Member Article

Building flexibility into workplace design

With technological innovations and changing working patterns, workforces are having to adapt to meet modern organisational needs. With a greater emphasis on agile working, buildings and workspaces need to be flexible in order to support the evolving working environment. One of the biggest challenges of modern office design is building flexibility into the workspace. Design and build specialists, Amspec, share tips and advice on building flexibility into a workplace design to help companies get the most from their space.

In recent years designers have increasingly strived to create a new generation of ‘flexible’ workplaces with structures and infrastructures to accommodate for changing working patterns in the digital age. With advancing technology and the demand for working environments that support flexible workforce behaviours, there is increased pressure for facilities managers to provide for these evolving modern demands.

A more flexible workplace design does not necessarily mean a complete office overhaul.

The following tips are designed to help businesses and facility managers develop a more flexible working environment in order to optimise efficiency and ensure they get the most out of the space.

Social interaction

Building flexibility into workplace design is all about creating a productive working environment, where ideas can be bounced round and staff have greater freedom and choices.

Social interaction plays a vital role in flexible workforces. Consequently, the building’s design should include an area that accommodates and encourages communication and collaboration in a less formal way.

Create a reception area or café

If you are planning on implementing greater flexibility into a space, you should ask yourself:

Does your building provide a space where colleagues and clients can meet, greet and chat informally?

If the building is void of such ‘social enhancing’ space, consider forming a reception area for that crucial meet and greet. Or perhaps the building could benefit from a cafeteria where staff and visitors can relax, enjoy a drink and bite to eat and to help spawn creative impromptu ideas.

Space for cross-departmental communication

Flexible workplace designs should include spaces which nurture cross-department communication and move away from the more rigid, formal designs of yesteryear.

The success of the likes of Google, Apple and Yahoo, which are high-pressure and extremely sought-after international corporations, have adopted this flexible workspace design that emphasises social interaction and greater informality. This proves that in the modern digital era, agile workplace designs work best.

Flexible spatial configurations

As touched upon above, communication between colleagues in the workplace is essential for the progress and ultimately prosperity of an organisation.

In order to make the most of your workspace facilities managers should consider a design which supports multiple spatial configurations that allows for quick and easy spatial change.

So how do you incorporate flexible spatial configurations into the office?

Easy-to-access and locate social spaces

When designing a flexible building to optimise the space, consider locating social spaces, such as relaxation areas, meet and greet spaces and cafeterias, in central areas along pathways which are well used by the workforce to encourage use and interaction.

An open office design

Craft a more open office where workstations are less isolated. A working environment without walls will almost inevitably create greater flexibility.

Space for action

With walls and barriers isolating departments and individuals, workstations and teams can be moved with greater ease should organisational structures need to be reorganised and changed.

Technology for change

Of course the biggest contributor of the evolving working practices we have been witnessing in recent years is technology. The growth of telecommunications and cloud-based software has meant people, of all industries and niches, can work with greater flexibility without being constrained by geographical boundaries.

This all-encompassing use of technology in modern workforces is one of the principle factors driving more flexible, mobile and less ‘predictable’ working patterns.

In order to get the most out of a space, a modern and flexible workspace design should incorporate advancing technologies.

In order to facilitate effective work that helps them interact with colleagues, clients and potential clients, regardless of their location, staff should have easy access to such technological tools.

Incorporate fundamental and advanced technologies into the space

When designing a flexible workspace it is therefore vitally important that employees will have instant access to not only fundamental technological needs, such as power and an internet connection, but also more sophisticated tools, such as cloud software and videoconferencing.

Adaptable technology

From deciding on where power sockets are placed to choosing a videoconferencing hub in the office, in order to workers to collaborate with others, both in-house and remotely, facility managers need to prioritise the use of convenient and adaptable technology.

Project rooms and visual display technologies

Within the digital age, which places greater emphasis on flexibility, there has been increased demand for collaborative spaces that can house visual display technologies.

When designing a more flexible workspace to optimise workforce productivity and meet modern demands, the facilities manager might want to consider incorporating a dedicated project room into the space.

These dedicated project rooms might be the place where videoconferencing takes place or where displays are used so members of the meeting can literally “see what you mean”.

Adhering to 21st century workplace demands that encourages flexibility and adaptive working practices, can be achieved fairly easily through bespoke and cutting edge building design that puts flexibility at its core.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Amspec .