Now and then, the look and feel of the office needs to be updated. Sometimes, it’s merely to keep up with the modern times. In other instances, it’s to meet the changing nature of the workforce or increase professional appeal to clients. Regardless of the reason why you’re taking on this revamping project, you should be able to provide these essential ‘zones’ in the workplace to make sure that it will b enjoyable for years:
Collaboration Zone
In general, people intuitively gravitate to groups to complete tasks more efficiently. It’s to the benefit of your company culture that your team works towards teamwork. Thus, you need to offer avenues where employees can gather and put their heads together in solving problems, drawing up strategies, and making hard decisions. Recently, a lot of offices have been using huddle rooms, small booths that allow employees to meet for quick meetings. It’s different from a conference room, in the sense that its use is more informal and spontaneous, enabling employees to dock in even without booking with the receptionist. Most have pods as huddle rooms, and commercial office fit-out specialists strive for a homey, relaxing vibe, as opposed to the rigid, formal atmosphere in conference rooms. If you can have both conference and huddle rooms as spaces for collaboration, then that will be a huge plus for your team.
Contemplation Zone
As much as social spaces are functional, individual workstations are necessary, too. Believe it or not, you can have too much of a good thing in ‘collaboration’. Case in point: open-plan layouts. Employees suffer too much noise, too many distractions, and too little productivity. That’s why there should be zones in your office that would allow employees to tackle tasks in peace. No, this doesn’t mean going back to primitive cubicles. You can use modular screen systems, transparent glass partitions, or freestanding room dividers. Install acoustic panels to cushion the noises in collaboration zones. Don’t underestimate the effect of introducing plants in the space as well. More than the sound absorption, they can calm nerves and increase concentration. That’s why they’re a great addition to your contemplation zones.
Creativity Zone
You need to have a dedicated space for creativity because this is one organisational value that’s very dependent on the environment. People can rarely generate the best ideas in conference rooms or individual workstations but often in comfortable spaces where there are triggers for inspiration, like mood boards, branding materials, art pieces, splashes of colour and more. The look and feel of your creativity zone will depend on your industry. However, you can get pegs off the Internet and consult a specialist for the best design. You can also survey your employees. The bottom line is that you need to have a space designed solely to encourage your team to think outside the box.
In the end, every office renovation should have these three Cs in their office design. These zones will ensure that your office meets your employees’ needs and gives them joy and satisfaction.
