An EPIC office

When discussing user participation in design, it is important to understand new trends that are happening and the need for flexibility in design. Many companies are beginning to demand more fun and flexible workplaces, where creativity can flow and workers can be more productive. This new trend is interesting and reminds me of a project near Madison, Wisconsin. 

Epic Systems Corporation is one such company that demands a unique and fun workplace. In the middle of nowhere (Verona, Wisconsin), the Epic Campus sits on 950 Acres and is worth over $800 million. The campus has been constantly designed and added to by Cuningham Group Architects for over 20 years. Each building on campus has a unique theme. Themes include: Willy Wonka, Alice in Wonderland, Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter, a giant tree house, barn campus, dragon themes, grand central station, etc. The company provides a private office for every single employee of the company, so they are in constant need of new buildings for offices and meeting spaces.  

Things you'll see on campus: 

"A red treehouse serving as a conference room, a crashing blue waterfall flows under a wooden bridge, bright yellow picnic benches for lunch, a moat and a medieval drawbridge between modern glass buildings, an annual tug of war, a staircase surrounded by bamboo, underground tunnels, skyways, a gourmet meal named after a constellation, two giant cactuses, a snake stretching dozens of feet, an intricately designed wizard-themed Harry Potter-esque room, a giant auditorium five stories underground that seats 11,000, hundreds of solar panels, sculptures of seals and elephants, a tin man on a bench, a life-size Grand Central Station complete with walk-in train cars, an Indiana Jones themed hallway, the Blues Brothers in wax, and a farm campus with a four-story barn, milk jugs, butter churns, and lots of tractors." - Epic 

While this campus seems to be an incredibly fun and interesting place to work, I have to question who is making the design decisions? I have inside information, having worked for the firm, and it seems that most of the decisions for the themes of the buildings do go directly through the owner of the company (Judith Faulkner). She is continuously working directly with the Epic Team at Cuningham to approve new ideas for office spaces. 

But what about the users? To my knowledge, the employees of the company are not given an option of what theme they would like to have surrounding their office space. While some may enjoy Willy Wonka halls, others may be forced to live a nightmare in a movie they hate.