The new workplace of BPER Banca

Developed within Palazzo Diamantino, it represents the first local example of a new concept of the workplace — a space that blends efficiency, flexibility, technological advancement, and sustainability — designed to structure employees’ workdays according to the tasks they need to perform.

BPER Banca has recently introduced a new workplace model at its hub in Palazzo Diamantino, Milan, marking the first local implementation of the company’s new vision for the work environment. This newly introduced paradigm responds to the need to reshape the workplace lifestyle in the aftermath of the pandemic. The new headquarters has been designed with efficient, flexible, technologically advanced, and sustainable spaces, with the aim of organizing employees’ workdays based on the nature of their tasks.

“The new workplace model at BPER can be summed up in one phrase: ‘In the right place at the right time.’ This means that BPER provides a variety of spaces tailored to the needs of each workday,” explains Cristina Benedetti, Real Estate Active Management.
She continues, “There are open space desks as well as small ‘office and meet’ rooms for two people. For meetings, there are technologically advanced meeting rooms that can accommodate from 4 to 20 participants. We also provide soundproof phone booths for private calls or video conferences.
Additionally, there are informal collaboration areas where employees can hold quick meetings with colleagues.”

The layout of the new BPER Banca offices features a seamless alternation between operational areas and spaces designed for social interaction (such as meetings, team-building, and workshops) and focus work, all with the aim of optimizing space and maintaining high-quality standards. Architectural and furnishing choices were driven by the goal of enabling Group employees to increase productivity and efficiency within a cutting-edge, functional environment that ensures overall employee well-being, fully aligned with the Group’s ESG objectives.

The new workplace model included not only changes in the office layout but also technological upgrades, especially regarding workstations and desks, which have been reorganized according to a Clean Desk Policy:

“We moved from a paradigm of fixed-user devices to a new reality where desks are empty but equipped with shared tools — monitors and docking stations that colleagues can use by simply connecting their laptops after reserving the desk,” explains Stefano Moretti, Head of Telecommunications and Mobile Systems.
“As for other areas, we equipped them with collaboration technologies suited to the needs of our colleagues — particularly in meeting rooms. Depending on the room size, we’ve deployed video conferencing systems that are now widely used for remote video sessions.”

From a technological standpoint, one of the flagship features of the new BPER hub is its meeting rooms, all equipped with Cisco video conferencing systems — a well-established technology within the Group’s headquarters, thanks to the support of partner VEM sistemi. At Palazzo Diamantino, however, Cisco solutions are even more pervasive: all meeting rooms — adapted to various sizes and usage needs — feature the vendor’s latest-generation endpoints, which ensure optimal audio and video performance, high security standards, effective session monitoring, and an outstanding user experience across the entire workforce.

To manage bookings of workspaces — from desks to shared areas — BPER introduced an application accessible via PC or smartphone, allowing employees to book any shared resource whenever needed.

In this new workplace model, technology plays a central role both in offices and common areas. It is integrated at every level to ensure optimal usability of all spaces within the Diamantino hub, offering high performance and a more engaging and appealing user experience than what employees might have when working from home. As a result, employees are more inclined to work from these offices.

Throughout this major transformation, BPER supported its workforce with an internal communication campaign — both proactively (before employees moved into the new offices) and on an ongoing basis (as spaces were gradually used), including feedback collection. The data shows that BPER employees are highly satisfied and appreciate the shift in how the workday is organized.

In addition to increasing employee satisfaction, the new layout has also contributed to reducing management costs, as the rotation mechanism for office presence and desk reservation allows for significantly better resource organization.