Microsoft Sydney

Faced with challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, Microsoft sought to offer their employees safer working solutions in the realization of their new hybrid office model in Sydney. Global design studio GroupGSA focused on technology, flexibility, and nature when designing the cutting-edge Microsoft offices located in Sydney, Australia, that uses the Vecos Smart Locker System for personal storage. 

Treading New Terrain

Located at 1 Denison Street, the 10,000sqm office will house 1,400 employees over seven levels, consolidating the tech giant’s three offices in the Sydney CBD. The office bucks many conventional trends of atypical office design. The practice has taken advantage of the fact that the company will be housed in one of the smartest buildings in Sydney, allowing for flexible work anytime, anywhere. 

Ashish Mehrotra, Microsoft’s Head of Real Estate and Facilities in Asia Pacific, says the pandemic has outlined that engagement and productivity has remained unaffected, nor is it a barrier to having a thriving company culture. “Our new space at 1 Denison St breaks the traditional mold of what an office can and should be,” he says. “This is clearly shown in the design of the new space, where remote and in-person workers are on equal footing.” 

A physical space to come together and connect  

Smart office sensors and digital whiteboards allow employees to contribute in a way that best suits them. The building’s capabilities give employees the ability to book a number of amenities via the 1 Denison app. The app can be utilized for employees to order and pay for food, book a massage or schedule a barre or yoga class at the building’s wellness center, The Nest. Modern maintenance facilities include cleaning robots which traverse the floors. 

“We know that employees still want and need a physical space to come together and connect,” Ashish Mehrotra says. 

“An open space, concierge on arrival, communal dining area, an onsite barista, and grab-and-go food options prompt people to meet, eat, collaborate, and socialize. There are also areas for board games and flex spaces that adapt to varying purposes or sports watching nights.” 

Supporting today’s mobile workforce to create the extraordinary 

Mehrotra says each floor individually serves the needs of Microsoft’s diverse range of employees. 

“They can choose quiet corners for solo work, comfortable sofas for informal meetings, and reservable meeting rooms for more involved sessions. Team neighborhoods, screened-in workshop areas, touch-down desks, sound-proofed phone booths, and conversation rooms all work together to support today’s mobile workforce.” 

Responding to the conventions of the post-pandemic workplace, GroupGSA’s response includes a minimum of 1.5m spacing at all work points, hand sanitation stations and no-touch automatic door operation using swipe controls. 

Jessica Margiotta, a member of GroupGSA design team, says tech companies, like Microsoft, need their talent to be constantly stimulated, future-focused and pushing boundaries. Key to this is good workplace design. “Microsoft’s new flagship office in Australia changes the perspective on what a workspace is and how it functions,” she says. “The result is a workplace design that inspires its employees to create the extraordinary.”