Cadillac’s ‘backseat boardroom'

Cadillac is hoping to boost UK office productivity by offering businesses the use of chauffeured SRX cars as mobile ‘think spaces’.The snappily titled Backseat Boardroom initiative will run over the next couple of weeks; it aims to relieve office employees of the unnecessary distractions which, Cadillac insists, ruin an average working day. It suggests that the vehicles could be used as meeting rooms or even “quiet contemplation spaces”.If the thought of spending more time in the car once you’ve actually made it to the office sounds remarkably unappealing, the American car maker has produced some revealing figures to coincide with the scheme’s launch.The survey of 1000 businesspeople indicated that despite working the longest hours in Europe, Britain’s office staff only manage to use three hours and 50 minutes of their day constructively. The rest of the time is lost fielding unnecessary phone calls and e-mails, surfing the internet and keeping up with office gossip.The “Backstreet Boardroom” would obviously eliminate some of these everyday disruptions – especially if the occupants were forced to relinquish their mobile phones – but unless the SRX remains in the car park it could conceivably add the stress of traffic congestion and road rage to your afternoon meeting.Yet Steve Catlin, Operations Manager for Cadillac, hopes the very idea of conducting business in the back of an SUV will help focus the mind. “We know that the inertia of travelling helps stimulate creative thinking,” he said. “By offering businesspeople the opportunity to get away from their desks and into a luxury mobile meeting room we’re hoping we can help increase their productivity.”Cadillac indicated that several companies have already shown an interest in the scheme, and that the trial might be extended if demand increases.