There are many approaches that you can take to improve the office design and make it more suitable for your employees. Read more here.
When you enter an office, how the space looks can impact your first impression. A potential employee may judge the work environment at an office, from the way that it looks.
If your office space is small and not well managed, it can look messy. If things and people seem to be cramped up in the space, then potential employees may feel an aversion from being a part of the mess.
Cramped up rooms do not leave room for breathing and can make an employee experience stress, due to a lack of privacy, that is just a first glimpse at the importance of office design.
Just how important office design is: Some of its effects
Harbored stress can lead to employee dissatisfaction and a decrease in their productivity. Besides, the employee relationships in a closed space may start to get tense.
Contrariwise, if you have a large space that is pretty much empty, then you need to do something about that. Otherwise, to an outsider, it may look like the office is not a busy one.
Walking in your office space should not feel like a stroll in the park, as it may make your employees laid back and decrease their productivity.
Fortunately, by making small changes in the interior design of your office, you can make the appearance of the space more attractive for the clients and employees.
Keys to a more attractive office design
There are many approaches that you can take to improve the office design and make it more suitable for your employees.
Color
The color of the walls and furniture of any office impacts the vibes in the room. For years, people have studied the influence of colors on the moods of people.
Applying the same knowledge to your office can change the look as per your needs.
Colors like yellow, red, and orange are considered warm colors. Whereas, colors like blue and grey are considered cool colors.
Cool colors can produce peace and focus on employees. Fern green, light blue, and white colors can promote efficiency in the office.
You must stay away from very bright, warm, and shiny colors. However, if your company is in the creative field, you can infuse these colors in a specific area to enhance the ability to come up with innovative ideas.
Lighting
Ever notice how most things look warm, relaxing, and beautiful in a yellow light? While a yellow light is quite perfect for a spa business, other businesses need an environment that infuses energy and not warmth.
White lights are quite suitable for most corporate offices. The places that need to be illuminated and the intensity of light will influence the appearance of the room and the comfort of the employees.
High definition lights and natural lighting can make the office environment safe and bright while increasing the satisfaction of employees.
Decorative furniture and items
Sometimes office furniture is bought less to offer functional use and more to decorate and fill office space.
If you have a big reception area, you might need a fancy couch. You can beautiful lamps where light is not even needed.
Modern art and motivating posters on the walls can also improve the appearance of an office. Small measures can be taken to make the place beautiful and classy.
Personal touch
For an employee to feel like they belong to the company, they must be able to put a personal touch to their work environment.
Just like people have their rooms at home, they have their chair and desk or their cubicles at work.
By putting frames of their family, post-its on the cubicle wall, their coffee cup on the desk, etc. they can personalize their working space.
When an employee belongs they belong at a firm they work towards the company's goals as if they were their personal goals. That's why custom office furniture can have such a big impact.
Floor Plan
Efficiency in the management of the space is essential to ensure that operations and work in the office run smoothly.
If an employee needs to cross an area to the boss's office and end up interrupting the work of other people on the way, that will impact the efficiency of work.
Moreover, if there is a lot of distance between closely interrelated departments, like finance and marketing, then it'll take longer for employees to communicate and complete.
You need to set up a team to decide the seating arrangement of employees and the location of cabins.
You need to keep the office equipment within easy reach of the employees. For example, even when an employee has to go and print a page if the printer is kept close by, they will not come back to their desk with lost focus.
Ventilation
You need to ensure that there is space for the passage of air from the office.
The environment in a room without open windows can get dull, more your employees may feel like they are suffocating from each other's breaths.
Open windows are a great way to keep the air inside fresh and odorless. Moreover, this will keep allergies and infections from spreading amongst employees.
If you are unable to ensure ventilation through open windows, you can provide a substitute for fresh air by keeping living plants in the office.
Plants also increase the happy vibes in a room and relax the mind.
The bottom line with office design
The importance of office design lies in providing comfort to the employees.
In addition to ergonomic furniture, lighting, colors, ventilation, etc. are design elements that can be used to make the environment comfortable. When designing the interiors the user of the office space and their needs must be the first priority.
