How stylish is your office?

Office Provider Ventia have been having a major shake-up on how ‘the traditional office’ should look, and we want to find out if this extra time, effort and cost really affects business for the office space owners.

When allocating funding in your business, having a practical, cheap and simple office fit-out would seem the most obvious choice. It will be fit for purpose, it’ll be easier and it will definitely be cheaper to organise. But, with the shifting of the workplace in recent years, companies are, firstly, caring more for the welfare of their employees and, secondly, recognising that employees are prioritising the environment in which they work and, therefore, the jobs they take.

[caption id="attachment_16834" align="aligncenter" width="580"] HQ Hamill at the Quays[/caption]

Having breakout areas in themes, such as the Woodland area at HQ Hamill at the Quays, Salford, may look attractive, but it also serves a purpose as, according to payscale.com, “Greens tend to inspire creative thinking. It may also spark some creativity in your clients when they visit, and may make brainstorming sessions and meetings more productive.”

And in Ventia’s John Street location, their comfortable seating and natural, white lighting may look like a beautiful mansion you’d see at an English Heritage site, but it has been proven by scientist Mirjam Muench that, during a study, “people who had daylight were significantly more alert at the beginning of the evening, and subjects who were exposed to artificial light were significantly sleepier at the end of the evening.” So, in essence, by consciously changing to natural lighting, work and productivity should be improved in that space.

[caption id="attachment_17799" align="aligncenter" width="580"] A collage of Ventia's John Street[/caption]

We caught up with Helen Bartlett, Design Manager at Paramount Interiors, to get her view on the change in office layout. She told us,

“Employees are a businesses’ main asset and therefore well-being and staff retention are high on the agenda for most. A move in recent years towards creating more thought-provoking and creative environments that encourage staff to think in more inspiring ways can only be positive, as ultimately businesses should always be looking for new ideas and ways to improve. It’s quite simple really: Value your staff and they will add value to your business by thinking more creatively.”

With time having been invested in studies to see what makes people work better, it is becoming apparent that a stylish and thought-out workspace is becoming more of an expected element in a workplace than a nice-to-have.

And companies like Ventia, who have used interior designers in the facelift of their new office spaces, are reaping the rewards, with their last two offices opening with 65% and 100% occupancy. They have attributed this impressive tenancy to the design and boutique feel of the spaces.

So, the stats support it, the sales support it, so will you be looking at the interior design of your office space? For now, break out areas, eating areas and quiet zones might be dotted around our office space, but are they the future of ‘the traditional office’? Ventia certainly think so, and so do we.

Why not click on the picture's captions to see space in this building and see more pictures!

[caption id="attachment_17800" align="aligncenter" width="580"] A collage of Ventia's Audley House[/caption]