Talk

Coffee pots, appliances don't rate at Nielsen

Sure, Nielsen Media Research's glitzy new $80-million headquarters in Oldsmar has a state-of-the-art computer network, an enviable satellite system and the world's best treasure trove of data on TV viewing habits.

There are replicas of works by 17th-century Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer and a bronze statue of Poseidon.

But can anyone find the coffee pot?

After Nielsen workers moved into their new home over the past few weeks, they found out that the Taj Nielsen in all its glory has some glitches.

For starters, even though the place is overflowing with engineers, planners in some cases miscalculated the distance between PCs and outlets and had to add surge protectors to extend the cords.

For another, employees were discouraged from bringing in coffee pots to brew at their workstations as they had done in their old haunts in Dunedin. Some employees saw it as a not-so-subtle push to buy specialty coffees downstairs from the complex's food service vendor, Sodexho. But Nielsen spokeswoman Amy Rettig said the ban on small appliances at workstations was imposed out of fire safety concerns.

Nielsen did direct some employees to bring one item with them from their old offices: their trash receptacles. Apparently, even as it convinced its New York parent company to shell out millions for its fancy digs, Nielsen still relishes pinching a penny.