[Change Master Series | Ep. 5] Carol Wong: Why Workspace Strategy is People Strategy (Designing Experiences over Offices)
For decades, the formula for office design was simple: maximize efficiency, minimize cost. The office was a container for work, measured in square feet and headcounts. But in a world reshaped by AI, hybrid models, and a new generation of talent, that formula is broken.
In the fifth episode of the CHANGE Master Series, host Catherine Tam Thillainathan, Prosci Advanced Instructor, Principal Advisor of ChangeAccomplishment HK sits down with our guest speaker, Carol Wong, Managing Director, Head of Strategic Consulting, Global Occupier Services, APAC at Cushman & Wakefield. In this insightful session, Catherine guides the conversation to uncover why so many office transformations fail to hit the mark, prompting Carol to share her "People, Place, Performance" framework.
Before diving into the key takeaways, watch the full CHANGE Master Series interview with Carol Wong below to hear her insights firsthand.
The Shift from Space to Conditions
"The question is no longer 'what office do we need?'" Carol explains, "but rather, 'what conditions do people actually need to perform, connect, learn, innovate, and thrive?'"
This marks a fundamental shift from a real estate-centric view to a human-centric one. With AI poised to automate routine tasks, the value of human work is moving towards creativity, complex problem-solving, and deep collaboration. The workplace must evolve to support these activities. Rows of desks are giving way to dynamic zones designed for different modes of work: focused deep work, team brainstorming, social connection, and learning.
The Underestimated Challenge: Human Behavior
Leaders often fall into the "if you build it, they will come" fallacy. They invest in stunning designs and shiny technology, expecting a "big wow" to automatically change behavior. But as Carol points out, this consistently underestimates the human element.
"Employees don't resist new and upgraded spaces," she clarifies. "They fear uncertainty."
This is where the principles of change management become paramount. A workspace transformation is not a logistics project; it is a behavioral change project. Success hinges on addressing the "people side" of the change proactively.
Key Principles for a People-First Workspace Strategy:
Engage Early and Build Ownership: Resistance often appears long before the move. Early engagement through surveys, workshops, and champion networks builds a sense of ownership. It transforms the narrative from a top-down mandate to a co-created solution. As Catherine Tam Thillainathan noted, "Early engagement builds ownership, and ownership builds desire."
Balance Global Consistency with Local Relevance: For multinational corporations, a common challenge is balancing a consistent global brand with the unique cultural nuances of local markets. A "global and local" approach works best. Maintain branding and core principles, but allow flexibility to incorporate local values and work styles. What "activity-based working" means in Singapore may differ from its application elsewhere.
Measure What Matters: Readiness, Not Just Utilization: Traditional metrics like space utilization are insufficient. Modern strategies use a mix of quantitative and qualitative data, including employee sentiment, engagement scores, and readiness assessments (like the Prosci ADKAR® Model). Assessing awareness and desire before the move allows leaders to address concerns proactively and manage expectations.
Adopt the "People, Place, Performance" Framework: Carol offers a powerful framework to guide any workspace project:
People: Start with what your people truly need to do their work effectively and feel supported.
Place: Design an environment that enables these needs and brings your desired culture to life.
Performance: Ensure that performance metrics (KPIs) evolve to reward the new behaviors you want to encourage. You can't ask for more collaboration while still measuring individual output in the old way.
Ultimately, the workplace is not a floorplan; it is experienced through moments. It's the ease of finding a quiet space, the energy of a collaborative session, and the feeling of connection to a shared mission. When leaders stop treating workspace strategy as a physical move and start seeing it as a cultural and behavioral transformation, they unlock its true potential as a powerful enabler of business success.
Speaker： Carol Wong
With over 20 years of experience leading workplace programs for multinational corporations across the Asia-Pacific region—including a notable 12-year tenure at Procter & Gamble—Carol is an expert in workplace strategy and change management. Combining her background in Human Resources with corporate real estate, she designs human-centric environments that align physical space with organizational culture. Carol specializes in guiding businesses through hybrid work transitions, focusing on employee experience, behavioral change, and performance optimization.
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