FROM the 62nd floor of Salesforce Tower, 920 feet above the ground, San Francisco’s monuments look piddling. The Bay Bridge, Coit Tower and Palace of Fine Arts are dwarfed by the steel-and-glass headquarters that will house the software company when it is completed later this year. Subtle it is not. Salesforce plans to put on a light show every night; its new building will be visible from up to 30 miles away.
920英尺高的Salesforce大楼的62层向外看去，旧金山纪念碑相形见绌。Salesforce总部大楼将于今年年底完工，届时将把整个公司纳入其中。这座钢筋和玻璃建筑让海湾大桥、科伊特塔、旧金山艺术馆都显得异常渺小。这一点也不巧妙。Salesforce计划每晚上演灯光，这让人能在30英里外就能看到大楼。
It is not the only technology company erecting a shrine to itself. Apple’s employees have just begun moving into their new headquarters in Cupertino, some 70 kilometres away, which was conceived by the firm’s late founder, Steve Jobs. The four-storey, circular building looks like the dial of an iPod (or a doughnut) and is the same size as the Pentagon. At a price tag of around $5bn, it will be the most expensive corporate headquarters ever constructed. Apple applied all its product perfectionism to it: the guidelines for the wood used inside it reportedly ran to 30 pages.
这不只科技企业为自己竖起了唯一一座丰碑。苹果的员工也准备搬到70仅是外的库比蒂诺总部。这座办公楼是由史蒂夫·乔布斯生自构思，四层高的圆形建筑规模堪比五角大楼，外形像iPod（或者像甜甜圈）。苹果公司的总部大楼造价5亿美元，是史上造价最高的办公建筑。苹果将完美主义产品理念充分体现到总部建筑上：光木材的使用报告就长达30页纸。
Throughout San Francisco and Silicon Valley, cash-rich technology firms have built or are erecting bold, futuristic headquarters that convey their brands to employees and customers. Another example is Uber, a ride-hailing company, which is hoping to recast its reputation for secrecy and rugged competitiveness by designing an entirely see-through head office. It is expected to have some interior areas, as well as a park, that will be open to the public.
在整个旧金山和硅谷，处处都是有钱的科技巨头花大价建造的造型新颖、有未来主义特征的总部大楼。这些建筑向员工和消费者传达了品牌形象。另一个案例则是，网约车公司优步设计的一个全透明办公楼，以改变其神秘的形象，提升竞争力。办公楼除了内部空间，还有一个对外开放的公园。
The exteriors of the new buildings will attract most attention, but it is their interiors that should be watched more closely. The very newest buildings, such as Apple’s, are mostly still under wraps, but they are expected to be highly innovative in their internal layout. Some of that is because of fierce competition within the tech industry for the best engineering and other talent: firms are particularly keen to come up with attractive, productive environments. But these new office spaces will also signal how work is likely to evolve. Technology companies have already changed the way people behave in offices beyond their own industry, as a result of e-mail, online search and collaboration tools such as Slack. They are doing the same for physical spaces.
这些新建筑的外表虽然很吸睛，内部构造更应得到关注。如苹果公司总部等最新的办公大楼的细节尚未对外公开，其内部布局却料想会极具创新感。一部分原因是科技行业对工程等方面的人才竞争十分激烈，科技企业尤其需要一个吸引人的，富有生产力的办公环境。同时，这些办公环境也科技进步的象征。科技企业通过电子邮件、网上搜索、如Slack的协作工具，不仅改变了科技行业的办公方式，也改变了其他行为的办公方式。它们也在改变了人们的真实生活空间。
The big idea championed by the industry is the concept of working in various spaces around an office rather than at a fixed workstation. Other industries have experimented with “activity-based working”, but tech is ahead. Employees may still have an assigned desk but they are not expected to be there, and they routinely go to different places to do various tasks. There are “libraries” where they can work quietly, as well as coffee shops, cafés and outdoor spaces for meetings and phone calls. The top two floors of Salesforce Tower, for example, will be used not as corner offices for executives but as an airy lounge for employees, where they can work communally and gaze out at the views over a latté.
科技行业崇尚自由办公理念，而不就固定办公。其它行业也尝试过“活动式办公”，科技行业在这方面是走在前面。员工们依然有属于自己的工位，但基本上不会固定在座位上，会依据需要去不同的工作地点。办公室里会有“图书馆”一样的地方，能安静地工作，也可以在咖啡店、咖啡馆、户外举行会议、拨打电话。像Salesforce大楼的最高两层不是用来给领导们办公的，而是为员工们提供一个自由的休息室，可以一边喝着拿铁一边谈*公论**事。
A fluid working environment is meant to allow for more chance encounters, which could spur new ideas and spark unexpected collaborations. Facebook’s central building is the world’s largest open-plan office, designed to encourage employees to bump into one another in its common spaces and in a nine-acre rooftop garden. Communal areas are meant to be casual and alluring. John Schoettler, head of real estate at Amazon, says he aims to make them into “living-room-like spaces”. For offices to feel like home, it helps to hire a designer with expertise in residential real-estate, says Elizabeth Pinkham of Salesforce. In common areas at the firm’s offices, there are TVs, couches and bookshelves. Framed photos of a few employees add to the effect.
流动的办公环境可以创造更多员工见面的场合，激发灵感，碰出意想不到的合作机会。Facebook的中央大楼是世界上最大的开放式办公大楼，鼓励员工在公共办公领域和9英亩的屋顶花园里结识新朋友。公共办公领域是随性和吸引人的。亚马逊房地产业负责John Schoettler表示将把公共领域营造成“客厅式空间”。Salesforce公司的Elizabeth Pinkham表示，聘请住宅房地产设计师来设计办公大楼有助于给员工们提供一个家一样的办公环境。办公楼的公共地区有电视机、沙发、书架。摆放几张员工们的照片也有助于营造家的氛围。
The new “working at home”
新式“在家办公”
For those who scoff at the creative benefits of being surrounded by pictures of Colin from accounts, there are more tangible payoffs. The lack of fixed workstations shrinks the amount of expensive real estate given to employees without leaving them feeling too squeezed. Tech firms devote around 14 square metres to each employee, around a quarter less than other industries, according to Randy Howder at Gensler, a design firm. Young workers are thought to be more productive in these varied environments, which are reminiscent of the way people study and live at university. One drawback, however, is that finding colleagues can be difficult. Employees need to locate each other through text messages and messaging apps.
对于那些不喜欢周围满是贴着创意人物照片来营造创意氛围的人来说，新式办公环境还有一些更直观的效益。由于没有固定办公领域，费用昂贵的办公面积也减少了，却不会给员工们过于拥挤的感觉。设计公司Gensler的 Randy Howder表示，科技公司员工平均占地14平方米，比其他行业少四分之一。在多样化的环境里，年轻的员工就像生活在大学时期一样，工作更有效率。不过，这也有一个缺点，就是员工们在这样的环境不容易找到他们同事，只能通过短信或者信息应用联系。
Collaborative spaces can also expose generational tensions, says Louise Mozingo, an architecture professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Tech firms’ elderly employees (otherwise known as the over-40s) can struggle to adjust to moving around during the day and to the frequent disruptions that come from large, open-plan offices. Many of Facebook’s employees do not like their office because it is noisy, and some Apple employees are hesitant to move into their new building for the same reason. Plenty also balk at the massive distances they will need to walk.
加利福尼亚大学伯克利分校的建筑学教授Louise Mozingo指出，合作式空间容易产生年龄代沟。科技公司的老员工（年龄超过40岁）没有充足的体力来回奔波，大空间的开放式办公环境容易给他们带来身体上的折磨。Facebook的许多员工都对工作环境里的噪声表示不满；苹果的一些员工也因为这个原因迟迟不想搬到新总部。许多人都抱怨搬到新办公楼以后要走很多的路。
That may not be the only thing to cause employees concern. Tech firms are increasingly keen to use their own products in their headquarters. Jensen Huang, the chief executive of Nvidia, a chipmaking firm whose graphics processing units are widely used in artificial-intelligence programmes, says his firm plans to introduce facial recognition for entry into its new headquarters, due to open later this year.
这也许不是员工们唯一关心的事情。科技公司越来越倾向于在总部使用自家的产品。英伟达首席执行官Jensen Huang称，该公司计划将于今年年底在总部实施刷脸打卡上班制度，因为其旗下的图形处理在人工智能程序中得到广泛的应用。
Nvidia will also install cameras to recognise what food people are taking from the cafeteria and charge them accordingly, eliminating the need for a queue and cashier. A self-driving shuttle will eventually zip between its various buildings. And Nvidia’s own AI will monitor when employees arrive and leave, with the ostensible aim of adjusting the building’s heating and cooling systems.
英伟达还将安装摄像头以监控人们在自助餐厅的取餐情况并相应的收费，这样就不用排队取餐和交费。自动驾驶班车将在各个大楼来回穿梭。英伟达的人工智能将监控员工们的上下班情况，以便调节大楼内的制冷制热系统。
The data that firms can collect on their employees’ whereabouts and activities are bound to become ever more detailed. Another way of keeping tabs on people is through company-issued mobile phones. “Every employee has their own tracking device,” observes Mr Howder at Gensler. “Technology firms will sooner or later take advantage of that.”
企业收集到员工的活动位置信息和情况，数据会越来越详细。另一个监视员工的途径是内部电话。Gensler的Howder说道：“每位员工都有追踪装置。科技公司迟早会利用这些设备。”
Few of them are willing to share details of their future plans because of concerns about employees’ privacy. However, some of their contractors signal what sort of innovations may be in the pipeline. Office-furniture makers, for example, are experimenting with putting sensors in desks and chairs, so that firms will be better able to monitor when workers are there.
由于涉及员工的隐私，这几家科技企业都不愿意披露未来计划的具体内容。然而，承包商们知道他们葫芦里卖的是什么药。例如，家具制造商会在桌椅上安装压力感应装置，企业就能了解到员工坐椅子的时间。
Such data could be anonymised to allay privacy concerns. They could also save electricity or help people find an empty room to hold a meeting. But it is not hard to imagine how such data could create a culture of surveillance, where employees feel constantly monitored. “Technology firms could be an indicator of what will happen with privacy in offices more generally,” says David Benjamin of Autodesk, a company that sells software to architects, among other clients.
将这些数据匿名化将会减轻员工们对隐私问题的担忧。获取这些数据也有助于省电节能，快速锁定闲置房间用于举行会议。但是，毫无疑问，这种监控行为会使员工倍感不适。软件公司欧特克的David Benjamin表示，科技公司的办公隐私情况将颇具代表性。
Silent discos and Bedouin tents
安静迪斯科和贝都因族帐篷
A less controversial trend is for unusual office interiors. These can distinguish companies in the minds of their employees, act as a recruiting tool and also give staff a reason to come into the office rather than work from home. For companies that do not ship a physical product, such offices can serve as important daily reminders of culture and purpose.
与众不同的内部装饰的争议就少一些，因此这会让员工们内里对各家公司区分开来，并以此作为招募的手段，也让员工有理由来办公室工作而不是呆在家里上班。对于那些没有实体产品的企业来说，这种办公室可以日积月累地塑造公司文化，阐释公司宗旨。
Last year LinkedIn, a professional social network, for example, opened a new building in San Francisco that is full of space set aside for networking, and that includes a “silent disco”, where people can dance to music with headphones on. Instead of offering generic meeting rooms with portentous names, Airbnb, a tech firm that lets people rent out their homes, has designed each of its meeting spaces after one of its rental listings, such as a Bedouin tent from Morocco. It also has a meeting room (pictured above) that is an exact replica of the rental apartment where the founders lived when they came up with the idea for Airbnb. Every detail, including the statue of Jesus in red velvet on top of the fireplace, is accurate, says Joe Gebbia, one of the company’s founders.
去年，专业社交网络服务网站领英在洛杉矶新建了一栋大楼，里边处处是社交空间，还配有“安静迪斯科”，人们可以戴着耳机跳舞。民宿软件公司爱彼迎，不走寻常路设计会议室。爱彼迎依据每一个出租地点设计一个与众不同的会议厅，例如摩洛哥的贝都因族帐篷。爱彼迎还有一个出租公寓的复刻品，那是创始人获得创建公司灵感的地方。公司创始人 Joe Gebbia指出，这个复刻品的每个细节，包括壁炉红色天鹅绒上的耶稣雕像都一模一样。
Nvidia is obsessed with triangles, the basic element of computer graphics used to create lifelike scenes in video games and movies. Its new headquarters, which cost $370m, is shaped like one (see picture), and its interior is full of them. Everything, from the skylights to the benches in the lobby, is triangular. “At this point I’m kind of over the triangle shape, because we took that theme and beat it to death,” admits John O’Brien, the company’s head of real estate, who pointedly vetoed a colleague’s recent suggestion to offer triangle-shaped water bottles in the cafeteria.
英伟达超喜欢三角形，这个图形是电子游戏、电影动画图形绘制的基本形状。英伟达造价3.7亿美元的新总部外形就像一个三角形，内部装饰，从天窗到大厅的长椅，也尽是三角形。英伟达房地产负责John O’Brien承认：“从这一点讲，我们确实过于热衷三角形，我们把三角形作为主题，并渗透到各个地方。”John O'Brien刚刚否决一同事提议在自助餐厅提供三角水杯。
Three sides to every storey
每层楼有三面
Such workspaces remind staff that they are choosing not just an employer but a way of life. In the tech bubble of the late 1990s companies disrupted the workplace by offering foosball tables, nap pods, blow-up castles and free lunches. Now the emphasis is on amenities that help employees save time. Larger firms, including Facebook, Alphabet and LinkedIn, offer their staff something akin to the services used by the extremely wealthy, helping employees to find places to live, adopt pets and the like. Some large tech groups offer on-site health care.
这样的工作环境时刻提醒所有人，他们选择的不仅是一家公司，而是一种生活方式。20世纪90年代的科技泡沫中，公司们打破常规，提供桌上足球、小憩仓、充气城堡和免费午餐。现在公司的重点在为员工们提供节省时间的设施。像Facebook、 Alphabet 和领英等大公司都为员工们提供提供富人们才享受得到的服务，让员工们感受到家的氛围，员工们可以养宠物，做喜欢的事。有一些大科技企业还提供现场保健服务。
The effect of all this is that the typical office at a technology firm is becoming a prosperous, self-contained village. Employees have fewer reasons than ever to leave. With the spare cash they can throw at their employees, tech giants have vastly raised the bar for other kinds of company, which also want to recruit clever engineers and techies for their projects.
这就形成了一种效应：科技公司的办公环境变成了一个繁荣、自足的世界。员工们没离开的理由。科技巨头在员工们身上花的大把钱给其他行业造成了巨大压力，毕竟其他公司也想招揽有才华的工程师和科技人才。
Other industries would be wise to take time to watch how tech firms are structuring their work environments. There is certainly a chance of a backlash against those that use their products to watch employees too closely. Workers may like free lunches and other perks associated with the tech business, but probably not enough to surrender their privacy entirely.
其它行业也应花时间了解科技企业构建办公环境的办法。当然，用自己的产品过度监视员工很可能引起强烈反对。员工们是喜欢免费午餐和与科技企业有关联的特别待遇，但还不至于会因此放弃自己的隐私。
编译：周小靖
编辑：翻吧君
来源：经济学人
阅读·经济学人
宝莱坞退位：托莱坞和考莱坞开启全新时代
翻吧·与你一起学翻译
微信号：translationtips
长按识别二维码关注翻吧