VALUEACT CAPITAL CORPORATE OFFICES
ValueAct Capital Corporate Offices, Letterman Digital Arts Center, San Francisco, California ValueAct Capital, one of the West Coast s largest investment management firms, had outgrown their office space and was looking for a new environment that would facilitate the particular way they work. The firm is known for investment strategy based on due diligence, research, and active involvement in the value creation at their investments, however they were occupying a split-level office suite that put physical and metaphorical barriers between teams. To facilitate their work, they were seeking a balance between a collaborative idea space and a cloistered, investment-sensitive environment. Gould Evans designed a new 30,000 sf workplace for ValueAct that allows ideas to flow freely or be completely contained at the discretion of the individual, supporting a palette of different working styles. Located in the Letterman Digital Arts Center Complex within the Historic San Francisco Presidio, their new offices are rooted in surroundings that are unmistakably San Francisco. To achieve the desired balance, private offices along the perimeter are interspersed with open work areas, collaboration and break out spaces. This organization is most apparent in the Investor Wing. Generously-sized offices have glass doors that close for complete acoustical privacy and feature break out meeting spaces of their own. Nicknamed the snowflake, the large analyst desk at the center of the open office space sports a circular arrangement of concave work surfaces allowing up to nine people with three monitors each to work together face to face, as if in an extended conversation, facilitating sharing of time-sensitive information. The partner offices around the snowflake have sliding glass doors allowing for complete openness to the analyst activity and collaboration. The shell of the Letterman Digital Arts Center had been designed in keeping with its historic surroundings, a former military hospital, with a gabled roof and mullioned windows. However, ValueAct desired a warm modern environment that would express its office culture. The design team accomplished this through a few strong material and formal interventions. A ribbon wall of board and batten Eucalyptus starts at the reception desk, wraps around the glazed main entry, and proceeds around the entire space. The wall bends to form benches, bars, and break out spaces. The lobby ceiling is paneled in acoustical Eucalyptus slats, a gesture which transforms into a dramatic articulated faceted ceiling in the Investor Wing, hinting at topography. The choice of Eucalyptus is a historical reference, as the sand dunes of the original Presidio landscape were planted over with a Eucalyptus Forest. In other areas a woven metal ceiling and a dappled gray carpet offsets the softness and warmth of the wooden elements. To address the needs of the employees, casual lounge spaces were incorporated throughout the open office and administrative spaces. A relaxing loft serves as an amenity for the high-energy analysts, often working irregular hours, and has proven to be an important recruiting tool. A water bar located at the intersection of the Investor Wing and the Investor Relations Wing was designed to adapt to many different scenarios: as a social touch point for employees, or as a catering counter for office functions. Its location on the North side of the building highlights a view to the Palace of Fine Arts, connecting to the surrounding environment for visual enrichment. The expectations of partners and executive-level staff necessitated a personalized approach to the design of the private office interiors, however the transparent nature of the space required visual consistency among office furnishings. The designers developed a furniture program that allowed for customizable features, such as standing height work surface, ergonomic components and a package of ancillary furnishings to choose from. Each person was able to choose components based on his or her work style, while preserving a consistent visual aesthetic throughout the space.
About Gould Evans Gould Evans is a design and planning firm whose principals and associates are united around a common vision: to create environments that transform their surroundings, engage their occupants, sustain their environment and support our clients missions. Our portfolio is intentionally diverse, encompassing living spaces, higher education projects, research facilities, civic buildings, cultural institutions, athletics facilities, workplaces, environmental branding and urban planning. Our designs have garnered local, regional and national awards for their specificity to people and place. Founded in 1974 by two former University of Kansas School of Architecture classmates who shared a passion for regional architecture and design, today our 11 principals lead more than 140 associates across five studios in locations as diverse as San Francisco, Kansas City, Lawrence, Phoenix and New Orleans. To learn more, visit www.gouldevans.com. Team Credits Architecture / Interior Design: Gould Evans Photo Credits: Bruce Damonte Structural Engineer: Murphy Burr Curry Acoustic and AV Consultant: Charles Salter and Associates Lighting Design: WSP San Francisco General Contractor: Skyline Construction San Francisco Building Address: 1 Letterman Drive, San Francisco For additional information contact: Megan Krtek, 816.701.5422 / megan.krtek@gouldevans.com
The lobby features a ribbon wall of board and batten Eucalyptus and a Eucalyptus-paneled ceiling.
The lobby adjoins a large client meeting space.
Detail of the Eucalyptus reception desk.
Detail of the marble mosaic tile feature wall at reception.
Warm modern materials contrast with raw industrial elements of the existing building to create ValueAct's architectural identity.
View of the lobby looking West.
Client meeting areas offer views to the Presidio setting.
Private offices around the perimeter are interspersed with open work areas, collaboration and breakout spaces.
The Investor Wing looking West, featuring the dramatic articulated cathedral ceiling.
Looking East, the Investor Wing terminates in an analyst work area topped by a mezzanine-level relaxation loft.
Generously-sized offices have glass doors that close for acoustical privacy and feature breakout meeting spaces.
The "Snowflake" area allows analysts to work face-to-face, facilitating sharing of time-sensitive information.
The loft provides relaxation space for the high-energy analysts, and serves as an important recruiting tool.
The "Water Bar," a social touch point for employees, overlooks the San Francisco Bay and the Palace of Fine Arts.
Detail of the articulated Eucalyptus ceiling.
The kitchen provides social eating space for employees and supports office-wide events.
Detail of the ribbon wall in the Investor Relations Wing.
The boardroom features a state-of-the-art Prysm Video Wall.
The boardroom and Northwest patio overlook the San Francisco Bay.
The boardroom overlooks the Golden Gate Bridge.
05 06 08 07 10 PROGRAM 04 09 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 Reception Administration Wing Kitchen Legal / Compliance Wing Boardroom Investor Wing Analyst Desk Snow Flake Loft Tenant / Expansion Space Corridor / Core Space 10 03 02 01 09 15 V A L U E A C T C A P I TA L L E V E L 4 F LO O R P L A N 30
4 8 VALUE ACT CAPITAL INTERIOR ELEVATION A
4 8 VALUE ACT CAPITAL INTERIOR ELEVATION B
VALUE ACT CAPITAL AXONOMETRIC VIEW