Project Name: Voting Doors
Client: Salesforce.com
Partners: David Rose, Gensler
Year Completed:
2013
Creation of a more united community of colleagues and employees is a common theme for the use of technology. In 2013, Gensler and Salesforce.com engaged David Rose and Tellart to consider new ways to encourage interaction among employees at Salesforce.com’s Portland, OR office. This initial engagement resulted in a number of concept videos and explorations; the “Voting Doors” was a physical realization of one of these concepts.
An exploration in both decision making and communication in an office environment, as well as a way to increase workplace camaraderie and community, the Voting Doors were designed as a low-friction and playful way to capture employee input on issues ranging from the silly (“Cake or pie?”) to the profound (“Is your work tapping into your inner genius this week?”).
Questions were selected by Salesforce.com staff and projected on the doors of the building’s main entrance; as employees enter the building, they see the questions and answer by going through the door with their chosen response. Results of the poll for the day were visualized inside the door on an appealing physical bar graph, which was reset at night to prepare for the next day’s questions. An administrative system kept a history of questions and responses, and controlled the entryway projection.
The playful and simple interactivity lets employees quickly join the community discussion, and the physical bar graph, designed to stand out for an audience of software developers, encourages face to face conversations around the front entry of the building, which also includes a cafe and common areas.
By facilitating a low barrier to entry but provocative interaction at the entrance to the building, where almost every employee starts their day, we encouraged people to consider themselves and their opinions in light of the larger community, and gave them a focal point around which to connect with one another in conversation and discussion.
The Voting Doors were installed at the main entryway of Salesforce.com’s new Portland, OR office.
Employees were greeted with a question for the day as they entered in the morning.
An eye-catching installation of red and blue rubber balls created a physical manifestation of the day’s voting results.
The physical bar graph was reset automatically every night through an auger system to prepare for the next day of voting, keeping maintenance requirements low for Salesforce.com personnel.
