Sharon Campbell

Her Work: Workplace Moderator and Lab Manager

“I Love it. I can work in any kind of space. I have access to anything.”

Sharon Campbell’s workspace consists of a large Workplace Lab that has everything, private workspaces, cubicles, conference rooms, think tanks and many other types of workspaces. The lab originally started as a pilot program where the company showed off new ideas for workplace design.

Another unique thing about this workspace is that because the lab is setup mainly for tours, Ms. Campbell doesn’t have any of her personal belongings in her workspace. She tells me that she has her “business in a bag” because every day she brings what she needs to work and then brings it back home.

Ms. Campbell explains that most of the new design features seen in the lab are implemented in many of the company’s other buildings as well as the new campus. Sharon Campbell is nice enough to tour me around not only the Workplace Lab but also the new campus.

The strange this is that the Workplace Lab started several years back and now needs to be updated. It no longer showcases the new direction of design because many of these things are now standards in their buildings. Sharon Campbell searches and finds new things to incorporate into the space so now it is less about the layout and design aspects and perhaps more about the new gadgets and tools. She shows me a chair designed specifically for posture and spinal alignment and increasing blood flow. Ms. Campbell continues to tour me around her large workspace and shows me a treadmill workstation which I’ve never heard of before. It isn’t being used in any of the buildings but it is a new idea so they have it in the Workplace Lab.

Ms. Campbell tells me that the Lab is in a limbo phase and is being updated little by little. Initially the company planned to completely redo the Workplace Lab to continue to showcase cutting edge new design but perhaps because of the economy, that process is on hold. It is unclear what the plans are for this space.

I ask Sharon Campbell about the amount of flexibility with her job here. She tells me that the tours are her first priority so that largely determines the layout of her day but there is some inherent flexibility in the job.

When I ask Ms. Campbell about her relationships with the community here she says she has great relationships but doesn’t get involved in the detailed politics of things. Her position is unique because she is separated from working with her colleagues. Ms. Campbell is the only person who tours people around the WorkPlace lab and the only person who generally occupies this space. She explains to me that occasionally the space is reserved for functions. Ms. Campbell expresses that it would be nice to have some coworkers that she worked more closely with but she tells me she is a happy spirit here and has positive relationships with the community.

Sharon Campbell tells me about expansion, technology, collaboration in workplace, knowledge, and the opportunity to learn here. She says that people and their work environment is so important and they are looking at ways to change these environments. This company is cutting edge with technology and is constantly growing. Ms. Campbell says that on one end that has to do with people and the space they work in.

Ms. Campbell explains to me how important it is that in workspace people feel connected somehow and to one another and to the big picture. Sharon Campbell says she is an extravert and has a “make it happen” attitude. She thinks that the feeling of connection needs to be incorporated within the different levels and that the Workplace Lab was about collecting information from this level. Ms. Campbell seems interested and fascinated by the very same things that has brought me to my passion with workspace. She tells me what she doesn’t know is what happens to the information she collects from the studies and reports she works on but that she does the work either way and she seems to enjoy it. “Who knows what they did with that” she says.

Another day when Sharon Campbell is kind enough to take the time to tour me around the new campus she tells me how much she has learned just by being submerged in this high tech community. She tells me how great it is to be surrounded by such smart people and that this is an awesome atmosphere to work in.