A brace of new reports sets out to identify the challenges organisations set themselves by inhabiting dated offices and how modern office design principles could address them. According to the Meeting Expectations report, released by K2 Space, workplace productivity is being impeded as a direct result of dated office design. The second study from Saracen Interiors focuses more on the role of office design as a recruitment tool. The reports follow the recent publication of a major report on similar themes from Worktech Academy and Fourfront Group.
The K2 survey of 1,000 GB-based office workers undertaken by YouGov revealed that 30 per cent of workers believe their office is outdated, uninspiring and in need of a complete refurbishment – and crucially, one in five (21 percent) said that if their office was better designed they would be more productive at work.
What office workers really need
When respondents were asked what could be done to improve their current office space, 32 per cent would like more access to natural light: 19 per cent said the lighting in their office is poor and has a negative effect on their mood and productivity. Thirty one per cent of all respondents would like to see more colour, artwork, and graphics utilised to enliven their workspace, a fifth of respondents would like the inclusion of sit-stand desks, and the same number of workers also believe having access to/improved showering and washing facilities would improve their office.
A consistent theme throughout the research was a desire amongst office workers for more informal spaces for working and collaborating, and also private spaces for concentrating and taking telephone calls; 30 per cent agree the introduction of such spaces would improve their office, while 31 per cent believe it would improve the quality of meetings specifically. A further 35 per cent of respondents agree the traditional boardroom is outdated and has had its day.
Co-founder of office design and fit-out specialist K2 Space, Mark Phillips, said: “The productivity puzzle continues to perplex economists with no-one really able to identify why the UK’s levels of output are still behind rates achieved prior to the 2008 financial crisis. Some factors – such as Brexit – create uncertainty and are obviously outside of an organisation’s control, but the physical work environment should not be underestimated as having a significant impact on staff wellbeing and mood, collaboration and productivity.”
“Our research highlights the fact that while office design can be incredibly subjective, the real goal is to create a space that attracts and retains talented staff. We’ve known for some time that sedentary working is not good for our bodies, and so organisations should be actively looking at ways of offering collaborative, shared working zones that encourage movement around the office to allow staff to remain both physically and mentally active.”