_How Bloomberg's new European headquarters has a positive effect on collaboration and innovation

The origins of the project

In 2010, Bloomberg acquired a 3.2 acre site in the heart of the City of London in order to build a new European headquarters that would accommodate our growing employee population and meet the unique needs of our business.

Working in close collaboration with renowned architect Norman Foster, our founder, Mike Bloomberg, set out to create a building that would push the boundaries of sustainable office design, give something back to the City and inspire our employees to collaborate and innovate.

The result is a building that brings our 4,000 London-based employees under one roof for the first time. Two buildings, connected by bridges, provide 1.1 million square feet of office, retail and ancillary space on a site that incorporates three new public plazas, a dining arcade and a new free cultural space displaying the restored Roman Temple of Mithras.

The business drivers underpinning the project

Bloomberg has had a presence in London since 1987 and by 2010 – when the new site was acquired – we had expanded across four sites in the city.

The decision to build a new European headquarters was not only driven by the fact we had outgrown our previous space, but by our founder Mike Bloomberg’s vision to create an inspirational, sustainable workplace, with all our  London-based employees under one roof, that would inspire collaboration and fuel innovation.

After 30 years in the City, the new building represents a ‘coming of age’ for Bloomberg in London and an enduring desire for our working environments to reflect our values as a business.

The Vortex is a literal and metaphorical ‘twist’ on the classic timber-panelled lobbies that define many London buildings. Olafur Eliasson’s ‘No future is possible without a past’ sits above.

The core principles influencing the workspace

All of Bloomberg’s 192 offices around the globe are shaped by the principle that transparency, openness and collaboration fuel innovation but as the company’s first wholly owned and designed building, our new European headquarters takes this to a new level.

The desire to foste r cooperation and communication, inspire creativity and to radiate excitement and energy was a fundamental starting point for the interiors. The building’s cores have been pushed to the edges to visually open the floors and reveal a spiralling ramp that brings people together and encourages chance interactions as employees travel through the building.

There is also an emphasis on flexible, informal meeting spaces, including the sixth floor ‘pantry’, the social heart of the building and a space that’s always buzzing with activity.

Another core principle that has defined the building since day one is its commitment to sustainability – from site selection to construction practices and from engineering to waste management in occupation.

The building achieved an ‘Outstanding’ rating against the BREEAM sustainability assessment method with a 98.5% score; the highest achieved by any major office development in the world.

Thanks to its innovative power, lighting, water and ventilation systems, it is 70% more water efficient and 40% more energy efficient than a typical office building. That’s something our employees are really proud of.

Lessons learnt

Many of the systems in the building are completely new or bespoke to the project, including the distinctive ceiling, magnetic hard wood floors, the all-glass lift cars and more. This has challenged us to rethink the way our Facilities department operates to manage and maintain the building effectively in occupation.

Another key learning has been around behavioural change. We spent a lot of time second guessing how employees might react to major changes around things like the reduction in formal meeting rooms in favour of more informal spaces but when a design is intuitive, humans adapt very quickly and we’ve found our employees have largely embraced this more dynamic way of working.

Above all, this project has really demonstrated the value of collaborating across industries and disciplines to challenge accepted conventions, systems and processes. Creating something truly innovative takes risk, investment and a huge amount of teamwork.

Our hope is that we’ve created solutions that can be adopted elsewhere.

The vibrant pantry is lit with natural light from the atrium above

Business and staff impact to date

We have had great feedback from employees and have seen a real improvement in collaboration within teams and across departments. People are opting for spontaneous meetings and quick, regular interactions over long, weekly meetings meaning decisions are made quicker and teams operate more fluidly.

The focus on well-being within the office through design features such as natural ventilation, adjustable desks and natural materials not only allows for a kinder working environment but has improved individual efficiency.

Ultimately, employees are also proud to come to work in the building and to host their clients and guests in the space. That’s invaluable. After all, as our founder says, our employees are our most important asset.

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