An office worth commuting for…
It’s been over a year since we were asked to work from home and with the anniversary of our first national lockdown just around the corner, the question on many employers and employees minds alike is when can we return to the office?
After months on end of working from our sofas, kitchen tables and spare rooms, business’ have been given the unique opportunity to rethink their working environments and delve deeper into what works for their employees and more importantly, what doesn’t.
The pandemic has changed the face of office design and forced businesses to think about their workplace requirements and the safe spaces offices need to be when employees return.
Throughout the pandemic, Dthree Studio has focused on helping and advising clients to navigate through the immediate uncertainty and contributed to their thinking regarding the evolving purpose of office design.
We believe that people are a business’ greatest asset, and as a result, their primary concern. The pandemic has highlighted this more than ever.
Engaging staff with inspirational yet functional working environments has never been more crucial, especially for those that will work from it. In light of this and to help businesses bring their people back to the best possible working environment for them, we are sharing our top tips for creating an office that adapts to the new ways of working, whilst also attracting and retaining the best talent.
People-Centric Design:
For many, the appeal of working from home has well and truly worn off, and people are starting to feel burnt out from the lack of work-life balance. A year of social restrictions, health concerns and economic crisis has taken a huge toll on the emotional wellbeing of workers across all sectors of the workforce, making the purpose of the office post -pandemic, and the significance of people-centric design more important than ever.
Employee productivity, engagement and happiness all begins with positive wellbeing. People-centric design is about understanding what makes a functional space and the importance this can have on supporting your collective success. Design features that contribute to your employees wellbeing include; biophilia, considered furniture choices, optimized lighting and ventilation throughout and sustainable material selections.
Venture X Co Working space is a great example of people centric design
Team Morale and Culture
The return of the office is one that is awaited by many, therefore creating a ‘hub’ that brings people back together and provides a sense of belonging and community for all who use it, is now imminent.
After months of working solo, with restricted support and lack of physical interaction, the office should be redesigned with this in mind, to become a place that not only enhances your company culture, but increases the opportunity for those long- desired social interactions.
In other words, your people should be returning to an office that is worth commuting for.
Breakout areas promote employee happiness and collaboration
Maximizing Productivity
Rethinking your workplace is the best opportunity to understand what your employees working needs are and how these can be supported through the physical space they use. A redesign enables employers to gain a better insight into how each department works, providing the rare opportunity to assess what areas of the office are most beneficial.
Whether it’s having additional meeting rooms, more flexible hot-desking areas, a larger breakout space for collaboration or is it a mix of all three that is required in the form of booths? Whatever it is that enables your employees to thrive and perform to the best of their ability, is exactly what your workplace should provide.
Working areas that meet your employees working needs
Your Brand and Values
Integrating your identity into your workplace shouldn’t end with hanging your logo above your reception desk. Redesigning your office is the ultimate opportunity to ensure it tells your story to anyone who enters it. Your brand, core values and purpose can all be reflected and defined in the materials, installations and details used throughout your working environment to help create an emotional connection with your employees and clients.
Red Bull created an office space with wings
Flexible and Functional:
We believe that an expertly designed space is not just about how it looks, but is as much about how it works. Overnight, employees were forced to challenge their usual working practices and adapt to the new normality of working remotely. Business meetings of all tiers have been conducted online, collaboration has been achieved from the comfort of our homes, and teams have proved they can work efficiently whilst being separated from the wider workforce.
It is because of this that office design now needs to lead the way for the new flexible working approach we have all come accustomed to, and redefine the function of the workplace by providing a variety of environments which meet ALL working needs.
The function of design is letting the design function
Essentially, a flexible and functional workplace is a space that will promote you to be better than you used to be.
To find out more about how we could help you throughout this extraordinary process of returning to the office, get in touch today!