Corporate workspace design is crucial in how someone views their role within an organization. Surroundings and environment directly correspond to staff happiness, and today’s businesses can benefit from understanding that. The best workplaces provide spaces for functionality, creativity, and multi-purpose use. This blog covers the top five work zones and the most recommended product for each zone.
1. Personal Secured Lockers
With many offices adopting the hybrid working model, many people often use workstations throughout the week. Staff are losing their ability to store personal items (e.g., purses, wallets, and cell phones) in their desks. This creates a need for secure lockers so that people have a place to put their personal items as they move to different workstations. Additionally, work schedules complicate all these issues and further necessitate the need for lockers.
Our top recommended workplace locker: Digital Staff Lockers by Artopex
2: Recharge in the Kitchen
The kitchen is one of the essential recharge stations in an office. An aesthetically pleasing and functional kitchen helps accomplish personal and corporate needs. Naturally, people come to the kitchen to hydrate and eat. But it’s also where all ranks of the corporate ladder come to talk, discuss ideas, share insights, and build relationships. A well-designed kitchen is one of the secrets to success in any business for keeping your staff happy and motivated. Work may not occur here, but it is a space that inspires sharing and promotes connection with co-workers.
Great Additions to Any Office:
- Pantry stocked with drinks, snacks, and lunches for those days when employees forgot to bring their own
- Whiteboard in an easy-to-see place with quarterly stats, safety information, holidays, or motivational quotes
- Wall paint, artwork, and decorations that are vibrant and bright to boost energy and creativity
- Garbage system with three bins: food waste, recyclable, and non-recyclable garbage
Our top recommended kitchen table: Kitchen Table by Harvest
3: Comfortable Meeting Rooms
Many workers spend much of their day in meeting rooms. Did you know middle managers spend roughly 35% of their day in meeting rooms, while executives can spend up to half their day in meetings? For this reason, meeting rooms should spark creativity, be inspiring, comfortable, and put people at ease. Old-fashioned and outdated meeting rooms can stifle creativity and productivity, so consider designing for more of a lounge feel. For example, use armchairs and sofas in corners or quieter areas throughout the room.
Our top recommended meeting room sofa: Lounge Sofa by HON
4: Touchdown Workstations
Since the end of the pandemic, many workplaces have been utilizing the hybrid (or partially remote) working model. When this model is used, touchdown workstations may be needed. What is a touchdown workstation? It’s a laptop-centric area where staff can get set up quickly and efficiently. Touchdown stations give those who need temporary workspace access to one without disrupting the workspace of other employees.
Our top recommended touchdown workstation: Altitude Height Adjustable Table by Allsteel
5: Quiet Rooms and Spaces
With the advancement of technology, quiet rooms are a necessity in corporate offices. There are multiple functions of a quiet room. For example, they can be used for private concentration, personal conversation, or virtual meetings. These rooms are typically small and are often made for one or two people.
They also promote inclusivity by accommodating different religious, medical, or sensory needs. Quiet rooms are not meeting rooms, as meeting rooms are more extensive and can accommodate several people. In fact, sometimes a quiet room isn’t a room at all, but rather a hush pod! Hush pods are mini office pods that are moveable and designed for single users, like the one below.
Our top recommended hush pod: hushHybrid Booth by Hush Office
Where We Work Makes All the Difference
In today’s fast-paced and ever-changing world, keeping employees’ diverse needs at the top of the priority list is critical. Ultimately, the equipment we work with, the spaces we work in, and the overall versatility of an office can create opportunities for employees to feel more inspired and produce quality work productively and efficiently. If you’re looking to entice your employees back to work, using some or all the office products mentioned in this blog are sure to do the trick. And when enhanced workplaces are available, employees report higher satisfaction rates.
To learn more on this topic, see the following reference materials we used in creating this article:
How to Design Your Hybrid Office
Shh! Why Your Workplace Needs a Quiet Room
The Room is Killing Your Meeting – Here’s How You Can fix it
