Take It Outside

The most productive office spaces don’t keep people chained to a cubicle, fluorescent bulbs sucking the life out of a generation of millennials. Instead, it can be argued, they open: open floor plans, open spaces, and open air. 

Having visited an embarrassing number of allocator offices over the course of the last 50 issues of this magazine, the editorial staff of CIO chose two to highlight: The Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ Austin headquarters, and the London offices of Univest, which manages money for Unilever. 

Both, admittedly, feature the usual arrays of desks, conference rooms, stale coffee, and cubicles—but come with the added bonus of outdoor space for rejuvenation. Stunning views abound—“I love that we have great locations in downtown Austin and now in the heart of London’s Mayfair,” Teachers’ senior manager Marissa Hogan boasts—far above the city streets. Envious? It doesn’t end there: “As well as the rooftop, which gives fresh air and a chance to top up vitamin D levels, we have a gym for physical and mental well-being, and creative spaces for social well-being and connecting to colleagues,” says Univest’s sustainability chief Karianne Lancee. 

The CIO staff is ever-so-softly crying inside our New York City steel tower.

Univest’s expansive roof deck overlooks central London and is the perfect place for employees to clear their heads—when it’s not raining, of course. Photography by Vicki Couchman.