The start of a new year is always a time for reflection and making resolutions, especially following a year with so many challenges and disruptions. Last year, many of our clients, partners, and Spacewell colleagues faced adversity, and we are grateful if we could play some small part in assisting them through these tough times.
One of the commitments that Spacewell – along with our parent company, the Nemetschek Group, and so many others – has endeavored to emphasize is our commitment and contribution to corporate social responsibility (CSR). Whether that means finding ways to improve the sustainability of the building industry – which is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions – or whether it means improving the human experience in the workplace, Spacewell is committed to using its resources to contribute to a better world.
Spacewell’s internal CSR commitment
Some of this change begins at home. As a technology company, we recognize that our greatest asset is our talent. Spacewell’s global network of employees drives constant innovation, from improvements in our products to better delivery, customer experience, and knowledge exchange with the broader community. To encourage that process, we are constantly developing new tools to help us to learn from each other, communicating new product ideas across the organization and facilitating cooperation between our global offices.
In order to help and motivate our employees, we have recently launched or expanded internal talent initiatives. To overcome the challenges of working from home, we have dedicated resources to support our employees’ home office fit-outs. To address the challenges that remote work presents to skills development and mentorship, we have adopted new tools for talent development and have taken seriously the need for regular 1-on-1 virtual meetings to help employees feel connected to their teams and supervisors.
For those of us at Spacewell who are able (and wish to) return to our offices, we have rolled out our own software solutions to facilitate a safe and positive experience, from remote check-in to hands-free amenities booking. As long as we do not know when we can return to the office without precautions, finding ways to stay safe and connected remains our priority.
Our external CSR commitment: enabling our partners
Spacewell’s commitment to CSR and doing right by people and the planet does not end with our own workforce. In fact, given the number of users of our products, one could argue that our impact outside of our company is potentially even greater than what we do within it (though that certainly doesn’t limit our internal efforts). As a result, we give a great deal of thought to both the environmental and social impact of our products.
From an environmental perspective, perhaps the largest impact we can have is in our support for digital transformation. Products like Workplace centralize and digitize reams of information about buildings, assets, and service operations. By designing apps that bring this data to end users on their phones or tablets, we help our clients avoid paper waste even while we enhance accountability and record accuracy.
Our products can also help in other ways. Tracking space utilization with IoT sensors, we can help optimize their space and, in many cases, reduce our clients’ physical footprint. Moreover, our recently acquired energy intelligence solution, DEXMA, supports organizations of all sizes in improving energy efficiency and reaching their sustainability targets. Using artificial intelligence, the software not only monitors energy consumption (and detects anomalies) but may also predict the behavior of buildings. This is an important step towards self-regulating, autonomous buildings that will automatically balance energy use and user comfort in a way that promotes a more sustainable future.
From a social standpoint, we believe that the user-centric nature of our product development can help reduce the stress of the workplace. Not only does a seamless reservation system avoid the inconvenience and friction involved in finding a place to sit, but it can produce a better overall employee experience. From requesting extra cleaning to seeing indoor air quality measures in the office in real-time, a well-crafted workplace app can also renew or reinforce confidence in the health of the workplace. We believe that by giving employees the benefit of a workplace optimized to meet users’ actual behaviors and needs, we can reduce stress and lead to a stronger and better workplace community.
Building a better world
These features only scratch the surface of the impact we hope to achieve. We are enormously proud to be part of the Nemetschek Group and to support its important initiatives as part of the United Nations 50 Climate & Sustainability Campaign. The company strives to make a positive impact on efficiency and sustainability not just in building operations and management, but in the entire construction lifecycle. We invite you to learn more about this timely and important initiative.
While the world faced unprecedented challenges in 2020, we believe these experiences have also reinforced the idea that sustainability and community need to be part of how we approach business. We at Spacewell are committed to making a positive contribution, and in that spirit, we are wishing you a happy new year and all the best for 2021.
