The pandemic profoundly (and permanently) impacted the way we work. Most experts believe remote work and hybrid offices are here to stay. This disruption also dramatically changed the way we think about office design.
With the widespread talent shortage and the new hybrid work culture, companies are rethinking their office space and putting a renewed focus on creating inspiring, comfortable spaces that promote connection, collaboration and innovation.
We’ve outlined five key trends for creating #SpacesThatInspire.
Maximize Your Space with a Dynamic Layout
No more cubicle farms, rigid partitions and static grids. Post-pandemic design focuses on creating dynamic spaces that can be easily adapted to fit the needs of an ever-changing workforce.
After two years of full or partial isolation, the best way to foster collaboration and teamwork for your employees is to ensure that your space is versatile enough to accommodate a variety of interactions.
Create multiple spaces for formal and informal meetings. Think beyond the conference room and design common areas that are both comfortable and functional for different size meetings. Leverage outdoor space, your cafeteria and other areas where team members can work together.
Make the Office Feel More Like Home
COVID-19 gave us all a crash course in working from home. While there were some awkward moments, we all learned how to take Zoom calls from home, work on projects from the comfort of our kitchens and listen to our favorite music while churning out an important project.
Now, businesses are trying to recreate the best elements of working from home in the workplace. Enter: Resimercial — an exciting design trend that blends the best of residential and commercial. Its advocates say this trend, sometimes called respitality (residential meets hospitality), can boost creativity, productivity and camaraderie.
Embrace Technology
It’s critical to install the right technology to facilitate remote collaboration between onsite and remote employees. Investing in top-quality hardware and IT infrastructure ensures that your teams remain productive and connected, regardless of working in the office, at home, or from another remote location.
Be smart when considering video conferencing technology and networking hard and software. Quality connectivity, secure networks and clear video conferencing bring teams together for more productive work.
Commit to Human-Centered Design
But the top priority for 2022 is people. Service design combines human, digital and physical interactions to create the perfect space and user experience. Understanding emotional connections and how people engage with one another are major components of the design process.
As more and more companies refocus on company culture and bringing teams back together, human-centered design will lead office upgrades to improve health and wellness, productivity, satisfaction, engagement and happiness.
Promote Sustainability
Sustainability has become a high priority for many business operations, and the same applies with commercial property and office design. Companies are looking for ways to make their offices more sustainable day-to-day and this has influenced design and product designs.
There are many ways to build workspace with sustainability in mind. By incorporating high-efficiency systems, using LED lighting, taking advantage of natural light and passive ventilation, sticking to low-emission materials and re-using or re-purposing furniture, businesses can easily lessen their environmental impact. Our LEED-certified team can help create a sustainable office design for your workspace.
Another great way to make your office more sustainable: Add EV Charging Stations. With gas prices at record highs, this is a fantastic employee perk and a great brand signal. Casco’s EV360 team can help with all aspects of the EV planning, permitting and installation process.
Ready to get started designing your new and improved office space? Casco Design Studio is here to help.