LaSalle partners with JLL to transform its office into a sustainable workplace for the future

Meet the fresh face of LaSalle’s new HQ

Every company deserves a headquarters that reflects its brand and culture. When LaSalle’s lease for their London office was up, they knew this was an opportunity to find a space that they could design from the ground up to create a home that epitomises what they stand for.

LaSalle, a prominent real estate investment management firm, entrusted JLL with the crucial task of finding a best-in-class building in Central London. They wanted somewhere that would serve as a physical representation of their brand and values, and showcase their commitment to excellence.

And that’s precisely what JLL found.

The prestigious 78 St James’s Street was the perfect spot. Located in one of the most sought-after areas of Central London, LaSalle partnered with JLL and Tétris to embark on a transformative journey for their new UK head office. This ambitious project centred around reimagining the space to create a flexible and collaborative environment. One that would promote inclusivity and wellbeing, with sustainability at its core.

Monumental task, monumental reward

As La Salle’s lease was coming to an end, JLL was tasked with identifying a building that could successfully meet several success measures for the move. These included location, building amenities, best-in-class space, sustainability, and wellbeing provisions for their staff. The challenge was to find a building that would not just simply fulfil all these requirements, but overdeliver on them to a superior level. The goal of prestige was key.

Embarking on a methodically comprehensive journey

Our starting point is always based on a foundation of collaboration. Working alongside LaSalle, we embarked on an extensive consultation to gain an understanding of their specific requirements and aspirations. This was an opportunity to showcase how the OneJLL approach can exceed expectations with positive human and sustainability outcomes.

We brought together experts from across JLL, including Leasing, Workplace Strategy, Tetris DxB, PDS, our Net-Zero Carbon team, Sustainability Consulting, and JLLT.

To assist LaSalle in reducing their current real estate footprint, we conducted a thorough analysis of their space requirements and identified potential opportunities. This data-driven approach allowed us to shortlist and score potential buildings, taking into account factors such as supply and demand dynamics, occupancy rates, and booking patterns. Working in collaboration with the JLL tenant representative and project management team, we developed space demand scenarios and test layout options for potential locations.

78 St James’s Street was the ideal building that ticked the boxes in terms of location, quality and amenities. This meticulously selected heritage building represented the pinnacle of excellence in Central London and surpassed LaSalle's expectations. A brand new prestigious home was already well in the making.

To ensure seamless alignment between the future workspace and LaSalle's organisational culture, we conducted a culture change readiness assessment. This comprehensive analysis explored dependencies, identified key risks, and outlined areas of focus for a future change management program. By conducting senior leadership interviews, comprehensive staff surveys, and focus groups consisting of cross-sections of team representatives, we gained valuable insights into the specific needs, aspirations, and work-style profiles of LaSalle's employees. These insights served as the foundation for developing tailored space demand opportunities that would best serve their existing and future needs.

Having found a heritage building, we also recognised the significance of incorporating contemporary aesthetics while preserving historic elements in the design to align with LaSalle's values and enhance their brand identity.

Last but certainly not least, sustainability had emerged as one of LaSalle's primary focal points, making it a central consideration throughout the entire project.

We also identified short-term wins to improve the employee experience, creating strategies to make comfort, productivity, and overall satisfaction front and center. We also provided guidance on sustainability and DE&I solutions to support LaSalle’s aspirations for creating an outstanding experience for both employees and visitors alike.

All of this combined gave us a clear brief to source: design, build, and furnish the workplace to perfectly complement LaSalle’s culture, ambitions and values. This would be rolled together to create the prestigious output that was so desired.

A vision brought to life

As sustainability was a major aspect of the project, we overextended ourselves to maximise our capabilities, and minimise our impact. For example we reused furniture that LaSalle already owned, achieving an impressive 60% re-use rate. By incorporating only 40% new furniture, we seamlessly integrated their evolving needs with the existing elements, while minimising waste and maintaining a cohesive, harmonious aesthetic throughout the workspace.

To further deliver our sustainability objectives, energy-efficient systems were incorporated throughout the space. Our aim was to achieve Well Certification of Platinum, Ska Gold, and BREEAM Excellent certification for the office floor. By implementing circular economy principles, reducing embodied carbon and focusing on employee wellbeing, our design aimed to minimize the environmental footprint while creating a healthier and more productive work environment for LaSalle's employees.

Recognising the importance of flexibility in the modern workplace, we also designed and created designated workspaces for individual focus as well as modular meeting areas for different types of team interactions. This gave employees the right type of workspace to facilitate productivity, collaboration and innovation.

A partner from start to finish

We successfully delivered a functional yet attractive workspace that reflected LaSalle's desire to combine heritage and contemporary aesthetics, while integrating sustainability principles into every aspect of the design.

The end result was a high-quality and prestigious workplace that met LaSalle's requirements, maximised operational efficiency, and fostered collaboration and creativity among their employees. As hybrid working became the norm we wanted to create a fresh and flexible atmosphere that would encourage people to find more joy working from the office than they get working from home.

By understanding and prioritising LaSalle's objectives, JLL exemplified its commitment to providing tailored solutions that shape workspaces to align with the values and goals of its clients.