A newly opened office within the Citrix Systems Inc. complex in Goleta might be used as a model for the company going forward, with an open layout designed to improve focus, productivity and fun.
The nearly 34,000-square-foot building at 7414 Hollister Ave. welcomed about 200 product development employees in February — staff that had been spread across the eight-building complex, according to Dan Gabie, group manager of Citrix’s global facilities projects.
“It’s a lot more collaborative,” he told Noozhawk.
The next-generation design using some global signature Citrix elements complements the changing face of Citrix, which announced in late 2015 that the Santa Clara-based company plans to lay off 1,000 employees, or 10 percent of its total workforce, as part of a refocusing to provide secure and reliable delivery of applications and data.
Goleta’s campus of 600 employees should be mostly insulated from layoffs, since it houses Citrix’s popular GoToMeeting products, which are set to become a separate publicly traded business.
A new name for the company will be determined in the second half of 2016, said Steve Nicholson, senior director of real estate strategy-operations.
GoTo products provide HD video conferencing and related tools on desktops, laptops, mobile phones and other devices to more than 400,000 organizations and upward of 100 million users.
Nicholson said the new office’s natural light and floor efficiency make it seem like every employee has his or her own window — sans the cubicle walls and boring color palletes.
Spaces suit different work styles, with lounging areas, “hangout” booths and phone booths for privacy. Adjustable desks let employees stand or sit, and dimmable LED lights and other green elements serve to soften the ambience.
Citrix also monitors indoor air quality. Detectors let more air in or out depending on carbon dioxide levels inside the building, which has 17 team rooms and eight conference rooms that can be reserved via touch screen.
“It’s all about the team,” Nicholson said, noting that simple design touches “highlight the intersection between work and play.”
Citrix went to great lengths to mask sound between different areas, which boast more greens, blues or yellows depending on which product line each section works on.
That way, Nicholson said, employees working on laptops won’t be able to hear those in the sports lounge using pool tables, TVs, Ping-Pong tables or stadium seating.
Like any good tech company, the walls are covered in erasable whiteboards, including some surrounding an outdoor office space.
So far, feedback from employees and visitors to the building has been very positive, Nicholson said.
— Noozhawk staff writer Gina Potthoff can be reached at gpotthoff@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
