Client
Colliers
Location
Vancouver, British Columbia
Our colleagues at Colliers are leaders in Real Estate and Investment Management services. Together we provide end-to-end solutions for the built environment – from real estate solutions to capital project management, advisory and delivery. For decades, our teams have helped clients find the best office spaces for their business and strategy needs, while also offering advice on how to optimize those workspaces.
With the lease of its former Vancouver offices coming to an end, Colliers leveraged its own teams’ expertise to deliver a new, best-in-class work environment for its people. In late 2023, Colliers relocated more than 500 professionals into two Class A office towers located in the heart of downtown Vancouver. Its Brokerage and Strategy & Consulting teams primarily occupy Rogers Tower, while its Corporate, Shared Services and Project Management teams sit in Oceanic Plaza.
Collaborating to deliver new offices, ahead of schedule and under budget
Colliers brought together experts from its internal and external teams to deliver the new offices. Taking a fully collaborative approach, our Project Management team, along with Colliers’ Brokerage and Workplace Advisory groups, worked with McKinley Studios, Novacom Building Partners, Oxford and Westbank to customize each location.
Following a comprehensive space search and assessment process, the Brokerage and Workplace Advisory teams selected Rogers Tower and Oceanic Plaza due to the buildings’ proximity, central location and surrounding amenities.
Once Colliers secured the lease for its new office locations, our Project Management team set out to create a framework for the fit-ups. Together, the Brokerage and Project Managers teams established a project committee, identified decision-makers and set up a structure for approvals before engaging with other groups to better understand the spaces’ design and functionality constraints.
As Project Managers, we maintained strong communication throughout the transition, providing regular updates, change management support, value engineering workshops, move management services and more. Cross-functional collaboration enabled the full project team to overcome challenges and make decisions quickly.
Drawing on internal expertise and taking the same integrated service approach we apply to client projects, we completed the office fit-ups under budget and ahead of schedule.
Optimized offices result in 12-point increase in workspace satisfaction and three-point rise in overall employee engagement
Colliers’ new Vancouver spaces are designed to promote ideation, teamwork and mentorship for top talent and key partners. Rogers Tower is fully equipped to accommodate 200 in-office employees. Its warm and welcoming reception area includes an eye-catching, interconnected staircase in signature Colliers blue that leads to the upper-floor kitchen and an outdoor patio that offers stunning city views and seating areas. With assigned open-workspace seating, enclosed offices surrounding its perimeter and multiple large meeting rooms, the Rogers Tower office is perfect for collaborating with team members and hosting clients.
Oceanic Plaza supports a hybrid-work approach, accommodating more than 350 employees in the open-concept workspace. The 30,000-square-foot office is split over two floors, each with its own kitchen. The upper floor provides ample meeting spaces to encourage teams to collaborate while taking in the office’s breathtaking water and mountain views. The lower floor has unassigned workspaces positioned along its exterior so employees can take full advantage of the natural lighting. All enclosed office spaces are located in the centre of the floor – providing team members with a quiet, private workspace as needed.
Professionals across the business are already experiencing the advantages of their new office environment, from innovative design and technology to optimal collaboration spaces.
“I’m really excited about our new technology in the office,” says Kelly Moore, Senior Property Administrator. “It enables people to collaborate, connect and effectively do their work, whether they’re at home or in the office.”
In a recent employee engagement survey, Colliers’ Vancouver-based professionals rated the extent to which the firm’s “offices and workspaces support collaboration and foster working relationships” 12 points higher than they did before relocating to the new offices. And the Vancouver teams’ overall engagement increased by three points compared to the previous year.
Quick Facts
Following the end of an existing lease, Colliers relocated more than 500 Vancouver-based professionals into two state-of-the art office towers.
Colliers customized the office spaces to meet different strategic needs, resulting in higher workspace satisfaction and employee engagement.
Taking the lead on the office fit-ups, our project managers developed a comprehensive project framework, applying our expertise to deliver both offices ahead of schedule and under budget.
Continuing to drive collaboration, productivity and engagement with dynamic, employee-centric spaces
Colliers welcomed employees to its new Vancouver offices in December 2023. The modernized offices embody the company’s culture, empowering teams to do their best work, while providing access to amenities and services that they value and enjoy.
"I value seeing our team engage in conversations, laughter and ad hoc learning," says Dee Rakhra, Director, People Services. "Our team is really enjoying the open space and the flexible ways of working that our new offices provide."
Colliers’ desire to set up its own people for success, combined with its expertise in delivering best-in-class workspaces, makes the company a prime breeding ground for continuous growth and innovation.