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Desk to District 2024 - The changing of Real Estate for Collaborative Innovation

  • 22 Oct 2024
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Bringing together our deep experience in innovation ecosystems and the workplace, in 2019 Lendlease partnered with WORKTECH ACADEMY on Desk to District to see how companies were collaborating against a backdrop of considerable social, economic, environmental and technological change. Five years on, we have revisited our findings to see what’s changed and how this is impacting real estate.  

Key Findings 

Post pandemic many organisations have been rethinking real estate usage, often repurposing, or relocating, to get people back to the office to stimulate greater collaboration, innovation and test new ideas.  There’s also been a renewed drive to connect better with external partners to widen knowledge bases, drive innovation and find solutions to future challenges. In 2019 we identified three innovation workspace models:

 

INNOVATION LAB - ORGANISATIONAL    SHARED HUB - NETWORK   INNOVATION DISTRICT - ECOSYSTEM
Contained, dedicated internal facility   encouraging collaborative employee innovation.   Mutual external innovation space bringing together key players inside and outside an organisation.   Permeable innovation district enabling  organisations within it to develop/maximise partnerships as part of a broad ecosystem of academics, collaborators, specialists and start-ups.
What’s new   What’s new   What’s new
Revitalised post pandemic to give employees reasons to come back to the office and attract and retain talent.    No longer predominantly corporate led. More neutral environments are common involving academic and/or public sector partners. Being in the right place is key and is helpful in attracting and retaining talent.   Less focused on specific industries. Move to platforms for accelerated collaborative innovation to address long-term challenges in sustainable, equitable ways. Thoughtful, planned placemaking that is still evolving, offering a wide range of facilities - key to selecting location for HQ’s or R&D settings. 
Advantages   Advantages   Advantages
  • Can be set up using internal resources and test new ideas fast.
  • Ability to build an internal community around innovation.
  • Internal R&D with IP security.
  
  • More permeable model takes organisations out of comfort zone but not too far.
  • Collaboration on common ground.
  • Exposure to external catalysts/concepts - more knowledge sharing, stronger ideas flow.
  
  • Most permeable model, greatest potential for collaborative innovation/engagement.
  • Opportunity for entire ecosystems and inclusive innovation.
  • Access to wide, diverse breadth of expertise.
Disadvantages     Disadvantages   Disadvantages
  • Potentially less spontaneous ideas flow.
  • Collaboration likely to be more limited over time
  
  • Needs more planning, may be less stable.
  • Location needs agile, external partners for ideas to flourish.
  
  • More complex model, may feel less secure

 

In 2024 these models remain relevant, however, the accelerate rate of change has caused significant evolution across each. This has included the revitalisation of Innovation Labs, the expanded partnerships of Shared Hubs and the acceleration of collaborative platforms with enhanced placemaking and networking clearly evident within Innovation Districts such as Stratford.  

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“As organisations rethink, reimagine and relocate their workplace, there is now an unprecedented opportunity to raise the bar in terms of collaborative innovation” 

Jeremy Myerson, Professor Emeritus, Royal College of Art, Director of Worktech Academy  

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