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Content Manager
Content specialist in office design and build.
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Workplace experience is a growing phenomenon for modern businesses. It refers to the overall feeling that a work environment gives employees. Needless to say, it has a big impact on their performance. Engagement, productivity, staff retention and overall wellbeing are just some of the ways it can manifest.
When it comes to creating a productive and enjoyable work environment, office layout plays a pivotal role in shaping the overall workplace experience. From open-plan spaces that foster collaboration to private corners designed for focused tasks, the way an office is structured can significantly impact how people feel about work. A thoughtful, well-designed office not only boosts daily efficiency but also enhances employee morale, contributing to better business outcomes.
In this article, we’ll explore how office layout impacts workplace experience and how businesses can improve both employee wellbeing and productivity through thoughtful design.
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Understanding workplace experience vs. employee experience
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What is workplace experience?
Let’s start by digging a little deeper into the idea of workplace experience. It sees offices as more than just a setting for work – and rightly so. Like any space, workplaces impact those within them. That includes the physical environment, systems employees use and people they interact with at their workplace.
Management practices, company culture, working processes and technology choices can all impact workplace experience. However, office design has arguably the biggest and most direct impact – more on this to come.
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How is workplace experience different from employee experience?
So, how does it differ from employee experience? In short, employee experience transcends location – it includes the entire experience when working for a company, from job interview to exit interview. It’s what people encounter during their tenure.
Of course, there is an overlap. However, workplace experience is solely about people’s interactions within the physical workplace – what they encounter every single day. This gives it a more fine-tuned approach and puts more onus on the office itself.
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The role of office layout in enhancing workplace experience
We’ve mentioned above how office layout has a big, direct impact on workplace experience. Here are some of the factors involved.
Maximising space utilisation for a positive workplace experience
When considering how employees experience the workplace, one of the most important elements of office layout is space utilisation. The spaces available to employees can improve or hinder the workplace experience, depending on how well they suit the teams using them.
Open-plan offices are a case in point. They make it easy to move around the workplace compared to closed-plan spaces where everything is separated. However, it’s important to include different areas to suit the diverse needs of staff.
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That’s achieved at Electric Square’s office, where the lower floor is split into two halves to create distinct working areas for different project teams. Employees can choose from smaller breakout areas or larger collaboration spaces within an open-plan environment. That’s complemented by private meeting rooms and a large boardroom on the upper floor for confidential client meetings and quieter work.
Effective space utilisation requires thorough planning to make the most of the space available. It’s important to consider how a workplace will be used and the relationships between different teams and departments when designing an office. This allows for maximum efficiency and effectiveness when moving around the office and working together.
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Flexibility and adaptability in office layouts
Another important consideration to improve workplace experience is flexibility. Offices should be adaptable to the needs of different teams or tasks. Imagine a one-off project requires multiple teams to work together, but an office doesn’t have a space big enough. Or, on the flipside, teams need smaller, breakout spaces in an open-plan office.
Fortunately, the two aren’t mutually exclusive. Offices can be designed with flexibility in mind to ensure a positive experience for all different requirements. Take YouTube’s Creative Studio, for example, where moveable walls allow the space to be split into two when needed. The cork partitions can be used to pin assets up for a creative, visual working style. When removed, they create one, large open space.
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Modular furniture is another great addition. Modular seating is the most obvious example as it’s often used in homes as well as offices. Components can be used as standalone seats or put together in different configurations to create communal seating areas that fit a team’s changing needs. Another option is modular desks (or modular tables), which can be combined to create large meeting or conference tables without the need to take up lots of space on a permanent basis.
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The psychological impact of office layout on workplace experience
It’s not just about the different spaces available or how you move between them. Office layout can affect the overall feeling of a workplace from the moment employees arrive in the morning. Elements like natural lighting, biophilic design and spatial organisation all have their own impact on employee mood and productivity.
For example, 78% of employees said that natural light improves their overall happiness and wellbeing at work – making it the most sought-after perk. In the same study, 47% said an absence of natural light makes them feel tired or very tired, with 43% feeling gloomy for the same reason.
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Similarly, having plants in the office has been found to reduce physiological and psychological stress. Experts have also suggested that plants can improve overall wellbeing by cleaning the air, leading to a reduction in sick days over time.
As for spatial organisation, it’s only natural that people are happier when an office layout works for them. Having to venture across different rooms and floors to get where you need to be can easily become tiresome, for example. Employees don’t need everything in one place, but offices should be designed so people can move through them efficiently without feeling like their time is being wasted.
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All of this leads to better performance – with a strong link between staff wellbeing and productivity. Gallup found that poor staff wellbeing leads to a 61% higher likelihood of burnout at work, resulting in $322 billion (£246 billion) lost in productivity around the world.
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Privacy vs. collaboration: finding balance in layout design
For many employees, the key to a good workplace experience is suitability. In other words, having places to work that fit their requirements for each task or project. By nature, open-plan spaces are great for collaboration, while traditional closed-plan offices are all about focus. However, it’s important to find a balance between these two.
There are many different working styles or preferences that people can have. Some employees may prefer to focus on independent work in a private space, while others will bounce off their colleagues in an open environment.
Additionally, most office roles aren’t uniform and rigid. They’re dynamic, typically requiring a combination of individual work, teamwork in small groups and collaboration with different departments. This calls for a mixture of different spaces within the office.
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Zoning is a flexible way to achieve this balance. It refers to dividing space into sections without fully separating it from the rest of the office. At SIX Group’s office, each corner of the office is designated a particular colour, manifested in curved shapes on the wall and ceiling. These spaces are furnished with soft seating, creating collaborative breakout spaces for staff away from desks and workstations.
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How sustainable office design impacts workplace experience
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Improving your workplace experience
Workplace experience revolves around how employees feel in their workplace, which can impact how they perform. Unlike employee experience, it’s solely about the physical workplace – your office – meaning that design is even more important.
Brands should look to utilise space in the best ways possible, offering different areas to suit all requirements and preferences. Adaptability is a good way to achieve this within space constraints, using things like moveable partitions and modular furniture to adapt a single area to changing needs.
Other aspects of your office design like natural light and biophilic elements will also contribute to staff wellbeing and the overall experience. Similarly, sustainable office design can improve the experience for an increasingly eco-conscious workforce.
The results include better wellbeing, increased employee satisfaction, improved productivity and higher staff retention – which are all key drivers of business success.
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Speak to a workplace expert
020 7553 9500
info@oktra.co.uk
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