But does this apply to office interiors? 

According to architecture and design.com the definition of office interiors is - Office interior design is the practice of designing workplaces that are conducive to maximising not only productivity but also the health, safety, well-being, and performance of employees. It is about creating spaces that are functional and that provide a setting for success; places in which people are happy to work. We would agree with this. 

We have seen reports that many businesses and companies are struggling to get their staff back in on either a permanent or part time basis. Are you having this struggle, or have you got it covered? 

 

Here are 4 tips from Sygnus to entice in and keep in your staff and teams, as well as looking at current trends and incorporating wellness. 

What are we seeing so far in 2022? 

As we have spoken about before with regards to popular trends and office designs, plants and bringing the outdoors in, more spacing out and spreading out, more homely in look and feel and more social spacing/soft furniture and sofas is the way forward. 

Many articles are suggesting that the need for making people feel comfortable, physically and mentally for a return to the office is key. Perhaps this is why we are seeing a trend for more homely style offices and workspaces as mentioned above. 

For employers and management, you are surely aiming to get your staff and teams back, happy and settled, and therefore creating productivity for the business and a sense of wellbeing for them. And if the office furniture fitted is flexible, for example sit to stand or pods or bench desking and so on, then whether your team is in the office full time or working in a hybrid way, your office space will accommodate such changes. 

According to Facilitate magazine, meeting rooms, breakout areas and outdoor spaces are the most in-demand office workspace features. And according to the poll, three in five (60%) said having meeting rooms on-site was either “very important” or “somewhat important”. This was followed by breakout areas (59%) and outdoor spaces, such as a terrace, garden or balcony (58%). 

In our industry of office space planning and office design, some workplaces and offices have always been more traditional in look and style with open planned spaces of bench desks, meeting rooms, reception areas for meeting and greeting and closed, smaller offices for management. There have also always been the more quirky and fun workspaces with bars, dart boards and soft seating. 

There is no right or wrong way to have your office designed, as long as it is fit for purpose, ergonomically sound and safe and that it also matches your company’s ethics and working ethos. But what else do you need to consider? 

With Schools and Universities returning, we are also pleased and encouraged to see a slowly but surely style return to offices and workplaces. We are pleased for many reasons as this could see a boost for the economy and the knock on effect this will have, signs of a more positive outlook and attitude and the hopeful lift for local and small businesses too. 

So what next for offices and workspaces? 

“Freedom day” as it has so been called is here, so what does this mean for a return to the office? Will people be going back if they haven’t already, or will it be business as usual or something in between? 

More than half (52%) of British people currently working from home say they are ready to return to the office, with the typical office worker wanting to go into the office between two and three days per week, according to a survey for facilities management firm Mitie. More than a third (35%) are concerned their offices are not Covid-secure and 60% think their employer needs to improve the office environment to prevent staff becoming ill in the future. The article for Personnel Today looks at 14 things employees want in their workplace and the list includes more space between workstations, reduced meeting room capacity, reduced office capacity, hand sanitiser everywhere and better ventilation. Read the article in full.  

Agile working is all about creating flexible and functional spaces to work and be productive. The concept behind agile working is that work is an activity we do, rather than a place we go. Do you agree with this? We wrote a blog on this about a year ago. It is about the cohesion of people, tech, processes, surroundings. Research says 36% of employees would prefer agile working over a pay rise. What it isn’t to be confused with is flexible working ... 

The word hybrid suggests a crossover of things or a mixture of things and in the case of the workplace and the current pandemic, it refers to how we may be working. Will we be all from home? Will we all be back in the office or workplace? Or will, as some are suggesting and also pushing for, be working in a hybrid fashion of part home and part office? Known as hybrid working. 

So what might a hybrid workplace look like?