Why The Office Remains Essential To Businesses
17-07-2020What will post-covid-19 workspaces look like? Is there a need for an office anymore? What can an office space offer me? Do these questions resonate with you? There has been a lot of discussion surrounding the future of workspace design and how it is evolving because of the dramatic shift in working structures. As explored in our previous blogs, office design is not a one-size-fits-all criteria, it is unique to each business sector, size, and budget. Before covid-19, office trends were already beginning to shift from a focus on individual working towards facilitating team innovation and collaboration.
This year has seen the biggest shift in working patterns, but the reality is not everyone has the space to work from home. Balancing laptops on pillows and sitting hunched on the floor merges home and work life together which is unhealthy for people’s mental health. The lack of social interaction can make people feel anxious, lonely, and ultimately unhappy which also negatively impacts productivity. 91% of employees say that the workplace is still required and believe that the office space is important because it caters for collaborative working, internal and external client meetings and socializing with colleagues. Therefore, covid-19 has not changed the way we think about workspaces, instead it has accelerated these pre-existing trends and shown us that there is value in this.
As a business, you need to evaluate the costs of the unknown and consider the feasibility of an office refurbishment against catering for new workforce patterns and requirements. At the beginning of a design project, we establish the way a client works and how much space each department needs to operate efficiently. Clever office space planning will enable clients to future-proof their business so their space can evolve with their company’s progress. Therefore, we can create workspaces that enable creativity and teamwork to flourish and give employees a community feel and understanding of how they work within their team. Spaces like breakout areas, food courts and library zones work for large team interactions and small work zones like thinking caves, study pods and cafes enable small group or individual work. We have selected some examples from previous projects to show you the various types of spaces that can be achieved:
Canteen Spaces
For our project with Specac, we designed a large canteen area that was divided into small clusters of tables and long bench style seating to create a community food court feel. In the canteen, we incorporated bright colours and bespoke patterned wallpapers to create an exciting and busy breakout space. Next to the canteen is a small games room, complete with a multipurpose Pool and Ping-Pong table. The overall design creates a buzzing, social atmosphere that caters for a variety of individual needs.
Meeting/Thinking Pods
RocketMill’s fun and quirky office refurbishment is functional and differentiates themselves from other companies and exhibits their culture to clients and employees. The meeting pods in the office allow a distinctive space to work in the open plan design and are suitable for small meetings whilst keeping the community feel.
Multiple Working Areas
For our project with Techspace Luke Street, the client wanted the office design to reflect the outside world in the inside and for every room to have a unique look. We created various work areas using a mix of soft seating and meeting furniture so that every room had a unique, relaxed feel that was inviting for employees to use.
Therefore, as discussed in this blog, there is still value in the office but depending on your sector the space will come together in various ways. The design should balance separation and connection to reflect the new working environment of the modern world. Contact us today to see how we can help redesign your workplace today!