Sarah Jones, Grey Interiors on creating enviable office workspace
Written by: on April 21, 2011
Introducing Sarah Jones of www.greyinteriors.com
The physical space element of an Enviable Workplace keeps evolving – I am particularly passionate about the impact a workspace look/feel can have on the overall motivation, attitude and commitment an employee will have towards their organisation. Having run many successful ‘office refurbishment’ projects, we work on a few key principles that can make all the difference when creating an enviable workspace:
1. Make the first impression a positive one
Upon entering your workspace, what does the layout and design impress upon you, your colleagues and your clients? It can really determine the outlook for the day, the meeting, the pitch and all aspects of the staff’s outlook. Walk through your reception/holding area with a fresh pair of eyes and ask yourself ‘would I want to work/do business here?’
TIP: Make a holding area or reception shout a message, use digital print wallpaper to connect with your brand, create a WOW factor reception desk.
Two enviable examples of client reception areas:
2. Ensure your meeting spaces say something about your brand/values
Creative meeting spaces can really inspire your meeting topics, and the design can help set the right tone e.g. creative or formal. Higher ceilings, work walls and lighter/brighter colours help inspire creative thinking; darker tones, veneer and structured fabrics help create a more formal tone. Think ‘what do we want from our meeting spaces?’
TIP: If the room is used for internal meetings, create enough solid walls for capturing brainstorms on and affixing reference material. If the room is client-facing, subtly add brand-connecting paintings, something that will start a conversation. And always make sure the room is equipped for all your presentation needs.
Here we have two contrasting enviable meeting room client examples:
3. Use words and painting to subtly communicate and motivate movement
We encourage the use of text on glass and walls to label a place within the office. This generates movement, and creates social hubs. Think how we act within a library compared to a canteen – our surroundings really impact our behaviours. So using text on walls signals the expected behaviour for the area e.g. a quiet working space or a chatty networking hub.
TIP: Explore the impact signposting different areas in your workspace can have.
Here we have some examples of enviable ‘hubs’ within an office:
4. Brand Your Location To Attract People
Location can also tell a story, a client of ours Blu Halo needed to attract Soho calibre, so they named their offices ‘Soho in the Sticks’ . This became the signature for our design. We designed the offices to reflect what motivated the people; what inspired them to create, work and play. The innovative design created an enviable workspace. Visit Grey Interiors to see picture of Blu Halo’s workplace.
No matter what your budget or space you can create a visual wow factor and create a good first impression – I will be focusing on the modern workplace giving tips and ideas on how to create an enviable workspace.
Sarah Jones, www.greyinteriors.com