What is behavioural design in workplace settings?

Behavioural design in workplaces focuses on shaping the physical environment to subtly encourage specific actions and behaviours, such as promoting collaboration and productivity.

Why is behavioural design important for workplace culture?

A well-designed workplace influences behaviour in a way that supports positive interactions. By strategically designing spaces, businesses can foster a culture of teamwork, inclusivity and engagement while boosting overall productivity.

Can behavioural design help with hybrid working?

Yes. Behavioural design can bridge the gap between in-office and remote teams by creating spaces that prioritise collaboration and community. For example, breakout spaces or dynamic collaboration zones encourage interaction when employees are in the office, making their time together more impactful.

How can my business start implementing behavioural design?

Start by identifying the behaviours you want to encourage, such as collaboration or healthier habits. Partnering with a workplace design expert like Oktra ensures a tailored approach that aligns with your goals and transforms your office into a behaviour-driven space.

How Behavioural Design Shapes Workplace Culture

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min read

Patrick Isitt
Senior Content Manager
Content specialist in office design and build.

Have you ever considered how the spaces around you influence your actions? From inspiring collaboration to fostering focus, every element of workplace design plays a role in shaping behaviour – often in ways we don’t immediately notice.

Things like productive work, collaboration and team building are obviously favoured by employers. Behavioural design recognises and embraces this objective, placing behaviour at the heart of design as opposed to an afterthought.

In this article, we’ll explore the impact of behavioural design and how you can utilise it for the benefit of your business and your team.

What is behavioural design?

Broadly speaking, behavioural design is a method focused on influencing people’s behaviour through the way things are designed. It combines design thinking, behavioural economics and human psychology to shape how people act and use products, services or spaces.

This happens in all walks of life—not just the workplace. For example, most social media apps have evolved over the years to utilise a continuous scrolling format rather than the outdated ‘load more’ button, because that’s more likely to get us to stay on the app for longer, consuming more advertisements and finding new things to share with others.

Another example, almost as ubiquitous as our doomscrolling habits, are speed bumps. While it seems obvious, these are designed to reduce speeding by influencing drivers’ behaviour as opposed to simply telling them to slow down.

Behavioural design in the workplace

So how does this all apply to the workplace? Well, all employers have certain behaviours they’d like to encourage. That could be as broad as collaboration and team building, or it could be specific actions like recycling or taking a proper lunch break away from your desk.

While it’s possible to request these actions, behavioural design offers a more intuitive and empowering approach – fostering behaviours naturally rather than enforcing them. Additionally, there’s no guarantee they’ll actually take you up on it. Now imagine having to repeatedly ask people to have lunch in a certain place – it doesn’t come across particularly well, however well-intentioned.

Behavioural design allows you to discreetly encourage certain behaviours and actions – potentially with much better uptake. Here are some techniques…

Improving visibility

The saying goes “out of sight, out of mind”. In contrast to that, you can encourage behaviours by putting things front and centre. Whether it’s recycling stations or collaborative spaces, employees are more likely to use something they can see. Position your chosen space or facilities in the middle of your office rather than tucking them away in the corner.

Adding desirability

Another technique is to make certain behaviours more desirable. Positive reinforcement is a simple example, where you reward preferred actions. But you can also make certain facilities or spaces more desirable by design.

Want employees to use phone booths to improve call quality for clients? Put them on the side of the office with the best views of the city.

Guiding people towards something

Wayfinding is another effective technique if you want to encourage movement.

At DP World’s office, LED lights are used to guide people through the space. It allows them to discover the different parts of the office and take in brand displays, rather than staying in one spot.

Examples of behavioural design in action

Creating a community across two levels

Matillion had previously struggled to foster community and connection due to the split-level layout in their office. As part of a fit-out, they introduced a multi-functional central staircase. This meant, rather than heading to perimeter staircases, employees could go through the heart of the office throughout the day. It encourages the flow of staff between levels, creating a more open, cohesive environment.

Improving staff wellness

There’s an irrefutable link between personal health and workplace productivity. So how do you encourage staff to lead healthier lives? By providing them with the means to do so at work.

Double Eleven’s office includes an on-site gym and dining spaces serving nutritious meals. It’s a small way of encouraging healthier choices – designing a space where those choices are easier to make.

Bringing together a hybrid workforce

After employing a hybrid working model, Trayport were concerned about collaboration and community among their workforce. As well as dedicating more of the office to collaboration zones, they introduced a central breakout space to encourage social interaction.

The location naturally draws employees in, working as a focal point for the office. It ensures that employees are making the most of their time together in the office, now that they have less time together overall – quality over quantity.

Encouraging new ways of working

When designing their new office, Withers and Rogers wanted to reduce the number of cellular spaces and bring partners out of their private offices. This was achieved with a variety of workstations for a hot desking approach.

The desks that remain are positioned near the perimeter. This gives staff the best views for solo work but also means that other workstations are considered too. It promotes a more fluid way of working, where employees work alongside a variety of different people from all levels of the business.

Design as a catalyst for workplace behaviour

Behavioural design allows you to influence people’s actions without asking or telling them to do anything. In the workplace, it can be achieved using different techniques like positioning, natural incentives or subtle visual cues.

With the right approach, behavioural design can help you improve staff wellbeing, collaboration, cohesion and productivity.

- Behavioural Design FAQs
- What is behavioural design in workplace settings?
  
  Behavioural design in workplaces focuses on shaping the physical environment to subtly encourage specific actions and behaviours, such as promoting collaboration and productivity.
  
  Why is behavioural design important for workplace culture?
  
  A well-designed workplace influences behaviour in a way that supports positive interactions. By strategically designing spaces, businesses can foster a culture of teamwork, inclusivity and engagement while boosting overall productivity.
  
  Can behavioural design help with hybrid working?
  
  Yes. Behavioural design can bridge the gap between in-office and remote teams by creating spaces that prioritise collaboration and community. For example, breakout spaces or dynamic collaboration zones encourage interaction when employees are in the office, making their time together more impactful.
  
  How can my business start implementing behavioural design?
  
  Start by identifying the behaviours you want to encourage, such as collaboration or healthier habits. Partnering with a workplace design expert like Oktra ensures a tailored approach that aligns with your goals and transforms your office into a behaviour-driven space.