Bank on it

Stodgy bankers need not apply, judging by BlackRidgeBANK’s striking design

BlackRidgeBANK’s year-old two-story headquarters in West Fargo, which houses loan documentation, mortgage underwriting and processing, management, marketing, admin, HR and insurance departments, is a dream come true for CEO Mark Anderson and his business partner Craig Weiss.

By design, Anderson set out knowing the company’s new HQ had to be not just another office filled with boring office cubes, but an experience for customers and employees alike. So the team set out to do something different, fun and unique, reflective of the BlackRidgeBANK organization.

The open work spaces are custom designed, in part because of thinking about the employees. Anderson wanted a place people could be proud to work in and to show off to their colleagues, family and kids. He and the architect, Chris Hawley, went so far as to interview employees about how they worked and what they needed in a work space. The input: give us space, storage and double monitors, but please, no cubes, with boring colored-fabric walls that people couldn’t see over. Rather, as the photographs illustrate, the employees asked for a warm, open, user-friendly environment, one they could feel comfortable in and proud of. “We’ve had countless people stop by wanting simply to see the cool space. They walk into the lobby and as they gaze up at the chandelier, their mouths literally drop open,” says Anderson.

“This is not your basic, boring office building. It’s different by design, because we’re different.”

– BlackRidgeBANK