Attracting and retaining talent has always been a priority for businesses, but it is even more so today as the millennial generation changes jobs and shifts careers at a much faster pace than previous generations. Workplaces, in many cases, are therefore being designed to attract and retain talent by offering “on-brand” environments and a conducive and collaborative work culture. Enzen is a global renewable energy and technology company and its first Australian workplace in Adelaide, South Australia, designed by JPE Design Studio, is specifically designed to appeal to potential employees and to encourage their loyalty and longevity.

“As Enzen look to establish a new employee base in Australia from local universities and globally, the fit out needed to appeal to a tech-savvy, agile and multi-generational workforce,” says Simon Dodd, Principal at JPE. The space has the capacity to accommodate 70 staff with room for growth, and the variety of work and social spaces are designed to trigger creative thinking and foster collaboration. This includes informal meeting areas, quest nooks, libraries, a generous stuff hub and a putting green and innovation lab. Carefully considered mobile and flexible work settings allow for easy reconfiguration in the future.

JPE’s concept for the workplace plays on Enzen’s philosophy of “making the complex simple” and references the geometry of the circle. “The circle symbolises potential; the embryo or beginning of ideas; a continuous loop without an end,” Simon explains. This design language has been implemented throughout the workplace, including spatial planning, ceiling treatments, furnishings, flooring and signage. The colour palette similarly reflects the Enzen brand with punches of blue, orange and green brightening the otherwise grey and white space. There is orange furnishings, blue flooring, spotted orange glass treatment and a live green wall.

The material choice upholds the values of Enzen’s core business focus: renewable energy and sustainability. JPE sources materials locally, selected them based on their low environmental impact, and considered future disassembly and re-use. Other sustainable design initiatives throughout the new Enzen workplace include minimising built zones by consolidating them around the building core; positioning staff workpoints to take advantage of natural light and views; and low VOC paints and finishes.

Enzen’s vision and values play a strong role in the work culture the company seeks to foster, and JPE has thus designed its new workplace to help attract and retain the talent that will contribute to that vision and values. “Enzen’s new Adelaide home has set the benchmark for the firm globally,” Simon says, “and will be used as a template for continued growth across Australia.”

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Photography by David Sievers