Why do we need to work in an office today? This is one of the questions that managers and HR departments are answering anew as they urge their employees to return to working on site. How can the space itself help in defining the value of the workplace?
“Spaces conducive to interaction, rooms for meditation or reading, but also well-lit and cooled areas where work can be much more effective than at home. Today, an office is more than just a space, it is an efficiently planned and organised service,” argues Marcin Kosieniak, a specialist in engineering solutions and co-owner of a design office.
Probably no one today doubts that remote working – although expected by employees and job candidates – is not conducive to building committed teams. This is why companies all over the world are introducing incentive programmes and regulations that make office attendance mandatory, if only two or three times a week.
According to a Gallup Institute analysis, even fully remote workers admit that online collaboration is more difficult, with only 35% saying that teamwork is best done remotely. Leaders and managers, on the other hand, believe that communication (48%) and collaboration (44%) are the two biggest challenges their teams face in a hybrid work environment.
How can the office space itself help with this?
“Today, office space is thought of as a place that will flex to the changing needs of employees. However, in order for this space to be able to be artistically arranged in various configurations, HVAC solutions must be ‘sewn’ into the structure of the building, which will then enable the space to be configured to meet expectations,” points out Marcin Kosieniak, MEP specialist and co-owner of the PM Projekt design office.
What solutions are involved?
“A properly calculated energy balance and a large number of other energy analyses make it possible to plan different variants and layouts in order to ensure comfort where teamwork takes place. Presence sensors so that the ventilation systems work when ventilation is needed,” Kosieniak enumerates.
How do you build community in the office?
This is how flex spaces were born – flexible spaces that can be personalised to the specific needs of companies or their teams.
“Employees – regardless of whether they are in a company office or coworking space – expect it to be functional, with efficient service, but also aesthetically pleasing. This has probably always been the case; today these elements have only intensified considerably. What is new is the expectation that our workplaces should be environmentally friendly, better and more comfortable than the comforts of home, and that there should be community in the office. This last factor poses the biggest challenge for designers,” points out Marcin Kosieniak, MEP specialist and co-owner of the PM Projekt design office.
Comfort becomes a priority
Because flex is not just about the flexibility of settings – today it is also about the office space being able to offer something we don’t have in remote working.
“We build well-being in our workplaces not only with aesthetic solutions, but above all with an engineering approach to solutions that are ecological but also support well-being. Already at the design stage, we know where there are spaces where a lot of people will be staying constantly – which means we want to give them as much daylight as possible, but at the same time ensure adequate evenly distributed cooling during warm days. Meditation rooms must not be adjacent to a conference room where group discussions can take place. Parking, spaces for bicycles, but also spaces where spontaneous meetings can be deliberately programmed are important,” Kosieniak enumerates.
“The best HVAC solutions are those that you don’t notice or hear are in the room, yet you feel comfortable,” Kosieniak concludes.
Spaces that encourage unplanned interactions may prove to be one of the most important elements in building a new type of workplace value proposition.
One recent Gallup study of 112,312 teams, 2,708,538 employees and 54 industries from around the world shows that people who have a best friend at work are significantly more engaged in their work, engage more strongly with customers and produce higher quality work. This is because strong relationships are the basis for trust, support and a sense of meaningful work.
It is the conversations in the corridor, lunch and coffee breaks or meetings that effectively contribute to problem solving – after all, it is easier to clarify something on the spot than to write a message or arrange another meeting online. And it is these spontaneous interactions that are impossible to replicate in a virtual office.
