Zo and the Art of Tishman Speyer Amenities

By Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor

Rockefeller Center, New York

New York—For occupants of Tishman Speyer’s properties, a day at the office is about to take on new meaning. The international real estate company just launched Zo, a suite of amenities and services for tenants, designed to ease the pursuit of the ultimate work-life balance.

The name says it all. Zo originates from the Greek word for life, zoe, and the more modern notion of being in the zone. “Zo represents a shift in the mindset of how we run our business and our portfolio,” Rob Speyer, CEO of Tishman Speyer, said in a prepared statement. “Our most important job is to serve the 250,000 people who work in our buildings each and every day. Instead of defining ourselves by the square feet we own, we will define ourselves by the quarter million people who use the square feet and how well we tend to them.”

The objective of Zo is to provide access to those little extras that make a big difference for office dwellers trying to juggle two worlds: work life and real life. With Zo, Tishman turns a spotlight on the fact that the two realms must meet occasionally if success in both is to be attained. Tishman has already rolled out Zo at Rockefeller Center, where tenant companies and their employees can avail themselves of a host of options that help maintain work-life equilibrium.

Through partnerships with a host of service providers, Zo will supply such vital offerings as emergency/backup child care, as well as travel planning, beauty and wellness services, food delivery and rideshares. Companies will also be able to utilize Zo for a variety of human resources services and for such purposes as arranging civic engagement/volunteer opportunities.

“Finding a suitable balance between work and daily living is a challenge that all workers face,” as noted in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Better Life Index. “The ability to successfully combine work, family commitments and personal life is important for the well-being of all members in a household.”

Tishman Speyer plans to incorporate Zo throughout its portfolio, which spans 30 key global markets across the U.S., Europe, Latin America and Asia. And it’s not just for the blue-chip businesses; smaller tenants are included in the program as well. The company is blazing a trail with Zo, becoming the first office landlord to provide both large and small tenants with a sweeping amenities and services program that would normally be the exclusive domain of big corporations.

Image courtesy of NYC & Co., Joe Buglewicz