What is Office Design?

How Your Office Design Can Create the Right Atmosphere

Getting the right look in the office is one of the most important things you can do to boost staff morale and impress clients. While the practical considerations involved in office construction and office furnishing are usually top of mind, it’s worth taking a step back to get a holistic view of the goals and results of good office design.

In this article, we will cover everything from office floor plan design basics to colour and furnishing selection, and more, to help inspire your office design project.

What is Office Design?

Office design is about creating a space that helps employees feel happy and supported, which in turn leads to a more productive work environment and greater business success overall. Office design ideas can be used to promote your business by reflecting its personality and making a statement about who you are. Your design should make an impression on customers, employees, and visitors.

A well-designed office doesn’t just impact how employees feel about their workspace—it can also change how they feel about their job in general. It’s a space where they spend a significant amount of their time, and it can affect their mood, which can trickle into other aspects of their lives.

The Importance of Quality Office Design

The design of your office space can have a huge impact on morale, productivity, and, ultimately, your bottom line. When your employees are happy and comfortable, they’ll be more productive. When customers and clients have a positive experience in your office, they’re more likely to feel good about doing business with you.

Productivity

Employees are more productive when their workspace is designed to suit them. If your employees have enough space, plenty of comfortable seating options, and private areas for phone calls or focused work, they’ll be able to get more done every day. A well-designed office can also help to reduce the time spent on administrative tasks or planning events.

Creativity

Creativity is crucial for any business, but it can be difficult to foster in a traditional office setting. A good design helps promote collaboration between employees while still providing privacy when needed. This helps encourage creative thinking without distractions from other departments or coworkers who might not want to collaborate on projects outside their normal field of expertise.

Health

Working in a well-designed office has been shown to reduce illness and stress by a significant margin. A healthy office leads to healthier employees, which leads to lower payroll costs for business owners and facilitates the work of managers and team leaders.

Improved Communication and Collaboration

The workplace is such a big part of our lives—we spend so much time there, we meet so many people there, and we learn so many skills there. And all of these things are enhanced when you have a workspace that’s built for great communication and collaboration.

How To Create the Right Atmosphere for Your Brand

Another overlooked reason why office design is so important is that it has a huge impact on the atmosphere in an office and team morale. When someone feels good in the office, they are more likely to be productive. But what makes them feel good?

There are several ways to design your office space so it suits your business needs and promotes productivity. Here are some tips for creating the perfect workspace:

Colour

The colour of our surroundings affects our mood. It can lift us up or bring us down. That’s why some offices choose bright colors for walls, or desks that are available in different colors to bring a bit of life into the workplace.

Texture

Texture adds another element to office design because it makes things feel warmer and more inviting. A cotton shirt feels more comfortable than one made of polyester, so why not apply this to your office? Choose soft textures for chairs, carpets, and even walls to make an office feel more welcoming.

Comfort

If you’re creating an office space that evokes comfort, think about natural materials, such as wood and stone, clean lines, and low-contrast color palettes. Soft lighting and minimal clutter are also important components of a comfortable environment.

Style

The style of an office can change the mood too. An open-plan office will be much brighter than one with lots of separate rooms and corridors, for example. Even the choice of furniture can make an office look modern and professional or old-fashioned and cluttered.

Lighting Elements

A well-lit office is not only inviting, but it also helps people feel alert and productive. If you’re looking for a bright, cheery space, go with big windows and white or light-colored walls.

Glamour

A glamorous workplace doesn’t have to be flashy—in fact, it should still be comfortable. But adding just a little bit of glitz in the details can add excitement and boost energy levels. High-contrast color schemes and sparkly materials help create this atmosphere, along with geometric shapes like circles and squares that are repeated throughout the space.

Noise level

Controlling the noise level in your office is important for making sure everyone can concentrate on their work without being distracted by other people’s conversations or loud music. You want to ensure that employees have enough privacy when they need it—but you also want them to feel like part of a team!

Minimalism

Zero clutter and only what’s absolutely necessary for function—that’s the minimalist approach to office design. The key here is keeping furniture as simple as possible without compromising on comfort or function.

Office Design Trends To Look Out for in 2022

We’ve taken a look at what’s new in the world of office design and rounded up the top five things you need to look out for in 2022.

1. "Free" Seating

Maybe you’ve heard of “free” seating in the classroom—where students decide where they want to sit, instead of being told by their teacher? That’s exactly what “free” seating looks like in an office environment: No assigned seats, so everyone can have a little more choice in where they sit every day! It’s a great way to encourage collaboration and innovation within your team.

2. Open Floor Plans

More and more offices are doing away with cubicles in favor of an open floor plan. It might seem less private for employees, but studies show that opening up a space like this can increase productivity by making collaboration easier and allowing for a sense of community in the workplace.

3. Natural Elements

Offices that have windows that let in natural light tend to be more productive because people prefer working in natural light. Even if your office doesn’t have a lot of window space, you can still benefit from bringing a lot of plants into your workspace, which also helps purify the air and promote productivity.

4. Colourful Feature Walls

We know that painting an entire room can be overwhelming, but one way you can incorporate color without feeling like you’re reinventing the wheel is by installing a colorful accent wall somewhere in your office. It could be a bright pink wall behind your desk, or maybe a deep blue wall in the conference room—whatever works with your space and your mood.

By adding one (or more!) feature walls throughout your office, you can make a big impact for relatively little cost. Include inspirational quotes or fun images to help them feel even more welcoming.

5. Collaborative Workspaces

Tech companies have been taking advantage of collaborative workspaces for years now, and other businesses are finally catching on. In fact, it’s increasingly common for businesses across many sectors to devote at least part of their office space to areas where employees can work together on projects or just hang out and spitball ideas.

Look Forward to Going to Work at the Office

At WDI Group, we have decades of experience working with a wide variety of businesses, designing and creating the spaces that their employees need. Over the past several years, we’ve seen a shift in the way our clients approach office design. They’re looking for creative solutions that not only keep their costs down but also reflect their company’s unique vision.

We share these goals, which is why each project starts with a conversation about our clients, their needs, and business requirements–and not a sales pitch. We provide office design solutions that can help you reach your goals.

To learn more about how WDI Group can help you create a beautiful new workspace, call today at 1.888.304.3114 or fill out our online form.

What is Office Design?

How Your Office Design Can Create the Right Atmosphere

What is Office Design?

The Importance of Quality Office Design

Productivity

Creativity

Health

Improved Communication and Collaboration

How To Create the Right Atmosphere for Your Brand

Colour

Texture

Comfort

Style

Lighting Elements

Glamour

Noise level

Minimalism

Office Design Trends To Look Out for in 2022

1. "Free" Seating

2. Open Floor Plans

3. Natural Elements

4. Colourful Feature Walls

5. Collaborative Workspaces

Look Forward to Going to Work at the Office

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