Could changing office designs reverse the home working trend?

In today’s business world, allowing employees to work from the comfort of their own homes is not an uncommon trend. In fact, many companies have been giving their workers this freedom for years, and it’s an arrangement that is preferred by many. However, new innovations in office design that are making these environments more rewarding places to spend time may be starting to entice home workers back into shared work spaces. Collaboration and innovation With so many businesses relying on collaboration and innovation, there’s a growing concern among some companies about people not being physically present in the office. However, getting workers back into the office is not as easy as it sounds. Commenting on this, Mark Gribbons, design director at architecture firm Gensler, said: “We have to think about the journey and experience that brings you to the office”, adding that people are “not just going in to sit at a computer”. Gibbons went on to point out that workers are heading into the office for their “connections to people”. Developing a sense of community Since advances in technology have enabled employees to work from home, having a physical business location can seem irrelevant to some extent. As a result, many business have turned to co-working. Co-working is a style of working that encourages employees to come together, collaborate and in turn, develop a sense of community. More often that not, co-working spaces are shared, so it could be that the area is being used by more than one organisation at any time. People can use these spaces to work individually, but they can also use them to share ideas and values. From a design point of view, it takes careful planning to create this type of working environment. From large lobby areas, to centrally located conference rooms, to open plan spaces, it’s all about creating an inspiring hub of activity to make employees want to physically come together to get their work done. Putting it into practice The good news is, it’s fairly straightforward to finetune your office design to encourage your employees to collaborate in person. While you may not want to fully go down the co-working route, you can take different elements of this trend to change up the dynamic in your space with the intention of encouraging your personnel to head into the office instead of working from home. You could start by going for a different office layout. For example, ditch walled cubicles in favour of an open plan design. This format will give your employees the opportunity to work and communicate more freely. If you still want the option of privacy and sound control, you could invest in office partitions and screens that can be assembled as and when they are needed. Also, when you’re thinking about where your employees will sit, avoid long banks of desks and go for cluster style designs instead. Your workers can gather round one surface with their own individual workstations while being in close proximity to one another. If you’re keen to improve your office design to reverse the home working trend, don’t hesitate to get in touch. At Furniture At Work, we stock a wide variety of office furniture and storage solutions that could help to totally transform your space.