its a pain in the a** to walk. There are a couple of places where you can cut across to the other side.
But to get to the point, the circular design isn't anything new, and there are core design reasons why everyone hasn't copying it.
Still, its an awesome looking building that Apple is creating.
Yes, I can see how it would be a pain to walk. As a shopper, it must feel like being a hamster.
It is beautiful but it seems like a huge pain to walk around. I hope that the underground portion that will house a walkway across the ring will also include a moving sideway to help speed up that process.
In this online world who walks to communicate ?
A walk before and after lunch or coffee break is good for you!
Surely you're joking. Apple is spread throughout several office buildings in the area. This consolidated most employees in one building.
No, I'm not joking. Apple arrived where they are today without a stunning work environment. I happen to think a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity. If all of one's needs have been met, there is no need to achieve.
No, I'm not joking. Apple arrived where they are today without a stunning work environment. I happen to think a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity. If all of one's needs have been met, there is no need to achieve.
It's difficult to imagine that all of their needs are met by working in a nice new office. Are the morlocks still being paid money?
No, I'm not joking. Apple arrived where they are today without a stunning work environment. I happen to think a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity. If all of one's needs have been met, there is no need to achieve.
You probably never been to NorCal, let alone Apple HQ. Heck, let's throw all the employees in a warehouse with no furniture. That discomfort must breed innovation.
Dissatisfaction leads to defection and constant turn around.
We have a mall nearby here with the same design. The biggest problem is for the folks in the higher floors. They will have no way to cut across without walking down and up the stairs or using the elevators.
A breezeway can help to an extent, but that is not present in the design. So, there will be some folk who will need to keep walking the arc!
I might be the lone dissenter, but I look at it this way: Apple didn't become the company they are today by having luxurious offices. They got there by having a stern taskmaster, in the form of Jobs, and by having great, talented people able to pull of the impossible regularly.
I view the campus as a mistake. Keep the cramped offices.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SpamSandwich
No, I'm not joking. Apple arrived where they are today without a stunning work environment. I happen to think a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity. If all of one's needs have been met, there is no need to achieve.
While an indentured office drudge bidiing his time might find some solace in the self-delusion that "discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity", or more likely, reside within the mind of an authoritarian taskmaster with deficient interpersonal skills, historical evidence of the repressive practices of successive totalitarian regimes give the lie to that idea, let alone that "Arbeit macht frei".
While a company's 'headspace' is more important than its office space, a "stunning work environment" doesn't preclude a company's ability to maintain a start-up's mentality. The ability to "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." and working in "luxurious offices" aren't mutually exclusive. That applies regardless of how far a company goes or how big it gets. Apple's new campus isn't a harbinger of inevitable decline into complacency and mediocrity, it's an infrastructure necessity in the service of efficiency and productivity.
High achievers are extrinsically motivated by the opportunity to collaborate with other educated, highly skilled and talented people in a challenging and forward-thinking work environment that promotes personal and professional growth potential. They are intrinsically motivated by core values of integrity and trust, the need to be productive and utilize their abilities, to contribute, to give good value for remuneration made and benefits conferred, as well as the desire to not let either their workmates nor employer down.
Social and psychological pressures that lead to "discomfort and dissatisfaction" may very well arise, but they aren't weapons to be wielded, whether by oneself or others, like a cudgel to coerce productivity, they are the consequence of embracing high expectations of performance and the occasional disappointment of missing important objectives or milestones. None of which has anything to do with deliberate, enforced environmental conditions such as "cramped offices", nor excessive cold, heat, noise, etc.
While "discomfort and dissatisfaction" might motivate one to leave a miserable work environment and seek more favourable conditions and opportunities elsewhere, they aren't a viable nor sustainable source of productivity. Any employees that need to be motivated by "a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction" to be productive, aren't the type of "great, talented people" that Apple seeks to employ, let alone hire.
I might be the lone dissenter, but I look at it this way: Apple didn't become the company they are today by having luxurious offices. They got there by having a stern taskmaster, in the form of Jobs, and by having great, talented people able to pull of the impossible regularly.
I view the campus as a mistake. Keep the cramped offices.
A mall is an incredibly different use case than an office. They also have a huge incentive to try to get you to walk past every single shop.
Yes, I agree. That is what makes a circular design so poor for office space.
Edit: I just looked for circular malls north of Dallas. Northpark? If that's the place, it's not circular. And "not as visually appealing" is an understatement of criminal proportions.
While an indentured office drudge bidiing his time might find some solace in the self-delusion that "discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity", or more likely, reside within the mind of an authoritarian taskmaster with deficient interpersonal skills, historical evidence of the repressive practices of successive totalitarian regimes give the lie to that idea, let alone that "Arbeit macht frei".
<p style="min-height:14px;"> </p>
While a company's 'headspace' is more important than its office space, a "stunning work environment" doesn't preclude a company's ability to maintain a start-up's mentality. The ability to "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." and working in "luxurious offices" aren't mutually exclusive. That applies regardless of how far a company goes or how big it gets. Apple's new campus isn't a harbinger of inevitable decline into complacency and mediocrity, it's an infrastructure necessity in the service of efficiency and productivity.
<p style="min-height:14px;"> </p>
High achievers are extrinsically motivated by the opportunity to collaborate with other educated, highly skilled and talented people in a challenging and forward-thinking work environment that promotes personal and professional growth potential. They are intrinsically motivated by core values of integrity and trust, the need to be productive and utilize their abilities, to contribute, to give good value for remuneration made and benefits conferred, as well as the desire to not let either their workmates nor employer down.
Social and psychological pressures that lead to "discomfort and dissatisfaction" may very well arise, but they aren't weapons to be wielded, whether by oneself or others, like a cudgel to coerce productivity, they are the consequence of embracing high expectations of performance and the occasional disappointment of missing important objectives or milestones. None of which has anything to do with deliberate, enforced environmental conditions such as "cramped offices", nor excessive cold, heat, noise, etc.
<p style="min-height:14px;"> </p>
While "discomfort and dissatisfaction" might motivate one to leave a miserable work environment and seek more favourable conditions and opportunities elsewhere, they aren't a viable nor sustainable source of productivity. Any employees that need to be motivated by "a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction" to be productive, aren't the type of "great, talented people" that Apple seeks to employ, let alone hire.
Comments
Your idea for a basic building shape sucks. I really hate to say that but it's true. It's a building for humans. A four story cube sounds like the Borg. A place where creativity goes to die. It wasn't even a consideration.
This just made my day!!!
This just made my day!!!
Surely you're joking. Apple is spread throughout several office buildings in the area. This consolidated most employees in one building.
I might be the lone dissenter, but I look at it this way: Apple didn't become the company they are today by having luxurious offices. They got there by having a stern taskmaster, in the form of Jobs, and by having great, talented people able to pull of the impossible regularly.
I view the campus as a mistake. Keep the cramped offices.
The argument that "cramped offices" are responsible for Apple being "the company they are today", is neither true nor logical.Apple employees aren't working in cramped offices, they are dispersed among various buildings around Cupertino, and into surrounding Sunnyvale and Santa Clara. Apple buys or leases additional space as needed. This is nothing new, Apple has been doing this from the beginning. What consolidation accomplishes is efficiency. That means less travel between buildings. Consolidation also allows for more opportunities to interact, to exchange ideas, and to collaborate, not to mention further foster a feeling of cohesion amongst team Apple. Regardless of the office space, Apple has always sought and hired talented people. The new campus doesn't change that.
Apple's success is due to the alignment of its corporate vision and strategy; an adherence to core values and a focus on innovation; a culture of innovation through iteration; vigorous communication and careful conservatorship of its clear, unified brand identity; anticipation of viable opportunities in the market sector, and the building and shaping of it; the belief that it isn't about getting to the market first, but rather creating the best product and user experience possible; understanding that customer loyalty is a result of building products that people love, not ones that show how smart you are; embracing a start-up's mentality, regardless of company size; understanding that product development should drive sales and marketing, not the other way around; knowing that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, meaning you market the soul of a machine - how it can improve your life, not the parts inside that make it up; knowing that the best ideas always win, regardless of source; the belief that people are the greatest resource: focused, effective, and accountable management, as well as skilled and talented engineers, designers, and support personnel; obsessive attention to detail, design, and the user experience; the belief that 'good enough' isn't, craftsmanship matters; intense focus and co-comittant efficiency as a result of a functional organizational structure of specialization; development and control of its own technologies; prudent allocation of resources to leverage R&D toward deliverable products; growth and continued relevance through the active acquisition of companies and absorption of their cutting edge technologies; efficient, flexible, and effective supply-chain management; tight operational control over manufacturing, procurement, and logistics; strategic partnerships in the formation and expansion of a digital ecosystem; carefully differentiated, yet coherent, streamlined product offerings; control, access, and brand promotion through attractive and valuable retail channels; a passionate focus on the customer experience; etc.
Or one could just go ahead and state any reason besides "cramped offices". At best, one might argue Apple is successful despite "cramped offices", if one accepted the assertion of "cramped offices" in the first place. The reality though, is that none of Apple's current success has any thing to do with working out of "cramped offices". If that were true, Apple would still be working out of 2066 Crist Drive in Los Altos: [URL=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2462931/Apples-humble-beginnings-First-computers-revealed-Steve-Jobs-1976-photo.html]http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2462931/Apples-humble-beginnings-First-computers-revealed-Steve-Jobs-1976-photo.html[/URL]
Stated concisely, the essence of Apple's success is that it is the result of its mastery of entrepreneurship at the nexus of technology and design.
Change is inevitable; a company only hopes that it is a result of growth and success, not contraction resulting from failure. Apple's continued success will depend upon how it functions; the consolidation of office space resulting from the new campus can only contribute to that.
As to the Cupertino city council video, what the FRICK is their problem with electric cars? No one has enough for any of their whining to mean anything.
Your comment has very little, if any, thought behind it. How would or could office access in a square building be better than office access in a circular one? Think different for a change. A circular building would actually give you better and faster access to other offices.
I'm afraid that I would agree with the original poster. We have a large circular mall here north of Dallas. Not as visually appealing as the new Apple building. Its a pain in the a** to walk. There are a couple of places where you can cut across to the other side.
But to get to the point, the circular design isn't anything new, and there are core design reasons why everyone hasn't copying it.
Still, its an awesome looking building that Apple is creating.
A mall is an incredibly different use case than an office. They also have a huge incentive to try to get you to walk past every single shop.
Edit: I just looked for circular malls north of Dallas. Northpark? If that's the place, it's not circular. And "not as visually appealing" is an understatement of criminal proportions.
I'm afraid that I would agree with the original poster. We have a large circular mall here north of Dallas. Not as visually appealing as the new Apple building. Its a pain in the a** to walk. There are a couple of places where you can cut across to the other side.
But to get to the point, the circular design isn't anything new, and there are core design reasons why everyone hasn't copying it.
Still, its an awesome looking building that Apple is creating.
Yes, I can see how it would be a pain to walk. As a shopper, it must feel like being a hamster.[URL=http://s1282.photobucket.com/user/AweWyld/media/circular_building_001_zpse73c2134.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums/a533/AweWyld/circular_building_001_zpse73c2134.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
It is beautiful but it seems like a huge pain to walk around. I hope that the underground portion that will house a walkway across the ring will also include a moving sideway to help speed up that process.
In this online world who walks to communicate ?
A walk before and after lunch or coffee break is good for you!
No, I'm not joking. Apple arrived where they are today without a stunning work environment. I happen to think a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity. If all of one's needs have been met, there is no need to achieve.
It's difficult to imagine that all of their needs are met by working in a nice new office. Are the morlocks still being paid money?
You probably never been to NorCal, let alone Apple HQ. Heck, let's throw all the employees in a warehouse with no furniture. That discomfort must breed innovation.
Dissatisfaction leads to defection and constant turn around.
We have a mall nearby here with the same design. The biggest problem is for the folks in the higher floors. They will have no way to cut across without walking down and up the stairs or using the elevators.
A breezeway can help to an extent, but that is not present in the design. So, there will be some folk who will need to keep walking the arc!
I might be the lone dissenter, but I look at it this way: Apple didn't become the company they are today by having luxurious offices. They got there by having a stern taskmaster, in the form of Jobs, and by having great, talented people able to pull of the impossible regularly.
I view the campus as a mistake. Keep the cramped offices.
No, I'm not joking. Apple arrived where they are today without a stunning work environment. I happen to think a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity. If all of one's needs have been met, there is no need to achieve.
While an indentured office drudge bidiing his time might find some solace in the self-delusion that "discomfort and dissatisfaction are necessary to productivity", or more likely, reside within the mind of an authoritarian taskmaster with deficient interpersonal skills, historical evidence of the repressive practices of successive totalitarian regimes give the lie to that idea, let alone that "Arbeit macht frei".
While a company's 'headspace' is more important than its office space, a "stunning work environment" doesn't preclude a company's ability to maintain a start-up's mentality. The ability to "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." and working in "luxurious offices" aren't mutually exclusive. That applies regardless of how far a company goes or how big it gets. Apple's new campus isn't a harbinger of inevitable decline into complacency and mediocrity, it's an infrastructure necessity in the service of efficiency and productivity.
High achievers are extrinsically motivated by the opportunity to collaborate with other educated, highly skilled and talented people in a challenging and forward-thinking work environment that promotes personal and professional growth potential. They are intrinsically motivated by core values of integrity and trust, the need to be productive and utilize their abilities, to contribute, to give good value for remuneration made and benefits conferred, as well as the desire to not let either their workmates nor employer down.
Social and psychological pressures that lead to "discomfort and dissatisfaction" may very well arise, but they aren't weapons to be wielded, whether by oneself or others, like a cudgel to coerce productivity, they are the consequence of embracing high expectations of performance and the occasional disappointment of missing important objectives or milestones. None of which has anything to do with deliberate, enforced environmental conditions such as "cramped offices", nor excessive cold, heat, noise, etc.
While "discomfort and dissatisfaction" might motivate one to leave a miserable work environment and seek more favourable conditions and opportunities elsewhere, they aren't a viable nor sustainable source of productivity. Any employees that need to be motivated by "a certain level of discomfort and dissatisfaction" to be productive, aren't the type of "great, talented people" that Apple seeks to employ, let alone hire.
Is that you Ebenezer?
A mall is an incredibly different use case than an office. They also have a huge incentive to try to get you to walk past every single shop.
Grapevine Mills mall
You're not familiar with Steve Jobs, are you?