Finally, we were about to visit the company—Keolis which is totally related to our topic, transportation. The first impression about the company was crosswalk which led to information desk. We thought it was really cool. More, there was a sign, pedestrian crossing and the design of waiting area was just like the ones in subway station. After we signed the sheet and about to go visiting the working environment, we noticed that the access to office was designed to be similar to the entry of the subway. The lady mentioned about the uniform that it had name tag and the department on each jacket. We thought it was really good because it could give people a sense of belongingness and make them work harder and have more responsibility.
After we passed the access, the lady gave us a short introduction about herself and how she liked about Keolis. At the same time, the map of the company behind her caught our eyes……
We figured that the map looked like a real road map. Also, their offices were named by toponomy and the location of the offices looked like the stops of subway too. We thought the design of this map was really successful because it could give people a strong image that how Keolis run the company and related to transportation.
We started to visit all offices. The first cool thing was office tag we found out. It was interesting because it showed the following schedule, the rest of time starting the meeting and the capacity of room. And some hallways also looked like roads with white line and yellow line. On the other hand, some hallways had yellow rails which were same on the bus. Following, the lady introduced us a very special room which was like a quiet room that you couldn’t make any noise inside it. There was a mute sign to show the rule of this room. It was supposed to help people focus on their works. However, for both of us, we didn’t like this kind of working environment which was too quiet and made us feel bored and sleepy. We need some music to keep us feeling ease and comfortable.
Here comes the highlight that the lady said this operating room was the most important in whole company.People here monitored every route of bus when incidents happens they have to inform the drivers immediately so that there won’t be accidents and delay. Therefore, they have to be cautious and attentive every moment. If they make a little mistake, it might paralyze the whole operating system. Just like a Chinese aphorism “A single slip can cause a lasting sorrow.” The bonus we got from this visit was not candies or sandwiches we had in the meeting but a super interesting and smart desk we found in the office. It could move up and down by personal preference.
This visit was very abundant and was our favorite company we visited so far during this trip. We liked how they operating and designed the company. We were surprised that how a transportation company could be so advanced and full of fun.
To be continued…..
