Equifax moves workplace into North Sydney office building Blue & William

One thing that became immediately clear was that their future workplace would be critical to success and fundamental in achieving the company’s growth and sustainability targets.

For Equifax, the journey to find the perfect foundation for its future began over two years ago, in early 2022, when the decision was made to find a new home for the Australian headquarters of the multinational data, analytics and technology company. Sixty potential offices were presented for consideration from the initial search which were subsequently shortlisted to three serious options – with all three coincidentally being Lendlease developments.

The opportunity to work with Lendlease to create a thoroughly bespoke workplace solution that would address both Equifax’s needs and ideals was both unique and timely. The profound disruption to traditional working wreaked by Covid not only changed the workspace landscape, but provided a rare window of opportunity to completely re-think the role of space and the future requirements of the business. A global directive to reduce office footprints, and the need for much greater flexibility in how, when and where people work were the catalysts for a holistic reimagining of how the new workplace would be designed.

Blue & William, owned by Keppel REIT and developed by Lendlease, was selected for the opportunity it presented to create a genuinely bespoke approach to addressing Equifax’s current and future needs, such as embedded flexibility within the workspace and opportunities to nurture greater wellbeing.

Having spent a decade in North Sydney at the previous office location, the team were already sold on the merits of the location – with the knowledge that billions of dollars in new investment and the imminent opening of the Victoria Cross metro station would only make North Sydney even more diverse, vibrant, convenient, and seamlessly accessible.

However it’s within the walls of the new premises where the magic happened.

“The office has been built to facilitate the way that people work. We’ve created spaces for people to work in, and do the work you need to do,” says Gaye Templar, Equifax’s General Manager of Real Estate, Asia Pacific. “It sounds simple, but this has been our true success.”

The design of the new Equifax workspace was entirely built around the company’s working model, from the size of the footprint and overall layout down to the introduction of specialised spaces and flexible zones across the three floors.

“When people talk about the new way of working, I don’t think it’s a new way, it’s simply providing the spaces and tools for people to work correctly. And that’s what’s been so successful. People are using the spaces for the function they were designed for. When you walk through the floor at any given time, there’s a wonderful sense of calm and quiet because the things that were previously done at people’s workstations are now being done in specialised spaces, and it’s happened organically. People in our team have even commented that it’s changed everyone’s mood, because they can now concentrate and do their work without interruption and be far more productive with how they spend their time at the office.”

Outdoor terraces with spectacular views of the city skyline have added both a functional and inspirational aspect to the workplace, with people regularly using the space for meetings, casual social connections and solitary respite from the work day.

“My passion was not just to build an office that was fit for purpose, but also to give something back to our people, a place they could be proud of, and a place where they’ll thrive – personally and professionally.” - Gaye Templar, General Manager Real Estate, Asia Pacific, Equifax

For more information on available office leasing visit blueandwilliam.com.au