Workplace design has completely flipped on its head over the past decade and businesses across all industries are redesigning their offices or moving to new locations. Brands of all sizes are investing more than ever into office and workplace designs because they know how important it is when it comes to maximising business performance.
Here are the top trends influencing workplace design and why you should care about them.
Work satisfaction matters
Essentially, it all comes down to work satisfaction. And, while studies have proven that happy workers are indeed more productive, there’s a little more to the kind of work satisfaction that’s driving modern workplace design.
Office design now considers the finest details in terms of layout, space, colour and a complex combination of factors to create the best possible working environment. No doubt, one of the goals is to improve the mood at work but it’s more about making it easier and more satisfying for people to complete tasks and do their job.
Productivity is now the priority
As mentioned above, happy workers are more productive and this is the key objective. In today’s data-rich world it’s easy to measure performance and see the impact an office redesign has in cold, hard numbers.
Now, productivity is a key objective for every company.
This allows you to break free from certain business traditions that are holding you back, especially now that you can prove they’re holding you back with data. If you don’t need to spend time driving into the office, why bother? If your team turns out to be more productive on a four-day working week, why not make the shift?
The generational shift
Baby boomers are retiring in their millions and now millennials are stepping into senior decision-making roles. This brings a serious shift in business culture for employers and employees alike.
Attracting and keeping top talent
This generational shift is important for a number of reasons, starting with the fact that attracting and holding on to top talent requires different things from a business now. Numerous studies have shown the majority millennials will choose flexible working over a pay rise, for example.
Likewise, employees are just as aware of the importance of workplace satisfaction for their own benefit and there’s an increased awareness about the health benefits of work-life balance. Businesses need to address these changing concerns if they’re going to attract top talent and keep them working for their company.
Flexible working becomes the norm
It’s inevitable; flexible working is going to become the norm as millennials become the largest part of the world’s workforce. Flexible working isn’t simply allowing your team to work in their pyjamas at home, though. It’s about creating the best possible working environment for your team to do their job – either inside the office, outside of it or both.
According to workplace design agency Office Principles: “Flexible working is about bringing people, processes, connectivity and technology together, allowing for flexible working patterns and office space.”
This is the core principle driving today’s most successful workplaces.
Multiple working spaces
While working from home is the first thing many people think of when they imagine flexible working, the role of the office is more important than ever. Working from home can have its benefits but it also brings fresh challenges regarding motivation, productivity and minimising distractions.
The best office designs now create multiple working for a range of different needs in the workplace.
You have collaboration rooms, private working booths, informal and formal meeting rooms, recreational space, presentation rooms and a wide range of other options available to get the best from your team. So when it comes to generating fresh ideas your staff can work together but they’ve always got a place where they can go when they need to get on with something by themselves.
Modern workplace design is all about creating spaces that make it easier for people to do more. Improve workplace satisfaction and people will be more productive. Reduce fatigue and your staff will be able to hit higher targets than they ever thought possible. Create a space that inspires people and you’ll see them naturally blossom into the best possible worker they can be – and this is the priority for today’s office designers.
