America's Greatest Office in Racine Wisconsin

Seems like a strange place to have Americas greatest office building but that is the case and has been since 1937.

RACINE, Wis. -- There's always stiff competition for the title of America's best workplace. But when it comes to the country's best work space, the lucky people who spend their days in the administration building at SC Johnson headquarters may well have the bragging rights.

Designed by celebrated architect Frank Lloyd Wright, the building in this town just south of Milwaukee defies logic -- and, some thought, physics. Its signature element is 60 21-foot-tall columns that fill its famous half-acre open Great Workroom. 

This was actually one of the many buildings I studied in Architecture school, not because it was old but because it was actually really good and well received by the public.  It was buildings like that which defined the architecture style of the 1950's.

One thing different about modern buildings we see today is that they are considered utilities by the company and no longer define it.  Back in the early 20th century large corporations were desperate to improve their public image and one way they did that was with architecture.  There are many examples of this e.g. The Sears Tower and the SC Johnson headquarters (in this article).  Those companies had money and didn't mind spending it to improve their image.  Some sought to get everyone into a single building while others wanted to improve employee morale.

Sadly, things are not the same anymore, a company will lease a building and that is it, no fancy sign over the door and no unique design.  True, it is what goes on "inside" the building that matters but this trend of bigger and cheaper doesn't make you famous and shouldn't make you proud of where you work.

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