As every successful business knows, innovation is a crucial driver of success.
Innovative businesses create more efficient processes, have higher productivity and attract and retain the best talent. In such a seminal time for office working, office trends have never been more important to your business
According to the Fellowes Workplace Productivity Survey, Brits working in modern offices say they are the most productive. While a third of office workers surveyed for the Global Impact of Biophilic Design in the Workplace report, stated that the design of an office would affect their decision to work at a company.
Providing a modern workspace that accommodates and facilitates these evolving processes and fosters creativity is therefore essential to give you an edge over your competition.
So, what innovations have influenced workplace design recently and what can we expect to see in 2020?
Innovations in office design
In 2018 we saw the rise of more varied, open, collaborative workspaces, with new and exciting ideas around where and how we could work.
2019 has built on the trends of 2018 bringing with it a focus on health and wellbeing, with light, bright open spaces using more natural materials and biophilic elements.
ONE – Colour trends
With Pantone’s colour of the year to be announced shortly, the forecasters are full of predictions for next year’s hot colour.
Blues and greens seem popular amongst tastemaker selections, with Dulux opting for the cool green shade, ‘Tranquil Dawn’ as their colour of the year and Sherwin Williams selecting ‘Naval’ blue. Both shades are great news for office design as green is said to have a calming effect, whilst blue is proven to inspire creativity.
TWO – Flexible workspaces
With continuing advances in technology and flexible working the new norm, employees can work remotely from anywhere – they don’t need to be stuck behind a desk from 9-5.
85% of respondents in the IWG Global Workplace Survey said productivity had increased in their business as a result of greater flexibility, with 65% stating that it helped reduce capital and operational expenditure, manage risk and consolidate their portfolio.
As a result, we believe this will have a knock-on effect, encouraging a greater focus on flexibility within the office space itself in 2020, thinking beyond fixed desking and meeting rooms to a more varied, modular design approach.
Providing a range of spaces and furniture that better facilitate activity-based working will allow your staff to choose the best space for the activity at hand.Whether that’s quiet spaces for focussed work, moveable acoustic panels to create meeting spaces as required or soft seating for informal catch ups. Although the UK climate may limit its usability, we also expect to see outdoor spaces being better incorporated into workspace design.
Which feeds nicely into our next prediction…
THREE – All is well
Wellness and biophilic design were big topics of focus in 2019 with strong evidence to show the commercial benefits in terms of reduced sick days and improved productivity. On this evidence, it’s safe to assume biophilic design will be one of the big office trends of 2020.
An overwhelming 87% of workers would like their current employer to offer healthier workspace benefits, such as wellness rooms, company fitness benefits, sit-stands, healthy lunch options and ergonomic seating so we expect this trend to continue into 2020.
It is also worth considering developing any outside space to give your staff the opportunity to work outdoors on sunnier days and conduct their meetings on the go. After all, not only are exercise, daylight and fresh air good for mental health, a study by Stanford University showed that creativity soars when walking outdoors, with 81% of participants experiencing enhanced creative thinking.
Understandably not all offices have the benefit of vast windows and outdoor spaces but even symbolic connections to nature have been shown to produce almost as great an impact on employee outcomes as the real thing. So, no matter your building design or location you can reap the rewards with a focus on wellness and biophilia.
In conclusion
Regardless of industry, an inspiring, innovative office space is crucial to motivating and engaging your employees. Good office design can also help reduce your company’s carbon footprint, improve profitability and attract future talent. Keeping a close eye on the latest office trends can help you achieve just that. So, what are you waiting for?
Need help with your office space design?
Whether you need a complete turnkey fit out package, space utilisation study or just want to explore some ideas, contact the Axis House team to arrange your free consultation on 01425 481980 sales@axis-house.com
