Grey Group's New HQ -- Dysfunctional Decorating Masquerading as Ad-Agency Creativity
Grey Group's new HQ at 200 Fifth Avenue in New York is a hilarious example of how ad agencies believe their value is somehow tied inherently to the quality of their interior decorating. The new space is a trendy, open-plan affair with an industrial/residential vibe and slabs of raw, reclaimed oak, according to the N.Y. Times.
It's also a bit of a nightmare for the staff: Cubicles and offices? Gone. Privacy? Gone. Storage space? Gone. Eating tuna for lunch? Gone (the smell). In their place are ... boxes:
Those in creative positions got one box; everyone else got two.If staffers want to call their doctor or health insurance provider, they now have to find a conference room or leave the building (pictured) so colleagues don't overhear. Naturally, they're distraught:
... a business psychologist will hold "space therapy" sessions to ease any lingering concerns.Uh huh. Chalk me up as one who thinks it's a bunch of nonsense. If moving your office requires en masse psychological counselling, then it's the fault of the office, not the staff.[Business psychologist Joel Mausner] is planning to hold three types of sessions: one to let employees mourn the loss of the old building; a second to come up with ways to handle potential drawbacks of the open plan; and a third to help workers use the new space to its full potential.
"A lot of people think it's a bunch of nonsense, but it can be very helpful to reach a collective understanding of how they're going to behave differently in the new space," Dr. Mausner said.
Grey is not the only agency that thinks looking like a nightclub somehow equates to creativity: TBWA Hakahodo and JWT in New York both have grass growing on their inside walls, and both Grey and JWT have in-house bars.
Grey even has a bedroom -- with glass walls. Obviously. Because that's the kind of logic-free concept any client would love.
Image: Google Street View.