Archinect - News 2024-11-14T18:00:07-05:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/115745518/archinect-s-lexicon-serendipity-machine Archinect's Lexicon: "Serendipity Machine" Amelia Taylor-Hochberg 2014-12-12T12:43:00-05:00 >2014-12-18T20:36:46-05:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/w9/w96tfm99um2resw7.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p><strong>serendipity machine</strong>, noun:&nbsp;a space (often workplace) that has been designed to maximize chance encounters towards beneficial, ideally innovative, results. This definition is Archinect's own wording, culled from a variety of "serendipity" citations in design briefs &ndash; but most notably, from&nbsp;Sebastian Olma's book,&nbsp;<em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Serendipity-Machine-Disruptive-Business/dp/9081693573" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Serendipity Machine</a></em>&nbsp;(2013).</p><p><img title="" alt="" src="http://cdn.archinect.net/images/514x/70/70j9w4y1j2je8i58.jpg"></p><p>Self-described "consultant on all things to do with the creative economy", Olma is likely to be the originator of the term. He&nbsp;describes the "serendipity machine" as it pertains to the workplace in his book:</p><p><em>The&nbsp;importance of unexpected conversations and knowledge exchange&nbsp;in innovation has been noted in the management literature for&nbsp;many years. What is new is actually building a business &ndash;&nbsp;a machine &ndash; that systematically facilitates serendipity.&nbsp;This book presents a disruptive business model that allows you to do exactly that. It is based on a study of Seats2meet.com, the Dutch network&nbsp;of physical coworking, office and meeting spaces.&nbsp;By reinven...</em></p>