A friendlier place using less space

With insurance being an intangible product, our carbon footprint is primarily related to our physical buildings, energy usage and fuel consumption.

We manage our buildings, equipment, fleet and resources to effectively meet business needs and minimize our effect on the environment. In 2010, we introduced an emerging workspace strategy to help employees be more collaborative, creative and productive while efficiently using space.

Three business areas comprising approximately 332 people tested the concept by reconfiguring their work spaces. “The idea is to design a work environment that better supports the way our employees work and how they collaborate, recognizing that many employees are mobile,” explains Director of Real Estate Services Sally Frye. "The end result is a better work environment for all that uses space more efficiently while at the same time reducing our energy costs and our carbon footprint."

Sally’s department came up with the strategy and opted to be one of the first test groups to “eat its own cooking” before sharing it with others. They reconfigured 8,067 square feet of original workspace to 5,004 square feet, eliminating 38 percent of the space needed for the same work team.

"As part of the test, we told employees they could go back to the original setup if they didn't like the changes," Sally says. "In a follow-up survey though, 100 percent said they liked the new setup and preferred it to the previous one."