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TRIBUCANET
07/10/2021

Day One and Garden of Eden for ARM Sophia

The return to work after a long period of teleworking will undoubtedly have caused some surprises among the group's employees. New premises and... a new atmosphere

Thursday 7th October, Saint-Philippe, Sophia Antipolis. For some of the employees of ARM (processor design, calculation engines, around thirty sites in the world), it was a rather special start to the new school year, after a long break in teleworking. There are 350 employees at the French base, which has been firmly anchored in the technology park since 2000, and they have just moved into brand new premises, delivered in the middle of a health crisis, in two stages, in January and August 2020, certified - after fitting out - Leed and Well, which means super-performing in terms of the health and well-being of employees. For example, the ventilation equipment has been tripled compared to the developer's delivery, an unexpected advantage at a time of viruses... "Post-Covid, owe realise the relevance of the idea". This is the first time that the group has had to apply the new, more efficient standards to all of its sites," says Christophe Frey, the site's general manager and, above all, now the group's vice-president for Work Place Worldwide. It is up to him to apply the new, more efficient standards to all the sites. Sophia,4th site of the group in terms of staff, a bit of a pilot ? "We could say that we have innovated a lot, but above all we have anticipated a lot, to adapt to the hybrid world. For example, there are no individual offices, even the management doesn't have an office here, we're all in open space, but with the possibility of occupying small rooms, for one, two or three people, which is a real post-Covid trend".With maximum flexibility, the site can accommodate up to 700 people in shared spaces. It is better to plan ahead in a sector, the electronics sector, which has been more than helped by the health crisis.

 
What about art?

 

« Yes, we believe that the work will remain focused on the workspace." . Even if some employees, few in number, are still teleworking. In order to respect this wellbeing at work, which is labelled as fresh, it will therefore be necessary to imagine the company of tomorrow based on high criteria of comfort and sociability. Among the possibilities, the use of welcoming exteriors, due to the Mediterranean climate. " A typical example of a post-pandemic development. On the occasion of a retirement this summer, we found ourselves in the car park. The car park had been fitted out and had the potential to become a more regular meeting place. Our engineers need contacts, networking, discussions, that's where innovations are born... This is what we call serendipity, innovation that happens even though we hadn't anticipated it.« 
From the group will come invention. And the place itself can be inspiring. The semi-covered car park, which is available to employees, has been given a new look by Eric Garence and César Malfi, two local artists who are already well known at ARM, where art entered the premises in decorating mode, via Eric Garence's colourful posters. " We work by themes, writers, painters...But without any notion of sponsorship, the group is more concerned with the social than the artistic aspect, it's a choice. ". However, Eric Garence's picturesque villages hit the nail on the head, and the artist, now a colloquial figure, was called in to design a large outdoor fresco to dress up the old car park, backed up by a street art pro, César Malfi. Together, they have already taken the Prom' to the 7th floor of the4th Radisson Blu. And it was together, in performance mode, that they created a Garden of Eden to push ARM (a little) outside its walls. For this " Day One »The collaborators were delighted. Some of them have even followed the artists from day to day, and the reunions are joyful. The poster signings follow one another, smiles and sunglasses are a must... sunglasses de rigueur…

 

Published by Isabelle Auzias