An Interesting Way To Force Employees To Mingle: Make Them Take The Stairs

We were visiting the gorgeous Bloomberg Tower in Manhattan this week and we needed to get to the 28th floor, so naturally we took the elevator ... to the 29th floor.

Bloomberg's elevators don't stop at every floor. Instead, staircases and escalators connect many of the floors. Taking the stairs forces employees to mingle a little more, the head honchos believe.

Whether employees really do mingle on the stairs or not is hard to tell, but the stairs are certainly done with panache. The glass staircase was curved and gorgeous. And the curved escalator is nothing short of a marvel.

This isn't the first time we've heard of companies using staircases instead of elevators. SuccessFactors built an oversized staircase for its Bay Area offices. The stairs create openness and encourage employees to exercise during the day. SuccessFactors has an uber healthy office where sodas are forbidden and organic fruit is served.

One of the best ideas we've ever heard to force employees to mingle is from Hubspot. It makes employees to play musical desks every three months. Every employee has to sit at a randomly assigned desk next to people from other teams.

That's an interesting idea instead of building a staircase.

Does your company use stairs in an unusual way? Or does it do something else unusual to promote teamwork If so, drop us a line about it. jbort@businessinsider.com or @Julie188 on Twitter.