Employees today are often asked to complete wide-ranging tasks. Given their workload’s diverse nature, it’s important to offer several different environments in a single office. There should be places to collaborate, work individually and meet undisturbed. We recommend having a combination of:
- Collaborative areas, like lounges and conference rooms.
- Phone booths for private conversations.
- Workstations, offices or benching areas for individual work.
All of these should have lights, HVAC and plug-ins, as well as appropriate acoustic solutions. Ensuring these areas are adequately equipped gives employees the flexibility to choose a space that will function best for the kind of work they are doing.
Before making changes to your floorplan, we recommend examining the kind of work your staff does. Consider the spaces from which they would benefit most. For example, your marketing team may thrive in a collaborative area, while accounting may want more seclusion to work. Then, create a plan for making the changes. Keep in mind a designer can recommend spaces to mix into your office based on your floorplan.
There are number of ways to add these environments to existing offices with minimal disruptions. In fact, the Framery makes pods in various sizes that can provide lounge space, phone booths or conference rooms. Each one comes equipped with lighting, soundproofing, plugins and an air ventilation system.
You can also create distinct spaces using glass or media walls. One example of this is from National, and it comes with a surface attached and requires little installation.
To keep all areas work friendly, include access to electrical outlets in each one. Many furniture pieces now come with power built-in, or you can add a standalone charging station. Having the right spaces and tools available encourages employees to work together in new ways, which can lead to innovation for your business.
