Browne Jacobson’s Manchester office is pioneering a new agile working environment ahead of its move to No.1 Spinningfields later this year.
The pilot, which has been running in the firm’s temporary accommodation at Tower 12, is a part of the firm’s ‘mogility’ programme which looks to introduce smarter and more efficient ways of working by making the best use of the firm’s current office space and giving its employees greater flexibility in when, where and how they wish to work.
The pilot has seen the introduction of an open-plan seating arrangement after desk usage research carried out by the firm showed that on any given day 30% of the desks were under-utilised.
Other measures have included significantly reducing the amount of paper stored onsite, digitally scanning all incoming post, reducing the amount of printing and introducing the latest in smartphone, tablet and laptop technology.
The success of the pilot will see the initiative rolled out to the firm’s other four offices in Birmingham, Exeter, London and Nottingham.
Karen Walker, Head of Business Operations at Browne Jacobson, said:
“The firm has grown significantly in recent years and we realised that simply moving to larger premises every few years simply is not a viable long term solution.
“We needed to start thinking smarter about how we could continue to deliver growth within our current footprint by adopting new ways of working.
“Mogility is about promoting flexibility and having the most productive working environment we can. It is recognising that not everyone works in the same way or wishes to be sat at the same desk, all day, every day. For example many of our lawyers are out visiting clients or in court on any given day so it makes sense not to have assigned desks that are simply unoccupied.
“When it comes to our people we recognise that a ‘one size fits all’ approach is no longer sustainable. Currently around one in five of our people across the firm work flexibly and with these changes we are hoping to increase those levels. This is key if we want to recruit and retain the best talent.”
Dai Durbridge, Manchester based education partner, added:
“I’m delighted that the Manchester office is leading the way on our mogility programme,
“It is important that we hit the right balance between adopting innovative and creative work solutions that meet the needs of our people whilst continuing to deliver exceptional client service.
“All the evidence from Manchester indicates that we have. The pilot has been a resounding success and we look forward to it being rolled out across the firm’s other offices.”
