In recent years there has been an emphasis placed on office design and the ways that it can actually affect your business’ performance. A well-designed office space can facilitate success.
Consider the fact that you and your staff spend a significant amount of time there; if your space is unfit for purpose, this will be reflected in the results of your employees. It is essential that the space be comfortable, stimulating, inspiring and welcoming.
Perhaps office design is something that you have never considered as an important factor in the running of your business, but it can be vital. Read on for all the information necessary for you to consider whether or not your office space is doing your business justice.
The Benefits of Good Office Design
Having a suitable space for your business can increase employee morale and well-being. Ideally – if your office space is big enough – you should be providing both workspaces and downtime spaces.
Having areas where your employees can relax and interact is essential for the mental health of your employees; supporting their basic needs will lead to an increase in productivity.
Most businesses’ success is reliant on the performance of their staff. A happy team, therefore, boosts the profitability of the company as a whole.
Your business may already be successful in and of itself. Still, a good office design can contribute to the staff’s motivation and inspiration, which will only have a positive effect.
It is crucial to maintain the branding of your business when designing the office space. Try to keep colour schemes consistent and emphasise the values that are important to your business. This is especially important if you often have visitors as it is a great way to reinforce your businesses uniqueness.
Does your business consist of different departments? If so, it is important to consider each department’s goal and then ensure that they are laid out and organised to maximise the output and efficiency of each department.
Critical Elements for Office Design
Offices should be fostering interaction between staff to create a sense of collaboration and creativity; designing in an ample open-plan space is essential for this. Rows of desks don’t create any physical barriers to communication, but they can create mental ones.
Try to create a space that can accommodate more than one working style. Consider an open plan office with plenty of communal spaces to encourage informal meetings and spontaneous interactions. Working day after day in gloomy artificial lighting can take its toll.
Try to utilise natural lighting wherever possible as well as natural ventilation. In recent years there has been an increase in businesses incorporating a ‘neighbourhood approach’ which takes the traditional office building and transforms it into a space where the lines become blurred between work and leisure.
These corporate playgrounds are popular because they work. Providing work, private spaces, cafes, gyms, game rooms, collaborative areas and more, you tick all employee requirement boxes. Employees are more likely to stay in companies that they feel care about them and look after them.
Consider adding communal spaces when designing your office. Colour is a low-budget, low-effort way to transform a space when thinking about your office design. Colour choice is essential when designing an office space; for example, yellow can make people feel more optimistic and so could be a good choice for creative spaces, or green which promotes harmony among workers.
Do some research before choosing colours, as consistency is key, and it will need to match your company’s branding. Offices can also be very sedent places try to encourage healthy choices and activity in the staff by adding bike sheds, or showers, or perhaps even a small gym if there is the room. This will have a positive effect on their mental health as well as reducing absence.
Getting Started on the Renovation
Developing and designing an office space is not often recommended as a DIY project. It is practically unheard of to try and do it singlehandedly. Even taking on the design aspects alone can be too much whilst also trying to keep on top of the business needs.
It is a huge undertaking and, therefore, can be quite daunting. Considering making these improvements is a good start. It is important to be proud of your workplace.
A renovation is a great way to refresh the experience for yourself and your staff without relocating or rebranding. Do you have a specific look in mind? Perhaps you are simply overwhelmed with the choices available to you. When making decisions for a large group of people, it can be hard to make decisions.
It is recommended that you seek out an office design company you trust to help you throughout the process. If you want to relocate or upsize to a bigger office, they can even help you with that. For example, if you need to find an office space to rent in Edinburgh, they can help you find one and then kit it out for you.
Firms like Amos Beech can also help you decide whether you need a simple office fit-out, which is more of a cosmetic facelift for an existing space or a refurbishment to totally refresh the space, add new furniture, and make the space no longer surplus to needs.
Some people prefer to outsource all elements and only provide a colours scheme whilst leaving all other areas to be decided for them by experts. It would be best if you thought about how hands-on you would like to be through the process.
Conclusion
Unlike a simple residential interior design, office design should provide a return on investment. The way that your businesses branding is incorporated and displayed whilst enhancing productivity and focus serves as a way to retain existing staff whilst attracting new talent all contributes.
The office also serves as a first impression for all that visit. The days of boring beige walls and uncomfortable blue chairs are gone. It should be about capturing interest in an environment that can quickly become dull and sometimes uninspiring.
