From ancient Rome to contemporary Milan, one aspect of work that has remained unchanged over time is the centrality of the role of relationships for the business as we know it today. And as they knew it in the time of Cicero. Stella33 takes you on a journey to discover how this element has remained crucial in the business world: from here begins the evolution of the office, of which Stella becomes the spokesperson.
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Origins of the office in ancient Rome
In the Western world, the office represents one of the places where most of the time is spent during the day, but thinking about its role and evolution in history does not arise spontaneously. Yet, looking back in time and studying the office as an institution, one realizes that, centuries later, the concept of the office as a place where the organization of private and public life takes place has not changed.
Indeed, the etymology of the term “office” derives from the Latin “officium,” which literally means “work,” “duty,” or even “charge.” An authoritative source regarding the interpretation attributed to this term is Cicero, who, during the last months of his life – in 44 BC – wrote the treatise titled “De Officiis” (“On Duties”). The work, among the most important contributions to the world of philosophy and ethics, is structured into three books and is based on Greek philosophical teachings, with particular references to Stoics, Epicureans, and Peripatetics. In “De Officiis”, the ethical theme of duties is explored, and practical advice is provided on how to act correctly in various social, political, and ethical situations. Cicero’s aim in drafting the work was to establish an ethical system that harmonized moral duties with the political and social reality of his time, using examples from history and his personal experience to illustrate ethical principles and provide practical guidance on how a citizen should behave to lead a virtuous life.
Cicero practiced as a lawyer — besides being politically active — and, as a member of an aristocratic family, he also had the role of patronus, namely the figure under whose protection and legal jurisdiction were the so-called clientes, citizens of lower class who benefited from protection at the social and political level. These two roles of Cicero — lawyer and patronus — represented a moral commitment, interpreted by himself and ancient Rome as an ethical duty.
Cicero's day: meetings and business relations
The day of Cicero, and of those in his same social position, began with the ritual of the so called salutatio matutina, the moment when the patronus literally opened the doors of his house to welcome in the atrium of his home the clientes and then receive them one by one in a designated room, often referred to as tablinum (representation room) and which, in many houses, opened outwards, with a splendid view of the peristilium, a garden surrounded by a portico and adorned with statues, frescoes, and fountains.
According to the norm, the turn to have an audience with the patronus was determined based on the social importance of the cliens. After the proper salutatio — the greeting to the master of the house — the clients would enter into conversation with him to present their requests and to ask him for advice of various kinds, for example, on how to initiate and conduct a legal case or how to draft a contract. The patronus would explain, advise, and, if deemed appropriate, personally undertake the defense and protection of his client. The construction of such a relationship, the foundation of the Roman institution of patronage, was actually aimed at increasing the popularity of the patronus, who typically also engaged in legal and political activities and therefore needed voters in elections and supporters in political struggles, as well as in forensic speeches.
Cicero’s day continued divided between the forum and the senate, and possibly drafting legal documents: throughout the day, however, the formation of patronage relationships (and more) never stopped. His office, and generally that of the patricians in ancient Rome, could be the representation room or the atrium of the house, but also the path leading from their domus to the forum or the senate, during which they continued to receive clientes. Around Cicero, there had formed a real ecosystem of relationships which today we would call “business relationships”, because much of his success in political and legal activities was based on them, but also his entire workday and the proper functioning of relations between classes, which in ancient Rome represented a cornerstone of the political and social life of the city.
Work and business relations in subsequent epochs
Work in Rome, therefore, was a matter of relationships or, as we would say today, of networking and the creation of a business community. The example of Cicero’s domestic office carries this reflection through the centuries, passing through the representation offices in palaces where powerful Renaissance lords, like Cosimo de’ Medici, and later monarchs, like Franz Joseph in the Viennese palace of Hofburg, received emissaries, ambassadors, and other nobles.
The concepts of relationships and community as catalysts for work and business, ultimately, are older than we might expect and are aspects that have remained alive over the millennia, gradually taking on new forms. Enhancing their impact and role is the objective that Stella sets in designing the new workspaces of today and tomorrow, seeking the ideal balance between the various dimensions of the workday and business in general.
Meravili-House of Business: business relations and community according to Stella
In Stella-branded workspaces, indeed, every moment and activity of the workday has its place: individual productivity, teamwork, meetings, creative concentration, social activities, and community building all find a space, and therefore time, within the workplace.
This is precisely the thought behind the creation of the Garden and Clubhouse area of the new Milanese location curated by Stella, Meravili-House of Business. The atmosphere offered by the palace, located in via Meravigli, evokes classical, Renaissance, and medieval references, enhanced by architectural interventions that blend with modern and contemporary technology and furnishings. The location hosts an efficient workspace and refined, and for many aspects unheard of in Milano, complete with every business service, from meeting rooms to serviced offices, a refined bar, catering area and an event space. The Garden & Clubhouse areas provides the ideal space to focus on relationship building and community consolidation activities. in an environment curated to the finest detail. Thus business relationships, which have spanned centuries and have traveled from the halls of Roman noble houses to contemporary offices, find in the clubhouse, a central element in Stella’s locations, the ideal place to flourish and fulfill their role as business enablers, as we know it today and evidently as they knew it two thousand years ago.
