Return to Better: How the Operations Team is Improving the UPMC Enterprises Office

For the past several months, the Operations team at UPMC Enterprises has been hard at work to make the office a better place. What started as a renovation project for the “Google stairwell” quickly turned into several new office spaces and an overall aesthetic refresh.  

Some of the upcoming refreshes include new office spaces, conference room AV equipment upgrades, daily free snacks in the kitchens, and a fresh coat of paint on the walls.

One of the biggest recent changes was the construction of the new offices in the old library area near Kauffman’s Clock. For Jen Gigliotti, Director of the Operations – Infrastructure and Work Environment Team, the new bright and beautiful offices are a much better use of space.

“We really needed the offices because that library area was poorly underutilized and never used for its original intended purpose,” Jen said. “There was a need for additional offices, so it was a prime opportunity.”

A few steps away from the new offices, there are now 1:1 rooms where the old nursing and massage rooms used to be. According to Jen, the repurposing of these rooms is much more fitting for employees’ current needs.

“In the new 1:1 rooms, we took out some of the furniture and are in the process of replacing it with some comfy lounge chairs and installing a glass door for transparency when people are meeting,” Jen said. “One of the rooms also has a small refrigerator and a pull-down blind in case somebody does need to use it for a nursing room.”

Down the hall heading towards the main lobby, the Testing Lab is also in the early stages of receiving a makeover which will eventually include soundproof partitions that could divide the large room into three separate rooms with individual monitors, AV equipment, and a conference table.

Every wall in the office is also getting a fresh coat of paint – something Jen believes has been long overdue.

“Due to normal wear and tear, we knew we needed to do a refresh,” Jen said. “Since we knew that more and more people are returning back to the office in a hybrid model, we thought it would be nice to brighten up the colors on the walls.”

An ongoing theme amongst several teams at UPMC Enterprises as they begin to adjust to life after the pandemic is this concept of “return to better.” The Operations team as a whole is committed to continuing to make improvements as time goes on. As more positive changes take place, Jen hopes that employees are able to feel happy and proud of their workspace.

“One of the colors that we chose is this pure white color, which is reflective of new beginnings,” Jen said. “That’s exactly what we’re aiming for.”