SBER is a modern tech company that is in a process of continuous and uninterrupted evolution. Being originally the largest bank in Russia, as well as in Central and Eastern Europe, SBER has created a tech ecosystem consisting of dozens of businesses. In order to compete for best talent against other major players like Google and Yandex, it actively creates a work environment which fosters the type of skill and know-how, that is so vigorously sought after in the market. One of the projects aimed at achieving this goal is the newly opened training facility for future SBER employees.

The goal of this project was to create a new environment for the first SBER Boot Camp — a place where newly hired tech personnel undergo a three-week adaptation course and get up to speed on the tasks and demands of their positions once they start. A variety of challenges aimed at preparing the “new blood” for the world of SBER Technologies await the rookies here. The future specialists will be introduced to the basic services and standard operating procedures of the ecosystem, develop a thorough understanding of its infrastructure, get familiar with the tools and best practices of their future assignments. The atmosphere within the Boot Camp was designed to foster teamwork, exchange of know-how and expertise, innovative solutions, and confidence.

"To go through Fire, Water, and Brass Pipes" is a Russian idiom meaning to persevere in the face of whatever challenges life holds in store for you. It is a widely understood concept, familiar to young and old Russian. Here, it is used extensively to define the aesthetic character of the Boot Camp. After all this is where rookies endure challenges and tests preparing them for just about any tasks and challenges they may encounter in their professional future at SBER! The aesthetic is quite unrestrained - the design team wasn't worried that it would get old or appear over the top, since it goes so perfectly hand in hand with the facility's function. The first weeks working at SBER must be memorable, exciting, and energising for the trainees in order to foster enthusiasm for a long career ahead. Working with this concept, the design team developed three zones, each executed in their own manner: Fire, Water, and Brass Pipes.

You know you're in the zone of Fire by the presence of engine nozzles of a space ship taking off! Floor in the central meeting space is painted in hot white, with rings of color radiating away from it all throughout the zone's area. The epicentre is designed to host meetings. The room is rich with energy for coming up with new ideas!

Adjacent meeting spaces are similarly themed after things that are hot - barbeque, boiler, anvil! A digital fireplace nearby is stocked with log-shaped pillows, really pulling the lounge room together, all set to the sounds of crackling firewood and a video of a real fireplace on the screen inside creating a cozy and warm atmosphere. Got a scheduled meeting? Not a problem. The screen can be easily switched and used for any work related meetings and discussions.

For bigger meetings, step into the nearby "Glassworks" —a conference room themed after molten glass being forged into a new form under extreme temperatures—a brilliantly suitable metaphor for the new trainees as they prepare to enter the SBER workforce.

Entering the Zone of Water you immediately notice a boat, which two people can man in order to accomplish a task together. Blue wall accents and stretches of carpet around the zone resemble waterfalls and streams. The main walls are also blue but executed in a slight vertical gradient, hinting at an underwater environment.

"The Pool" is a work zone symbolizing a head-first dive into the tasks at hand. The ceiling is lined with real pool lane dividers, and the ceramic tile on the walls features depth markers and swimming implements. Meeting areas in the Water Zone are defined by objects of seafaring - A sail from an actual vessel, a ring buoy, a pair of flippers. There is even a meeting space with marine fenders and ores. These rooms are distinct and easily identifiable, making the spaces easy to point out in meeting invites. "See ya at the Pool in 10 min?"

...emphasis on Copper. At the entrance to the copper zone, it's hard not to notice a conference room appropriately christened "The Kettle". It speaks for itself - a giant copper tea pot with the water level marked, sitting on top of a hot plate. This key element combines all three of the themes comprising Boot Camp's aesthetic - Fire, Water, and Brass Pipes.

The main path through the department resembles the Hollywood Walk of Fame, alluding to success and a feeling of accomplishment. Meeting places here are crowned with real instruments from the orchestral brass section. In terms of color, this zone is perhaps the most balanced out of three. In case that Fire and Water spaces appear too 'loud', this zone provides a more neutral choice.

The last stop through the Trumpet section is the presentation space - a large conference hall hidden away behind a secret rotary door. The wall hosting it, as well as the door itself, are clad in copper sheet for a feeling of heftiness and mass. High power magnets at the edges of the revolving door help to close it softly and keep the door flush to the wall, blending in extremely well. Inside the conference hall, the ceiling is clad in decorative tubes, giving the space very comfortable acoustics.

The new Boot Camp office is interesting both inside and out. Looking up through the windows from the street one can clearly see the words 'boot camp' glowing on the ceiling, which actually reads correctly from both sides of the building. This is possible due to an anaglyph - an effect proposed by designer Boris Manukovskiy. The glazing on both sides of the floor is color coded with blue and red film. Through the red window one can only see the letters glowing red, and through the blue window - the blue ones. Looking into the windows on the other side of the building, the colors are switched allowing only the flipped pair of the same words to be seen. On the inside the place looks nothing short of cosmic! The Red/Blue studio lighting as well as a graphical lightbox overhead give the visitors' faces an impression of warpaint, as if redying them for the challenges and discoveries that lay ahead.