KONE makes new location a laboratory for New Work
Lift manufacturer KONE has opened a new location in Sion. With the expansion of its presence in western Switzerland, the company is introducing flexible workplace management. The principles of New York and sustainability are intended to promote inclusion and innovation in the team.
KONE, the Finnish specialist for building mobility, has inaugurated a new branch for around 70 employees in Sion, according to a media release. It was officially opened in the presence of the Finnish ambassador to Switzerland, Valtteri Hirvonen. KONE has been present in Western Switzerland since 2001 and employs 140 people there.
With the opening of its newest location, KONE is simultaneously introducing a new working model. Among other things, this includes a new computer-controlled allocation of workstations every day. Anyone who wants to fill a workstation submits a request via an app and is then assigned a place. This is done randomly and differently from the previous day.
The company hopes that this will lead to stronger communication between employees, which should promote cooperation and creativity. In addition, the office building in Sion is reportedly KONE’s first in the world to be fully designed in the new brand identity. A dynamic and flexible space has been created that can be changed according to needs. This concept was developed with a team of local employees in a participatory process, it said.
“We are proud to be able to introduce a form of collaboration at the Sion site that meets the requirements of digitalisation and globalisation and promotes inclusion and innovation in our Western Switzerland team,” Christian Wukovits, Managing Director KONE Switzerland and Austria, is quoted as saying in the statement, “I would like to express my sincere thanks to the project group and everyone else who was involved in this process. They have done an excellent job that will be groundbreaking for our company”.