Korn Ferry Paris

Overview

Opportunity

Solution

Impact

Team

Korn Ferry’s Paris workplace redefines the employee experience through creative reuse, flexible collaboration, and a workplace that reflects its evolving culture.

Location

Paris, France

Client

Korn Ferry

Expertise

[FPO] PSF Professional Services [FPO] Interiors Strategy

Opportunity

How can an existing workplace support a cultural transformation while minimizing environmental impact and maintaining business continuity?

Korn Ferry sought to reimagine its Paris office to better reflect its evolution from a traditional executive search firm into a collaborative management consulting organization. Located on the Champs-Élysées, the workplace needed to strengthen brand identity, encourage new ways of working, and support a transition to unassigned seating. At the same time, the project aimed to minimize environmental impact through maximum reuse of existing assets, while ensuring operations remained uninterrupted throughout construction.

Why This Matters

01
Supporting Cultural Change
The new workplace helps employees embrace more collaborative ways of working while reinforcing Korn Ferry’s future-focused business transformation.
02
Reducing Environmental Impact
Prioritizing reuse significantly lowered embodied carbon while demonstrating how sustainability can drive workplace innovation.
03
Maximizing Existing Assets
Strategic interventions unlocked value from the existing space, improving experience and performance without requiring a complete rebuild.

FPO Quote

Solution

A strategically selective approach transformed the workplace through reuse, vibrant interventions, and a central hub designed for connection and community.

Guided by a philosophy of creative frugality, Gensler focused on retaining and enhancing existing workplace elements wherever possible. Public and private spaces were reorganized around a flexible central hub that serves as a workplace destination for events, informal meetings, and social interaction. Strategic removal of partitions improved access to daylight and views across the Champs-Élysées, while vibrant colors, natural materials, and planting introduced warmth and energy. A diverse range of enclosed and open settings supports confidentiality, focus, and teamwork.

From brief to build: how creative reuse, strategic interventions, and workplace diversity delivered a high-impact transformation with minimal waste.

The design process began with a detailed evaluation of existing assets to identify opportunities for preservation and reuse. Rather than starting from scratch, the team selectively removed barriers that restricted daylight, views, and collaboration while maintaining the highest possible proportion of ceilings, furniture, and partitions. Workplace strategy informed the introduction of varied settings that support both confidentiality and teamwork. Construction was carefully phased to allow Korn Ferry to remain operational throughout the project without disrupting client services.

Impact

The redesigned workplace advances Korn Ferry’s cultural transformation while significantly reducing carbon impact through an ambitious reuse strategy.

The project creates a more collaborative employee experience, supports new workplace behaviors, and achieves substantially lower embodied carbon.

What Changed Because of This

01
Workplace Culture
New shared spaces encourage interaction while supporting Korn Ferry’s evolving organizational identity.
02
Environmental Impact
Extensive reuse reduced embodied carbon by 49% compared with a conventional fit-out approach.
03
Employee Choice
A wider variety of work settings accommodates focused, collaborative, and confidential workplace activities.

By embracing creative frugality, we transformed Korn Ferry’s workplace through targeted interventions, reusing what worked while creating a more collaborative, sustainable and people-centered environment.

Recognition

01

FRAME Magazine

Creative frugality: How Gensler’s design concept transformed the Paris office for Korn Ferry.

02

Work Design Magazine

Korn Ferry’s Paris workplace listed among the most inspiring projects of 2024.

Team

Project Leadership

Philippe Paré

Philippe Paré is the Co-Managing Principal for Gensler’s Europe region. Based in the Paris office, Philippe plays a dual role, driving the growth of the Paris office and Gensler’s business across France, while helping to expand the firm’s European presence.

[FPO] Maria Cudell

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[FPO] Jean-Pierre Bouanha

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[FPO] Ines Paumelle

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Related Expertise

PSF Professional Services Interiors Strategy

Korn Ferry’s Paris workplace redefines the employee experience through creative reuse, flexible collaboration, and a workplace that reflects its evolving culture.

How can an existing workplace support a cultural transformation while minimizing environmental impact and maintaining business continuity?

Why This Matters

A strategically selective approach transformed the workplace through reuse, vibrant interventions, and a central hub designed for connection and community.

From brief to build: how creative reuse, strategic interventions, and workplace diversity delivered a high-impact transformation with minimal waste.

The redesigned workplace advances Korn Ferry’s cultural transformation while significantly reducing carbon impact through an ambitious reuse strategy.

What Changed Because of This