Architectus has delivered two new interior fitouts for leading insurance provider, Allianz Australia, drawing its people back to the workplace and setting a new benchmark for workplace design.

The Brisbane and Adelaide fitouts showcase a new look for Allianz Australia, with employee wellbeing front and centre, offering accessible, light, bright, and attractive environments for their people to thrive.

“We’ve set out to create environments that draw employees back to the workplace, where they feel supported and connected while assisting customers in their times of need,” says Architectus Principal, Troy King, who led the Brisbane fitout.

“Unless a workplace is attractive and there’s a sense of community and great ergonomics, people may be more inclined to work from home. Our priority has been about reversing that trend and increasing the occupation of Allianz’s physical workplaces where employees feel inspired and re-engaged with the culture of the organisation.”

The fitouts feature large central stairs - a key design move to enable staff to easily interact across floors.

The stairs are intentionally positioned back-of-house rather than the traditional front-of-house model, and are centred around social and respite zones, prioritising Allianz’s employees.

Each floor features a range of flexible spaces where staff can huddle together for standup meetings as teams, as well as quiet plant-filled areas to retreat to for respite.

Biophilic principles were used throughout the design, increasing natural light into the floorplans, with workstations and loose furniture surrounding the façade, strengthening the visual connection with nature.

Biomorphic forms and patterns are found in the materiality with timber grains, organic patterned carpet, and natural stone.

The Allianz Brisbane fitout also features an upgraded and extended outdoor terrace, providing valuable amenity for staff to step outside and enjoy fresh air and sunshine, without needing to leave the workplace.

Controllable task and feature lighting allows for spaces to be easily adapted. Dimmable and warm, the lighting is akin to domestic and hospitality settings, calming the interior.

Both fitouts feature a base palette of warm timbers throughout, with Adelaide expressing its own character with an injection of colour.

“The central street that connects the different areas across the floorplate is fun, and invigorating,” says Architectus Principal, Andrew Schunke, who led the Adelaide fitout.

“The colour palette helps to define the mood of the spaces – the street engaging, and the retreat areas calm, adopting a biophilic approach similar to Brisbane, with lush landscaping, green tones and warm timbers.”

The Adelaide team also engaged First Nations artisans to curate installations utilising suspended woven sculptures and rich, dramatically coloured artworks to enliven the stair void.

Both fitouts feature integrated technology with seamless connectivity, enabling greater flexibility for employees to move between work points, meeting spaces and collaboration zones to better service customers.

"We're so pleased to have uplifted our offices in Adelaide and Brisbane, creating an environment that better supports hybrid ways of working while prioritising our employees’ wellbeing,” says Gwendy Arnot, General Manager Workplace Services at Allianz.

“Our focus on light, collaborative, technology-enabled sustainable spaces is key to leveraging one of our most important assets, our people, in the most productive way.”

Image: Supplied

Clémence Carayol

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